Occupational Health is the newest division of Environmental Health and Safety (EH&S). Occupational Health focuses on promoting and maintaining the highest degree of physical, mental, and social well-being of workers in all occupations on Campus. In mid-December, Occupational Health brought the Examinetics mobile unit to Campus to perform 150 hearing tests on staff in select departments across Campus, including Landscape & Refuse Services, Central Plant Operations, Housing Facilities Services, Dining Services, ITS, Parking and Transportation, and more.
By participating in these tests, EH&S will collect baseline data to help in launching a Hearing Conservation Program. Throughout the year, EH&S will be performing exposure monitoring in various positions and locations across Campus to determine the noise levels experienced and to ensure a safe working environment. Providing these kinds of occupational health solutions and bringing them directly to the campus environment ensures that employees receive medical screening and access to detection and prevention methods used to identify and mitigate harmful exposure to employees. This service includes a counseling session, where Audiometric Occupational Health Specialists explain the hearing test results to the employee and provide hearing conservation counseling. We believe that bringing these services directly to Campus reduces time lost from work and the frequency of work disruptions while also serving as a yearly reminder of the importance of employee health.
As we continue to work with the Campus and place more programs, the Occupational Health Program is looking into partnering with third-party medical providers to provide and support the medical assessment and surveillance of specific occupational hazards that employees may encounter while working at UCR.
The tests were performed by Examinetics, which brought a mobile testing unit on campus and performed 150 tests by AOHC certified technicians.
To learn more about how EH&S supports the campus community and health and safety of our workers, please visit https://ehs.ucr.edu and follow EH&S on Instagram @ucrehs.