The report will help employers and policy makers be better informed on the availability and reliability of IDT products in the market, as well as implementation considerations
ITASCA, Ill., August 16, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Injury in the workplace takes many forms and all present a safety issue. Injury from chemical substances, fatigue, medical conditions, mental distress and other factors can present a duty disturbance as well as affect employee well-being, leaving employers in need of resources to identify and address the issue. Part of the solution: Damage Detection Technology. As researched and described by the National Safety Council, IDT is technology with the potential to screen for multiple forms of injury to aid in eligibility for work assessments, and according to an NSC survey, most responding employers are interested.
“Detecting when a worker is impaired is critical to the safety, health and well-being of an organization’s workforce,” said Jenny Burke, vice chair of the injury practice at NSC. “When the survey results showed that 16% of employers surveyed are using IDT, it shows a confidence in the technology, while also presenting an opportunity to research these technologies. NSC did what it does best, and the findings of this research make up this report, giving employers the resource they need to make informed security decisions about these detection technologies.”
IN February 2021, the NSC became the first national organization to call on employers to consider much more than substance use when dealing with workplace injuries and to outline in policies and procedures anything that might interfere with an individual’s ability to function normally or safely. This holistic approach includes a variety of factors from chemical substances, such as alcohol, opioids or cannabis, to physical factors such as fatigue, as well as mental distress and social factors such as stress, all of which are claimed to be distinct from some of the IDTs. to. included in the report.
Fifteen depreciation technologies from 15 companies were eligible for inclusion in the analysis conducted by the NSC. Of the 15 IDTs analyzed:
- Five out of 15 companies (33.3%) claimed that their technology could detect all seven types of impairments discussed (alcohol, opioids, cannabis, other substances, fatigue, medical conditions and other forms of potential mental impairment such as anxiety mental)
- Eight companies (53.3%) reported the ability to detect at least five types of impairment
- Two companies (13.3%) provided more specialized impairment detection
In addition to IDTs, supervisors themselves have the ability to recognize and respond to perceived harm in the workplace, and in October 2021, the NSC launched a program to equip supervisors, security professionals and other leaders with the proper training to do this. The recent introduction of the Workplace Injury Prevention Act by Congressman Burgess Owens also draws attention to the importance of this approach, as the legislation authorizes a workplace training program through the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health to help employers to recognize, respond to and prevent workplace injury by addressing increased safety concerns.
The full findings from the new NSC report as well as an online IDT tool are available free of charge. To learn more about impairment at work, please visit: https://www.nsc.org/impairment.
About the National Security Council
The National Safety Council is America’s leading nonprofit safety advocate—and has been for more than 100 years. As a mission-based organization, we work to eliminate the leading causes of preventable death and injury by focusing our efforts on workplace, road and injury. We create a culture of safety not only to keep people safer at work, but also beyond the workplace so they can live their lives to the fullest.
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SOURCE National Security Council
