Wellness
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For onsite services, we require a minimum of 20 employees. For smaller companies that want wellness services, we can either charge an onsite fee or we will see them at any of our clinic locations. We will work with you to meet your company’s specific needs.
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Because every company is different, a great place to start is by conducting an Interest Survey among your wellness committee or all employees. That feedback will offer great insight as to what direction your program should take and what information you should include. Huntsville Hospital Corporate Wellness now offers wellness consulting, complete with your own Corporate Health and Wellness Consultant. We will work with you to develop a highly effective plan to improve employee wellness and help flatten health insurance costs. Contact HH Corporate Wellness for more information.
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Many of the companies we serve have several shifts, and it is important to make our services available to all employees. We schedule our services around your needs and time constraints. We specialize in packing the most wellness we can into a very short amount of time.
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Each company is different, so we recommend including questions related to incentives on your Interest Survey. Many self-insured companies find that an insurance reduction is highly motivating to their employees. Other companies who may not be self-insured or who may not want to go that route, may choose to offer a cash incentive. Whatever you choose to do, we recommend offering some type of incentive at the beginning of the program and including smaller incentives along the way as well. The problem we have heard quite often from clients in regards to offering one incentive at the conclusion of the program, is that if employees know they will not qualify for the large prize at the end, they tend to not participate in the program at all. The key is to offer your employees encouragement and rewards all along the way, so no one gives up and everyone is healthier at the finish line.
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Please visit our biometric screening section to learn more.
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A Hemoglobin A1C is a non-fasting test to determine blood glucose control.
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Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) is a blood test to screen for prostate cancer.
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Health coaching offers employees time to meet one-on-one with a health coach to discuss their individual screening results and set goals for behavior changes. Many employees do not have a primary care physician. This time, although brief, increases awareness of potential health problems and provides the employee an opportunity to ask questions about their unique risk factors.
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Our wellness team is made up of experienced health professionals, who have organized numerous events for major corporations throughout North Alabama.
Drug Screens
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The drug screen we recommend typically depends on the reason the drug screen is being conducted. For pre-employment drug screens, we recommend a 10-panel rapid. The 10-panel tests for the largest variety of drugs, including prescription drugs, which have become such a problem. If the test results in a non-negative, it will be sent to the lab for an MRO review. If the drug screen is being done in response to a situation (i.e. accident, injury, random, for cause), we recommend performing a 10-panel lab certified test. The reason for this is because the lab certified tests require a chain of custody and a more regulated testing structure. If the test results may lead to the termination of an employee, a lab certified test will be a more reliable piece of evidence if it becomes a legal matter. We strongly recommend consulting your legal counsel when defining your company drug screen policy. Also, if your company is part of the Drug Free Workplace program, you must use a lab certified test. Please see our Drug Screen Info Sheet for more detailed information on individual drug screens.
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Please visit www.livedrugfree.org for information on how to become a drug free workplace.
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An MRO is a Medical Review Officer. All of our physicians are MRO’s.
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We use Quest Labs for all of our testing needs.
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Yes. We regularly provide drug screen collections for companies using an eScreen service.
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A rapid drug screen will give you the ability to get most of the results back the same day. The test generally takes less than 5 minutes when performed, not including any problems that may occur. If the result is negative, we can contact you at the end of the day, or early morning of the next day, depending on when the employee comes in. The employee will also be given paperwork that he/she can bring to you directly. If the test comes back as non-negative, at that point we send the sample off for further testing to a SAMSHA Certified Lab. The result is then sent back to our physicians to review.
A “Send Off” is sent to the lab directly for processing. The results take 48-72 hours to receive. The results have to be processed, reviewed, and by law our physicians must make good faith efforts to contact the employee in case of a non-negative result. A lab certified test is required for participants of the Drug Free Workplace Program. Please see our Drug Screen Info Sheet for more details.
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It depends on why you are testing the employee. A urine test is more applicable if you are trying to get a snapshot of what the employee might have taken at that time. A hair test is more useful if you are trying to get a better view of the employee’s long term habits. Please see our Drug Screen Info Sheet for more details.
