For prospective buyers of digital occupational health solutions, a new report by Independent Research Firm, Verdantix, provides advice on where to start.
It’s no secret that businesses everywhere are investing in the digital transformation of their occupational health (OH) processes. Swapping out spreadsheets for specialized software, OH leaders are looking for solutions that can help them leverage data to make their organizations better – and healthier – places to work. A key part of their challenge, however, involves deciding which OH platform is the best match for their business. With dozens of vendors serving the market, how can companies ensure the product they choose is best suited to help achieve their specific objectives?
There are certainly multiple answers to that question, but one great resource where many EHS professionals start is the OH Buyer’s Guide by Verdantix. The latest version, published in January 2023, provides a deep-dive analysis of nearly a dozen occupational health software vendors, including Cority. Here’s a quick look at the key contents of this report and what its authors suggest executives and EHS leaders keep in mind when purchasing an OH system.
What’s Inside?
An independent research firm based in the United Kingdom, Verdantix, is known for its research on EHS, ESG and Sustainability, Climate and Operational Risk, Smart Buildings, and other areas of digital technology Its Buyer’s Guide: Occupational Health Software (2022), was produced by Bill Pennington, Vice President of Research, EHS and Risk Management, in collaboration with two Verdantix analysts, Rain Chiang and Zain Idris.
DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE COPY OF VERDANTIX’S 2022 OH BUYER’S GUIDE HERE
The report relies primarily on questionnaire data collected from 11 OHS vendors, but also leverages original research conducted by Verdantix . The firm defines occupational health software as “a point solution, or module from a larger EHS software application, used in all activities to identify, prevent, track, manage and respond to work-related illnesses and injuries”. OH platforms vary in their offerings, it notes, but the best ones include modules for electronic medical reporting, fit-for-work assessments, illness and injury management, and medical surveillance.
The Buyer’s Guide, according to its authors, is intended to provide an overview of the current Occupational Health software market, and “aims to inform EHS managers and potential buyers on the OH functionality most aligned with their business requirements”.
Factors to Consider When Purchasing an OH System
In choosing OH vendors to include in the report, Verdantix looked for suppliers that not only provide “demonstrably robust” platforms but also those that offer strong capabilities across the scope of occupational health, including vaccination management, mental health and wellbeing, appointment scheduling, and health data protection All 11 companies included in the report are also well established, with at least 25 customers using their software.
The Verdantix guide goes on to explain that leading platforms provide EHS professionals with advanced capabilities in the following areas:
Fit-for-work assessment
Top platforms feature tools that streamline the employee-assessment process when individuals are starting with a new employer or within a new role, or when returning to work post-injury or illness. Platforms should also integrate with workers’ medical histories to provide “visibility into conditions that may relate to an employee’s current problems”, features that can better enable clinicians to assess an individual’s fitness and determine the necessity for appropriate work accommodations.
Electronic medical reporting
The Buyer’s Guide notes that electronic medical reports allow companies to manage and maintain employee medical history safely and securely. They aggregate internal assessment records and physician reports into a single electronic record, it explains, which “increases visibility for managers and healthcare professionals” while helping EHS leaders work more efficiently.
Medical surveillance
Medical surveillance programs are designed to help companies better understand the health risk profiles of their workforce and provide personalized health assessments, treatment options and promotion activities to address their specific health needs. Leading solutions offer Similar Exposure Group (SEG) management tools, allowing firms to group employees with similar occupational exposures together, thereby helping EHS leaders extrapolate findings to bigger populations, prioritize interventions and optimize their limited resources.
Injury and illness management
According to Verdantix, platforms should include tools that allow companies to collect and access detailed information related to an employee’s injury or illness, and share that information – with appropriate consent – with health professionals delivering treatment, or with case managers involved in coordinating the individual’s safe and timely return to work. Data collected through these solutions can also be used by organizational leaders to make appropriate changes to work processes and/or the working environment to prevent similar injuries or illnesses in the future.
Other Important OHS Features
Beyond specific capabilities to address common occupational health use cases, Verdantix also points out that buyers should consider the following factors when selecting an OH platform, including:
Usability
When shopping for an OH solution, ensure that it’s user-friendly and easy to navigate, especially for the individuals who will actually use it Best-in-class solutions also enable customers to configure the solution to ensure workflows are aligned to the specific needs, and requirements of the business, while offering a simple, and intuitive user experience.
Scalability
The solution should be scalable to accommodate changes to workforce size and to meet the ever-evolving needs and challenges of the business. Organizations who buy solutions to meet current needs, without considering future growth or new challenges, may find themselves outgrowing their vendor faster than they’d prefer.
Integration Capabilities
Ensure your selected OH platform can integrate with other business applications, including HR and payroll systems, and can facilitate regulatory compliance via automatic data transmission to laboratories or applicable government agencies.
Real-time Data and Analytics
Finally, according to Verdantix, the best OH solutions now offer advanced business intelligence and analytics features to enable users to easily aggregate, analyze, and report data in real-time, and even visualize key health metrics in a way that drives more intelligent, data-driven decision-making that advances occupational health & wellbeing management.
Buyer’s Guide Highlights Cority’s “Comprehensive” OH Solution
For each of the platforms included in the Buyer’s Guide, Verdantix offers a detailed summary of what they found to be the solution’s most important, and in some cases, differentiating features. Amongst other features, the report highlights three key areas in which Cority’s OH solution excels:
Cority collaborates with external solution partners to offer additional features to support worker mental health & wellbeing, including out-of-the-box questionnaires that enable employees to self-evaluate their mental fitness; Cority excels in the protection of confidential health data, through multi-layered security controls and data privacy features; and Cority offers multiple workflows to record and address workplace injuries and illnesses and related case management practices
While only you can make the right decision of which OH platform is the best fit for your company, Verdantix’s OH Buyer’s Guide is a great resource to get you closer to that goal.. To learn more about your options, and to read more about CorityOne, download the guide HERE.
