Health &
wellbeing
assessment
The 3 areas of health
& wellbeing and how
to approach them
Booklet 2
December 2013
Issue 1
Introduction
and background
To become active in
health and wellbeing
Book 1 informs line
managers of the
assessment process
and the key role they
play to start it off. In this
book we would like to
make you aware of the
three areas of health
and wellbeing that you
may use the assessment
steps to manage.
You will already be aware of each of the
three areas in some shape or form. For
instance you no doubt undertake risk
assessments already and will be aware
of the safety risks found in your job role.
But do you consider the health risks in
enough detail?
You will also manage the absence of
your employees but how in depth are
your actions to assure an individual’s
fitness to work?
When it comes to wellbeing you may
notice stressed colleagues but who
takes action to help ease this stress?
Within book 2 we wish to understand
these issues better so we are able to
control them.
Purpose of
the health
and wellbeing
information suite
This document focuses on helping supervisors
and line managers to understand the three
health and wellbeing assessment areas. It also
looks at how the first step may be made to bring
HWA into their daily activities.
This booklet forms part of a suite of information
aimed at increasing awareness of the need
for all those involved with supervision and
management to consider and improve health
and wellbeing in the workplace.
Other elements of the Health and
Wellbeing suite include:
•A DVD containing an introductory video,
plus case studies and all of the resources
set out below
•Line Manager guidance called The HWA
process and the vital role of the line manager
(Booklet 1)
•Posters of each various aspect of HWA
• Briefing and workshop session plans &
guidance (Booklet 3) and associated
presentation materials
Purpose of this document
This document aims to help you:
•Recognise the practical things that you can do and consider that can protect
and improve the health and wellbeing of yourself and others
•Understand the three health areas and how to take the first step to
undertaking a health and wellbeing assessment
1
2
What is health and wellbeing assessment (HWA)?
The aim of a health and wellbeing assessment is to follow a simple process to
identify health hazards in the workplace, assess potential risks to health and
determine appropriate ways of informing others. This needs to be focused on
protecting, and where possible, enhancing the health and wellbeing of people.
It is important to avoid feeling as though you have to tackle these issues alone.
In fact, you are likely to achieve even better results by working alongside others,
especially with someone who works in the environment concerned on a day to
day basis.
Health and wellbeing assessment needs to be a partnership between managers,
front-line workers and occupational health advisors - each bringing their
knowledge, experience and skills to support the process.
The three aspects of health and wellbeing assessment
Looking at Diagram 1 opposite, you will see that three main elements relating
to working within any organisation have been represented by the coloured
circles. The overlap of each adjacent pair of circles represents the key areas for
managers to focus on in relation to health and wellbeing risk assessment.
Diagram 1: The three
aspects of health and
wellbeing assessment.
Individuals
1
1 12
Assure
Individual
Fitness
Tasks
Risk
Assessment
Job
Protect &
Enhance
Employee
Wellbeing
1 12
Tasks
Organisation
1
Tasks
3
3
3
The key areas include:
2
Assess
Tasks
2
1
2
Individual
3
2
Individual
3
Wellbeing
3 job activities
Assess
3
2
Looking at the impact of activities relevant to a number of workers
carrying out similar tasks
Individual
Wellbeing
Assure
3 individual fitness
Looking at helping an individual continue working or to return to
work
within their own capabilities and specific circumstances
Wellbeing
Protect and enhance employee wellbeing
Looking at helping psychological issues, working conditions and
helping reduce undue stresses as far as possible
These are the areas that we need to be aware of, monitor and be prepared
to respond to in our daily working lives. When you apply HWA in your own
workplace, it is useful to have these in mind. Look out for the posters that tell
you more about each area.
4
2
1
Task
Assessment
2
1
Tasks
Individual
Task Risk Assessment is a procedure of
reviewing workplace tasks and activities
to consider what could negatively affect
employees and decide on suitable
control measures for preventing harm or
performance loss.
