I am a practising occupational physician and lead the Park health team, a joint venture responsible for delivering the Olympic Delivery Authority’s (ODA) vision for occupational health.
The commitment of the ODA goes beyond the protection of the health and safety of everyone working on the construction of the infrastructure and venues for London 2012 - it extends to enhancing their well-being. As a result, the ODA has commissioned a team of occupational health practitioners – hygienists, nurses and physicians – to provide a comprehensive free service to all those working on the Olympic Park.
Park Health staff at work within the Medical Centre:
With 20 years experience as a specialist in occupational medicine, for the last 17 years I've led the development and delivery of occupational health services in a wide variety of organisations throughout the public and private sectors. I have a particular interest in construction and have previously been involved with both the Heathrow Terminal 5 and Channel Tunnel construction projects.
Health and the construction industryThe construction industry has the second-worst record for work-related ill health. Research has shown that approximately 200,000 construction workers in the UK suffer from work-related ill health and there is a high mortality rate for construction workers independent of social class.
One of Park health nurses conducting lifestyle screening within the work place:
Receiving help for health problems is more difficult for construction workers as a lot of them only work somewhere for a short amount of time and can, as a result, find it difficult to gain access to health care services. The industry is also becoming increasingly reliant on migrant labour.
ODA commitment to health provisionRecognising the size of the health problem in the construction industry, the ODA has committed itself to a high level of occupational health provision at the Olympic Park, with the aim not only of preventing illness but enhancing the well-being of all involved on the project. 'Park health', a joint venture of three leading occupational health providers, has been created to make the ODA’s vision a reality.
The role of Park healthTo achieve this, Park health is going to focus on two areas, the workplace and the people working on the Olympic Park:
1) Within the workplace, the aim will be to either eliminate or minimise any risks to health posed by construction work. Attention is going to be paid to all stages of the construction process from design to the build itself.
Clinical services will start with a pre-commencement health assessment designed not to exclude people from work but to identify and correct health problems at the start of an individual's work at the Olympic Park. Previous experience has shown that up to 30 per cent of construction workers have a health problem at their pre-commencement medical, of which 50 per cent are undiagnosed.
Park health staff at work within the Medical Centre:
2) During their employment at the Olympic Park, healthcare services will include a comprehensive nurse-led, GP-supported treatment and emergency response service. This service has established close links with the NHS and emergency services. Health promotion and lifestyle screening activities are also an important feature of the services on offer.
A rolling programme of activities is being carried out in close cooperation with leading organisations in this field including the local NHS and the Men’s Health Forum. The latter organisation is a recognition of the established poorer health among men than women. Other clinical services will include health surveillance to detect any work-related medical conditions and advice on how employees who are off sick can be rehabilitated back to work.
Changing standards to healthThe overall aim of Park health can be summed up as trying to change behaviour towards health at all levels within the construction industry. To achieve this, Park health staff will work hard to win the trust and respect of everyone working at the Olympic Park.
