Advice and guidance
According to the Occupational Health Care Act, all occupational health care activities must include the provision of information, advice and guidance. Information, advice and guidance are also provided as a separate, planned activity to individuals and groups.
Occupational health care assesses the need for advice and guidance by means of workplace surveys, health checks and other occupational health care methods.
Occupational health care professionals and experts must provide advice, guidance and feedback to the employer and employees regarding the following:
- the aims and content of occupational health care at different stages of the occupational health care provision
- the health risks and harms present in the work and the workplace, their significance and protection against them, and first aid arrangements
- healthy and safe working methods when starting work and at later stages
- occupational diseases and accidents and their prevention
- work-induced diseases and other work-related morbidity
- improvements in the work, working environment and work community
- maintenance and promotion of employees’ health and work ability and prevention of incapacity for work
- the significance of resources in maintaining and promoting health and work ability
- health risks and harms related to working methods, work arrangements, working hours, workplace conditions and changes in these, and how to control them
- prevention of substance abuse and early identification of substance abusers, and treatment and referring for treatment
- prevention and control of work-related physical violence and of harassment and inappropriate treatment
- when unemployment is impending
- reduction of health inequalities among the staff
- cooperation on the provision of occupational health care and organisation of the operational practice for the control and monitoring of work ability, early support and return to work.
The employer, the occupational safety and health committee of the workplace and the occupational safety and health representative have the right to receive information from occupational health care that is relevant for the improvement of the health of employees and the healthiness of the workplace conditions. An employee can, for a justified reason, request a report on their workload from occupational health care.