3
Wellbeing
Hierarchy of controls
Start at the top and work down
Most effective control
• Elimination e.g Discontinue use
of product, equipment, cease
work process, automate
Where possible,
use you own
organisation’s
risk assessments
as information to
help you
• Substitution e.g. Replace with a
similar item that does the same
job but with a lower hazard level
• Isolation e.g Put a barrier
between the person and the
hazard
Effects of Work on Health
Make yourself aware of the types of health hazards
that might be found in your workplace
• Engineering/Organisational
Controls e.g. Change the
process, procedures, rosters,
training etc. to minimise the risk
The routes to entry
V
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cte disease
Fu rial
disease,
Pa ngal
ras disease,
itic
d i s e a se
R
Ha ad
n
Te d
V
ne
chi g
Man-ma eatin nt
e
Interface S uipm
Employee-eq e
ac
Interf
5
Drug
s
Fertil , Dye
ize
s
Vapo rs, D , Ex
u
u
Pes rs, R s
So ticid
lv
Pa en
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s
ive
os e s
p l G as
t, ins,
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es ,
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,
o is e
, N oads,
n
l
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tio
ia ng o ture,
li era n
p atio
m br
i
Trai
ning type &
D e si
g
ork.
Wor n of w on
k organisati
The diagram below shows how
hazards to health can enter the
body and cause harm
Ingestion
Skin
Inhalation
• Personal protective equipment
e.g. Equipment worn to provide a
temporary barrier
Use support
within your
organisation
to help make
decisions
Least effective control
This hierarchy of controls aims to help
managers understand the order in which to
consider controlling health issues
Injection
Risk assessment:
In risk assessment we look at:
• Hazards - which are situations with the potential to cause harm
• Risk - which is defined as the probability that a specific adverse event will
occur in a specific time period or as a result of a specific situation.
For each hazard identified it is important to decide whether it is significant and
whether appropriate and sufficient controls are in place to manage the risk.
6
Task Assessment
continued
5
points to be
aware of...
1 Recognise the
hazards to health
2 Understand the
routes of entry
3 Collect information until
you understand the issues
4 Use organisational
support in your task
5 Only use PPE as a
last resort. Use the
hierarchy of controls
7
Checklists
a Physical environment
issues
•What noisy equipment or
processes are present? (do
people need to shout to be
heard?)
•What tasks involve
exposure to hand-arm
transmitted or whole body
vibration?
•Are there any working
areas where extremes of
heat, cold or humidity are
present or could occur?
•Is ventilation adequate?
Is there a good supply of
fresh air and extraction of
potentially harmful gases or
dust?
•Are cutting and welding
activities carried out which
emit light radiation?
b Chemicals
•Are workers exposed to chemicals that could affect normal physical or
mental functioning in the short or long term?
•Does any process allow for chemicals to be mixed and could that give
rise to a hazard?
•What products, by-products and wastes (gaseous, liquid or solid) are
being produced?
•What potentially hazardous building construction materials are being
used (for example, asbestos sheets or lead-based paint)?
c Biological issues
•What systems are present for drinking water, effluent, sanitation and
sewage?
•What washing facilities are present? Are they adequate for the number
of workers and are they cleaned regularly?
•Does the site have a known legionella management and control
programme?
•In canteens and eating places, what is the potential for insects, rodents
and bacteria?
•If there is an air-conditioning system, what is the potential for bacteria?
•Are there any known disease carrying insect or rodents in the local
environment?
d Ergonomic issues
• Do workers have to carry out heavy manual tasks?
•Are workers involved in repetitive, awkward or unnatural movements; or
do they have to remain in a static position for long periods?
•Do they wear personal protective clothing or equipment that restricts
free movement or requires greater exertion?
