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A spectrum of Occupational/Industrial Health services are available through the Human Performance Center at St. Alexius Medical Center.
Our staff is certified by DSI Work Solutions, and includes:
Allan Brossart, PT
Greg Jund, OTR/L, CHT
Jeanne DeKrey, PT, DPT
Josh Gerrity, OTR/L
Tana Herr, PT, MPT
Joel Jahnke, PT, DPT
Connie Kleinjan, PT
Myron Cullen, MS, LAT/C, CSCS
We are able to customize to individual or organizational needs with the following services:
- Job Function Analysis: identifies essential functions, functional requirements, ergonomic needs, education, training and equipment to safely perform a job.
- Job Function Descriptions: written description developed from the Job Function Analysis that identifies the physical demands of a job. Validation includes delineation of the essential functions of a job. Function Testing used both for post offer testing and return to work
- Functional Capacity Assessment: physical task testing to determine an individual’s overall safe work ability. (WorkWell Systems, Inc Functional Capacity Evaluations are also available)
- Job Function Match compares the abilities of the worker to the job, indicating tasks when full ability is present and tasks that do not match the individual worker’s abilities.
- Work Site Appraisals: physical assessment of the work site to evaluate safety, comfort and efficiency of the work environment.
Identifies areas where changes will reduce the physical stressors and thus reduce risk of injury and recommendations may be made for modification of the work, worker, or work environment.
- Safe Work Education and Training:preventative safety training linked to specific job requirements, or general safe work topics.
APPLICATIONS OF JOB FUNCTION MATCHING
Injury prevention:
- Post offer testing: By testing applicants who have been offered a job, a higher level of assurance exists that they can perform the essential functions of that job.
- Ergonomics: By comparing the Job Function Analysis with injury records, suggested areas for ergonomic change can be identified.
- Education and training: Design is linked to essential physical functions.
- Fitness and conditioning: Programs increase strength and endurance using job specific requirements as the basis.
Return to work processes
- Onsite Therapy or Early intervention: Job Function Match indicates which tasks are safe in early return to work and which have to be eliminated or modified temporarily. Ongoing Match upgrades the worker through full or maximum duty.
- Job modification: Specific ergonomic changes allow safe work.
- Work conditioning: The Job Function Test is used to identify the specific functional goals that will lead to return to work outcomes.
- Disability management: Job matching brings work relevance and objectivity to the decision making process in short term disability and long term disability
Results of the Job Function Match are objective information to the parties who make decisions:
- The Employer who must know which tasks of a job can be performed safely and when the ability to perform full duty has been reached. Using sequential job function matching helps move the worker more quickly through the return to work process.
- The Physician who signs and approves the return to work plan, objective information is the base for the physician’s recommendations.
- The Worker who is actually tested and finds what can be done safely and what temporary limitations exist. By being involved in the testing, the worker is more actively involved in the decision making process for work upgrading.
- The Claims Adjusters and Case Managers can work with objective functional information related specifically to the job or job tasks.
Primary contact:
Jeanne DeKrey, PT, DPT
For more information, please contact the St. Alexius Human Performance Center at 701-530-8100 or 1-800-222-7858.
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