The medical surveillance of workers as a pillar to protect employees’ health
The Company is committed to protect employees’ health. This implies that the risks are known and controlled, and that employees receive the necessary medical attention to prevent any adverse effect on health. |
This medical surveillance is adapted to the occupational risks and follows the current scientific knowledge. It includes medical examinations and personal interviews, with the aim of preventing occupational diseases and detecting potential health effects at their earliest stage.
In addition, the medical surveillance includes several other tasks as providing information on the risks and advice to employees, suggesting accommodations when necessary, etc...
The Company gives importance to:
Achieving a high-level health and physical and psychological well-being of its employees, subcontractors and temporary workers
Preventing occupational diseases and disability based on a high level of risk management and control.
Ensuring periodical medical monitoring consistent with local law and adapted to individual risk profiles.
The medical surveillance of employees is key to ensure these commitments.
The Syensqo standard IND-HSE-OH-08-PRO describes the Group requirements on Occupational Health for the Sites .
The medical surveillance of workers is on the core of this standard.
Risk-based Medical Surveillance process : from the risk assessment to the medical surveillance.
In order to ensure a medical surveillance adapted to the occupational risks, it is KEY that, on basis of the risk assessments, the Site transmits to the medical service for OH the significant risks (risks profiles) of employees, as well as safety-sensitive tasks [1] or other occupations that require specific fitness for duty clearances. |
This process is described in the guideline IND-HSE-OH-11-GUI
Practically, the process to ensure a Risk-based Medical Surveillance can be summarized as follow :
1) The Site performs and update the risk assessments per SEG (Similar
Exposure Group) or Job
2) The Site transmits to the medical service for OH the risk profiles
with significant risks
Practically it means that :
The Site identifies the significant risks per SEG or Job, and the
employees belonging to each one , in order to define their Risk
Profiles. The significant risks are the risks considered as not
negligible by the Site.
In any case, the Site will identify at least the significant risks present among the ones mentioned in the table below
The Site identifies also if here are individuals with other occupations
that require specific fitness for duty clearances
The Site takes into account the requirements from local regulations
The Site transmits this information to the medical service for OH ,
in order to perform an adapted risk-related medical surveillance
Practical Excel tool
The following practical Excel tools could be useful for the Sites to identify significant risks to be transmitted to the physician who is in charge of the Risk-based Medical Surveillance. They follow the same logic that has been introduced in the Syensqo e-tools (Socrates and OH Gate ) and is described in the guideline IND-HSE-OH-11-GUI .
General Excel tool : ERMX General Excel tool V1.3
Specific Excel tool for chemicals : ERMX Chemical Excel tool V1.1
3) The medical service for OH performs the pre-employment and periodic Risk-based Medical Surveillance on basis of the risk assessments and
the local regulations
The Site transmits to the medical service for OH all the necessary information related to the content of the medical examinations, according to local
regulations and, when possible, also according to Syensqo medical protocols described in IND-HSE-OH-10.00-GUI and available in the OH Gate .
The content of the medical surveillance is described in the chapter below .
The Site ensures that it receives from the OH medical service the information related with the fit for work certificates or advices, in order to adapt
work conditions when necessary.
The Site ensures the secure storage of medical records to prevent from unauthorized access or tampering with the records, and to ensure
confidentiality
Indicator on Advanced Risk-based Medical Surveillance
A site is considered as performing Advanced Risk-Based Medical Surveillance IF ALL the following criteria are fulfilled:
The Chemical Risk Assessment completion rate(*) is at least 30% (criteria until 2022); 70% or more (new criteria from 2023).
(*) This is the ratio of the total number of Chemical Risk Assessments, both inhalation and dermal, completed by the site
within the last five years, to the total number of Chemical Risk Assessments to be conducted based on the Chemical
Risk Assessment List established by the site.
The site regularly communicates identified potential occupational risks to the Medical Service
provider.
At least 70% of the employees scheduled for Risk-Based Medical Surveillance during the year have
completed their medical visit.
In 2022, 57.5% of our manufacturing and research and innovation sites completed Advanced Risk-based Medical Surveillance
(i.e. fulfilled all the above criteria) vs 59.1% and 44% respectively in 2021 and 2020.
Content of the medical surveillance
For the content of the medical surveillance, the physician will take into account :
local regulations
his/her professional judgement
when possible, Syensqo medical surveillance protocols, available in the OH Gate and in the guideline IND-HSE-OH-10.00-GUI .
In the guideline IND-HSE-OH-10.00-GUI , Syensqo makes suggestions for the content of the medical examination of employees.
These suggestions are for :
The minimal medical surveillance protocol , regardless if it is risk-
related or not
The medical protocols for risk-related medical surveillance according
to the significant risks identified, that will complete the minimal medical
surveillance protocol. These protocols can also be consulted by agent in
the OH Gate .
In the case of chemicals, it includes:
- Generic medical protocols : per target organ or system
- Specific medical protocols : for some agents there are specific tests that can be recommended. It is the typical case of human biomonitoring of exposure
The usual content of the medical surveillance is :
The Company best practices for a general medical check-up not risk-related , that can be adopted by sites on a voluntary basis
For some substances, there are specific guidelines :
- Benzene ( IND-HSE-OH-10.01-GUI )
- Vinyl chloride monomer (VCM) ( IND-HSE-OH-10.04-GUI-EN , IND-HSE-OH-10.04-GUI-FR )
- Asbestos ( IND-HSE-OH-10.05-GUI-EN , IND-HSE-OH-10.05-GUI-FR )
- Amyl- and ethylanthraquinone ( IND-HSE-OH-10.07-GUI )
- Melamine cyanurate ( Protocol Medical Surveillance MeC )
Maternity protection at work
The Site has to ensure the health and safety protection of all the employees, especially in case they are medically vulnerable due to individual characteristics, as it can be the case of pregnant and breastfeeding women |
Unless not allowed by local regulations, Sites should at least :
identify if there are situations that can have adverse effects on offspring of pregnant or breastfeeding
women, and in which workplaces.
In order to identify these situations, we suggest consulting the dedicated guideline IND-HSE-05.01-GUI .
define how to proceed in case there is a pregnant/breastfeeding woman in such situation
ensure that women working in workplaces concerned by these situations have been informed
For more details on Syensqo recommendations for maternity protection at work, you can consult IND-HSE-OH-05.01-GUI .