8
2
1
Individual
1
AssessmentTasks
2
Individual
3
Wellbeing
Do’s and don’ts for keeping in touch
Individual health assessment is about an
organisation’s activities undertaken to
understand, manage and rehabilitate an
employee’s health so that they are able to
continue to function as a productive member
of a team. The line manager may need help to
make necessary adjustments to the person’s
workspace so that their on-going working
needs, as well as their health and safety
needs are met.
Identifying Individual health issues:
• A person’s behaviour changes
• Absence reports indicate that a person is
suffering from an illness
• Health check surveys may highlight underlying
health illnesses not yet fully presented
• Health assessments
• Reports from Occupational Health Specialists
Look to see if your employees need any help. Do not wait for them to
have to ask
Feel confident to talk to your employee about health issues; guidance
suggests that talking is best even if you do make a few mistakes
DO
3 Consider training for your managers on a sensitive
approach to help them get the most out of contact
3 Create a climate of trust by agreeing beforehand
your methods, frequency and reasons for keeping
contact with absent employees
3 Keep a note of contacts made
3 Be flexible, treat each case individually but on a fair
and consistent basis
3 Carry out return to work interviews
3 Welcome your employee back after their absence
3 Give your people the opportunity to discuss in
private, concerns about their health or other matters
that are affecting their performance or attendance
3 Remember that medication can have side effects
on things like physical stamina, mood, machinery
operation and safety critical tasks
DON’T
8 Wait until someone is on
long-term sick leave before
taking action
8 Delay making contact or
pass responsibility to others
unless there are sound
reasons for doing so
8 Make assumptions about
your employee’s situation
8 Say that people are under
pressure or that work is
piling up
8 Forget that recovery times
for the same condition
can vary significantly from
person to person
Work with colleagues and your people to create a plan
to help the person remain in work or return to work
Fitness to work plan should include:
Your Occupational
Health Specialists
• The goal of the plan, eg modified work place,
need your input to
understand how
alternative working hours
rehabilitation plans
• The time period of the plan
are working
• Identification of professionals involved
• A statement of alternative working arrangements
• Identification of additional risk assessments and controls
• How to approach the team about adjustments
• Information about any impact on terms and conditions
• What checks will be made to make sure it is put into
Speak to your HR
practice
manager about
• Dates when the plan will be reviewed with the person,
the Equality Act
if your workplace
and by whom
adjustments
• Signatures of agreement – person, line manager, etc.
are going to be
difficult
9
10
Individual Assessment
continued
5
points to be
aware of...
1 C
onsider the individual
health of your employees
2 B
e proactive when you
see a person’s health is
affecting their work
3 D
o talk to your employees
4 D
o create a fitness to
work plan to guide
rehabilitation
5 D
o use your HR and
OH specialists
11
Checklists
a Work related muscular
skeletal disorders
(WMSD)
Muscular skeletal disorders involve
the muscles, tendons and ligaments
of the body. Work tasks and poor
postures may cause or aggravate an
underlying condition.
Factors to consider with job design
include:
• Fixed or constrained body
positions
• Continual repetition of movements
• Force concentrated on small parts
of the body, such as the hand or
wrist
• A pace of work that does not
allow sufficient recovery between
movements
• Heat, cold and vibration contribute
to the development of WMSD
WMSDs commonly occur as a result
of a combination of the factors
above. Consider if an absence
pattern relates to these conditions
and begin a discussion with the
employee involving the tasks stated
above.
b Fatigue
• Is the employee showing obvious signs of tiredness such as
yawning or poorer levels of concentration?
• Have they recently been involved in incidents, for example
slips trips and falls?
• Has their timekeeping become erratic?
• Has their shift pattern recently changed?
• Are they on any medication?
• Is the commute to work particularly long or recently changed?
• Is the employee getting enough rest time and is it being taken
at the right times?
• Have shift times changed or increased to cover sickness with
the team?
• Has there been a change in personal circumstances that
effects the amount or quality of sleep?
• Is the employee used to shift work, overtime hours?
• Does the employee have a recognised condition (eg
obstructive sleep apnoea)?
