April celebrates Occupational Health Professionals for providing health services to employees

Annually, April celebrates and recognizes all occupational health (OH) professionals, and during the week of April 6-12, specifically Occupational Health Nurses (OHN) Week is observed. The month (and week) highlight the role of members of the occupational and environmental health profession. 

The celebration serves to bring attention and awareness to the thousands of OH professionals and nurses who work in promoting and protecting the health of workers in the United States and around the globe.

Our Occupational and Employee Health Clinic (OEHC) staff play a critical role in improving employees’ health through a variety of preventative services, as well as providing clinical care and management to injured workers within the medical center. Some of the preventative services include health screens for new onboarding employees, annual TB surveillance, immunizations such as annual flu and Covid-19 vaccinations, monitoring and management of infectious disease exposures, bloodborne pathogen exposures, amongst other services pertaining to occupational hazards in the workplace.

OEHC providers deliver clinical care to employees with occupational injuries or illnesses and assist in their recovery both physically and mentally, while facilitating a safe and successful return to work. Collectively, staff collaborates with other departments that work towards creating a culture of health and safety every day, which drives the organization’s success.

“Our team does a lot more than ‘just flu shots,’” said Enass Arahman, medical director of the Occupational and Employee Health Clinic. “We have a dedicated team that takes their roles very seriously. It’s good to recognize that they’re doing an essential part of care that sometimes goes unrecognized.”

Arahman pointed out that people spend most of their lives – their hours in a day – at work, so it’s crucial to keep them healthy, which improves productivity and advances the organization’s mission and vision of supporting the entire region.

“Thank you to the Occupational and Employee Health team for their unwavering commitment to the health and well-being of all the employees across the medical center,” Arahman said.