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One of the biggest problems with doing random drug screens in-house is that the employees may feel the selection process is not as “random” as it is intended to be. Allowing a third party, such as OHG, to conduct the random selection and administer the test, ensures the company continues to be viewed as fair and unbiased. If you choose to use OHG for your random drug screen program, we will conduct the random selection process for no additional charge.
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Performing a drug screen after an accident, where no injuries occur, is strictly up to each company. Some company policies require a drug screen after any type of incident, whether it is a car crash or running a fork lift into a wall. If your company does not have a current policy in place, we recommend consulting with legal counsel to develop a protocol for drug screening after an accident.
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Performing a drug screen after an injury is strictly up to each company. Some company policies require a drug screen after any type of incident, whether it is a car crash or running a fork lift into a wall. If your company does not have a current policy in place, we recommend consulting with legal counsel to develop a protocol for drug screening after an accident.
DOT
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All of our Providers, doctors and nurse practitioners, are Certified DOT Medical Examiners.
Clinics
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A Lift Test is a very basic test that determines if a patient is able to lift a certain amount of weight. A Strength Assessment Test is most often conducted for jobs with significant physical demands. We ask that a detailed job description be submitted for each position. A physical therapist will then develop an appropriate physical test to assess the patient’s ability to perform the required tasks.
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OHG clinics are unique because we only treat Occupational Health needs. This means that when you send your healthy employees in for a routine appointment, they will not be sitting with sick patients. This also means shorter wait times. Our Huntsville location now has a designated Testing Services Facility to ensure employees can be tested and back on the job in a timely manner. Also, all of our physicians are Board Certified and only practice Occupational Medicine. This certification ensures they are experts in the areas of ergonomics, OSHA standards, drug screening, discerning whether an injury is work related and even what type of duties an injured employee can perform while they are recovering.
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Yes. We regularly provide drug screen collections for companies using an eScreen service.
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Yes. While we do not provide after-hours services at our clinics, patients may be seen for work-comp injuries and drug screens at the Huntsville Hospital and Decatur-Morgan Emergency Departments. Employees should either be accompanied by a supervisor or provide a Treatment Authorization Form to ER staff, identifying themselves as an OHG patient. OHG works closely with our ER departments on a daily basis to follow up on any after-hours needs.
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Our clinics are extremely advanced and can treat most work related injuries. We do have onsite x-rays and can perform services to repair lacerations and minor traumas. If needed, the physician may refer the patient to an appropriate specialist.
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Yes. You may use whichever clinic is the most convenient to you and your employees. Our database is linked throughout our system, so the information in one clinic is available at all clinics.
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We do not make appointments for drug screens or simple vaccinations (TB, Flu Shots, etc.). We do require an appointment for any type of physical or strength assessment test. Workers’ Comp cases are on a walk-in basis as well. If you have never used our clinic before, you will need to contact the clinic you will be sending your employee to in order to set up your company information in our database. View our clinic locations here.
While it is not required, we do ask that if you know you need to send an employee for drug screening, that you send them in at least 2-3 hours before closing, when possible. For Federally mandated screens, we are required to give the employee 3 hours to perform the test.
Worker's Comp
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The primary concern of our physicians is always the health and well-being of the patient. In many cases, maintaining a high standard of care can still be achieved without the use of prescription drugs and extensive time away from work. Our physicians know that employees want to get back to work and the employers want them back on the job. Through clear and constant communication, we work hard to make sure employees stay healthy and working.
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In the case of a severed limb, a person who is unconscious or any injury that requires an ambulance, you would send the patient to the closest ER. Please note that if you use the Huntsville Hospital, Madison Hospital or Decatur-Morgan Hospital ER, OHG will have access to those patient records for follow up visits if necessary. Please be sure to send an After Hours Treatment Authorization Formwith the employee to be sure the ER staff know to treat the case as a Work Comp injury.
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Performing a drug screen after an accident, where no injuries occur, is strictly up to each company. Some company policies require a drug screen after any type of incident, whether it is a car crash or running a fork lift into a wall. If your company does not have a current policy in place, we recommend consulting with legal counsel to develop a protocol for drug screening after an accident.