12
2
Wellbeing
2
1
Assessment
Tasks
Individual
The three components of
wellbeing are:
1
2
3
Psychological Wellbeing – e.g.
the ability to handle the stresses
of everyday life and maintain a
positive attitude and sense of
purpose
Physical Wellbeing – e.g.
amount of exercise, sleeping
habits, alcohol
Social Wellbeing – e.g. positive
and supportive social network.
For the purposes of this booklet it is
Psychological Wellbeing that we are
interested in.
Make yourself aware of the six HSE
management standards that focus on:
Demands, Control, Support, Relationships,
Role, Change. These are short, easy to
read documents that the worth looking at.
They can be found at:
http://www.hse.gov.uk/stress/standards/
13
3
Wellbeing
In order to perform well, people
need a certain amount of
pressure in the form of clarity of
purpose and roles, as well as the
tools and opportunity to do their
job well.
However, if the pressure is so
much, for example too much
work in too little time, corrosive
or unfriendly working culture, etc,
this can have a negative impact
on an individual’s health and
wellbeing.
The pressure and performance curve
Rust out
Quality of performance
1
Positive
Wellbeing
Burnout
erforman
ak P
ce
Pe
Amount of perceived pressure
Talking to your staff, looking for and responding to signs that the individual is
under too much pressure can really help to create a beneficial and balanced
work environment.
When managers seek to
review the wellbeing of their
people, they look to answer
the following questions:
• Is there any friction within the team?
• Are your employees overloaded with
work?
• Do they have the necessary training to
complete their work?
• Are roles and responsibilities clear to all?
• Are there any problems with work/life
balance?
Managing
wellbeing is about
trying to improve the
workspace, even when
there are no current
issues to resolve
Over time there
may be highs and
lows of workload
but, in general,
you should aim for
peak performance
14
Wellbeing Assessment
continued
5
points to be
aware of...
1 W
ellbeing is about
creating thriving
workplaces
2 To improve job roles,
understand the 6
management standards
3 Aim for peak performance
4 Seek senior backing to
maintain purpose
5 Work out who could be
effected by these issues
15
Checklists
Support points for managers to consider
when discussing work related stress
with employees include:
a About the role
• What is the nature and extent
of the work carried out by the
employee?
• Is the work stressful on a daily
basis, or mentally tough? The
employee may normally seem
to cope with this but a change
elsewhere in their work/lives
may have knock on effects.
• Is the workload currently much
greater than normal for the
kind of job they perform? For
instance, is the employee
covering the work of colleagues
who have left, or other
colleagues?
• Are the demands being made
on the employee reasonable
or unreasonable in comparison
with employees on an
equivalent level?
• Consider if appropriate training
has been given, or if refresher
training is necessary?
b About the person
• Is the employee displaying behavioural symptoms that could be
harmful to their long term health? For example, are they constantly
irritable or having difficulty concentrating?
• Has the employee declared that they have previously suffered from
an illness related to stress at work? They could be vulnerable to a
relapse, e.g. depression.
• Has the employee recently had uncharacteristic absences either
intermittent or prolonged?
• Does the employee have work relationship problems?
• Are there any domestic or home relationship problems disrupting a
work/ life balance?
c About the team
• Is an individual employee having difficulty coping or are others
doing the same job having similar problems?
• Are there abnormal levels of sickness or absenteeism in the same
job or department?
• Are there signs of harmful levels of stress being displayed by other
employees doing the same job?
16
And finally to ease
the first step
Talking to
the individual
Talking to your employees
When talking to an employee about an individual health issue there are useful
points to remember;
When it comes to HWA there are a number of reasons for you to talk to your
employees. Perhaps it is to gather health risk information or to work as a team to
solve issues. It may also be to discuss an individual’s work situation and how it
relates to their health.
Whatever the issue it is good to create a free and open environment for
discussion within the workplace. To do this you need to reflect upon your actions
as a manager. You should consider - from the employee’s point of view why he or
she might be reluctant to talk openly:
• In general it is best to talk to someone experiencing an ill health condition in
an honest and matter-of-fact way.
• Don’t assume work pressures affect everyone in the same way
• Be willing to make adjustments if a person is not coping
• ‘Chats’ should be positive and supportive – exploring the issues and how you
can help
• Try to focus as much on what the employee can do as things they may need
help with
• Keep employees up to date with news, both informal and formal, about
teammates and the workplace
• You should agree with the employee whether, and precisely what, they wish
colleagues to be told.
Remember, even with regard to
mental health issues, which is a
taboo subject in many offices,
professionals still suggest…
•
•
•
•
•
Are they fearful of a lack of confidentiality
Are they fearful about being judged or even of losing their job?
Is it really safe for them to be open with you?
Will any disclosures be treated sympathetically and positively?
Are you really listening to your employee’s views when they are given or just
waiting to tell them how it is?
• If an employee has seen others who raised similar issues being discriminated
against then from their point of view they are wise to be cautious.
‘There’s no one ‘right’ way
to talk about mental health everybody’s different.”
“But what’s important is to
try. Far better to talk and
occasionally say the wrong thing
than to ignore the problem and
hope it will go away.”
Carrie Thomas,
Mental Health Trainer
It is important not to see challenging discussion as a threat to your managerial
skills but a way towards a better working environment.
17
18
HWA tools
and resources
Here is an overview of the tools and resources
that are available for you and your organisation to
make use of - or to amend to suit your needs
DVD and resource files
Guidance booklets
for managers
health & wellbeing
introduction
health & wellbeing
case studies
which area
would you like
to explore?
health & wellbeing
guidance
Display posters
health & wellbeing
resources
health & wellbeing
introduction
health & wellbeing
case studies
health & wellbeing
introduction
health & wellbeing
health & wellbeing
introduction
introduction
health & wellbeing
guidance
case studies
health & wellbeing
resources
guidance
awareness film and
guidance
case study videos
19
case studies
health & wellbeing
& wellbeing
casehealth
studies
health & wellbeing
health & wellbeing
Short
introduction/
health
& wellbeing
guidance
health & wellbeing
health & wellbeing
resources
health & wellbeing
health & wellbeing
resources
resources
which area
would youwhich
like area
you likearea
towould
explore?
which
which area
to explore?
would
you like
would you like
toto
explore?
explore?
Training and briefing plan (with guidance)
and PowerPoint slides
20
Notes
Links to further information related
to health and wellbeing assessment 1
Task risk assessment
Individual Assessment
Shift Line Managers Resource. A practical guide to managing
and supporting people with mental health problems in the
workplace
http://www.hse.gov.uk/stress/pdfs/manage-mental-health.pdf
1
The CIPD present practical support for response to long term
health issues. The type of practical information is highlighted in
the Do and Don’t list for managers highlighted opposite.
Tasks
http://www.cipd.co.uk/binaries/absencemantool4.pdf
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) website offers
examples of written policies, resources for managers and advice
for employees on sickness absence issues and return to work
http://www.hse.gov.uk/sicknessabsence/index.htm
2
1
Wellbeing assessment
2
1
HSE 5 steps to risk assessment outlines the risk assessment
process in an easy to use format
http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/indg163.pdf
Tasks
Indivi
3
2
1
3
2
Individual
Wellb
3
3
HSE Management standards for work-related stress, HSE, 2008
http://www.hse.gov.uk/stress/standards/index.htm
BITC Emotional Resilience Toolkit
Tasks
http://www.bitc.org.uk/resources/publications/emotional_
Individual
Wellbeing
resilience.html
1
21
2
22
The 3 areas of health
& wellbeing and how
to approach them
Booklet 2
December 2013
Issue 1
The Workforce Health and Wellbeing
Project is facilitated by RSSB.
If you have any questions about
this resource, please contact
whwp@rssb.co.uk