These tools will be available for staff starting on Aug. 27.

FAQs and training materials are coming soon.

Update from July 25, 2024

Occupational Health will soon be moving to a new medical record system called Enterprise Health. The new system will replace the Occupational Health Management (OHM) system in coming weeks. 
Enterprise Health will be a more efficient tool and allow seamless collaboration between Occupational Health and our employees.  

Staff will be granted access to an employee portal, protected by single sign on, which will allow them to: 
• Review past immunization records. 
• Fill out Occupational Health-related questionnaires. 
• Schedule appointments (limited). 
• Submit injury reports. 
• Submit forms for return to work. 
• Review secure messages coming from Occupational Health. 

Managers will have access to a Supervisor Portal, protected by single sign on, which will allow them to: 
• Directly run reports to relating to employee flu and mask fit compliance. 
• Review, respond or submit documentation relating to reports of injury for direct reports. 
• Review and respond regarding information about return-to-work status for direct reports.

Occupational Health will be able to: 
● Conduct pre-employment screenings, such as employment physicals and tests. 
● Act on occupational health and safety priorities, including workplace injury and illness, hearing conservation, and respiratory fittings. 
● Handle documentation on required immunizations such as: flu, COVID-19, measles, mumps and rubella (MMR), and tuberculosis (TB). 
● Run real-time extensive reports as required by regulatory and compliance. 
● Efficiently push communications to staff for their occupational health needs.  

Occupational Health will send out additional information, such as FAQs and educational materials to support use of the new system, in coming weeks. 

This summer Occupational Health is rolling out a new health portal with increased functionality and accessibility. 

Attached is a flier that managers can download to place in their workspaces for their employees to see. Go to Downloads at the top right of this page.

The tools will be available for staff starting on August 27.

FAQs and training materials will be completed soon.

By Kaley Johnson

At Cook Children’s, safety is one of our values, both for our patients and our employees.  When the opportunity arose to use a tool that could help alleviate staff over-exertion, leaders wanted to make sure that our staff members were scheduled for training on to use the new equipment. The device will be available soon to help staff laterally transfer patients.

The Comfort Glide Air, an air assisted mattress created by Medline, allows staff to transfer patients from surgery beds to adult beds without putting physical strain on staff. The device is placed underneath the patient and inflated. Nancy Russell, RN, MS, CPN, CPPS, Nursing Quality Improvement Coordinator, compared the airflow technology to an air hockey table.

Nancy, who has worked at Cook Children's for 39 years, and Randy Price CSP CIT CEAS, who is the Safety Manager, Occupational Health, are leaders of the Solutions For Patient Safety Employee/Staff Overexertion initiative. Many staff overexertion injuries are not caused by one event, Nancy said, but are due to a culmination of repeated transfers, boosting and patient handling activities.

The air assisted mattress provides “a seamless transfer that takes way less exertion than if we did it with a sheet under the patient,” Nancy said.

They coordinated with the Professional Development Council and Medline workers to provide multiple trainings for staff on how to use the tool.

Staff are excited about this equipment, Nancy said, which can be used for any patients in adult beds.

“It's just another tool in the belt for patient handling,” she said.

At a recent demonstration, Nancy and Randy showed the ease in which a patient can be moved when utilizing the device. Once the air mattress is underneath the patient, it only took about 20 seconds for three staff members to transfer the patient from a stretcher onto the adult bed - one staff member pushes the mattress toward the receiving person who uses the handles to help pull the patient into position, while another person supports the patient’s feet (for those taller patients).

As we’ve shared, Cook Children’s is moving to a new performance evaluation system this fall, and every employee will receive a performance review at the same time each year going forward.

But how does that affect the mandated Occupational Health annual requirements? These must be completed before Nov. 19.

Here’s what you need to know

• Occupational Health will begin using a new employee health portal around August 2024. Once it is up and running, all staff will receive more information and training.
• The annual TB questionnaire will be added to your new portal in August for employees to complete. You must complete this by Sept. 6.

If you need an N-95 respirator fit test for your role

For employees who need an N95 respirator fit test, there is a three-step process:

First, schedule an appointment for your fit test.

To comply with OSHA regulations, you must have a fit test every 12 months. This does not need to align with your performance review date, so there is no need to wait. Please continue to make your respirator fit test appointment within 12 months of your previous fit test. Check your fit test card to find your previous completion date.

Here’s how to schedule an appointment with our current employee health portal: Go to the Workday platform and select “Employee Resources” under the top menu. Select the “HR” tab and click on “OHM” under the links. Then click on “Schedule an appointment”.

Next, complete an OSHA questionnaire. Here's how:

With the current employee health system: this questionnaire will automatically appear in your employee health portal once you make a test appointment.

For the new system later this summer: Occupational Health will upload the OSHA questionnaire to the new employee portal each November. This questionnaire needs to be completed as soon as possible.

Finally, once you have your fit test appointment, be sure to keep it. Every no-show keeps one of your co-workers from receiving a timely fit test. No shows also make the complex scheduling process even more difficult on the team, and it’s so important we all to our part to protect our patients from respiratory illnesses.

• Mobile respirator fit testing: Occupational Health will continue to provide fit testing at the Medical Center-Prosper and satellite clinics. Please check with your manager for when Occupational Health are visiting your location.

Workplace benefits at Cook Children’s give employees access to Occupational Health and CareATC for help with your health concerns. What’s the difference between the two sites? 

Here’s the easiest way to distinguish them: Occupational Health treats work-related injuries, while CareATC treats primary care medical needs including illnesses and chronic conditions. 

Occupational Health is located at 901 7th Ave., Fort Worth, next to the Terrell Avenue Garage. The Occupational Health team promotes the health and safety of employees in the Cook Children’s workplace through injury care, immunization programs and surveillance for chemical or radiation hazards. Additional services include: 

• Drug screens and other processing for new hires 
• Tuberculosis testing 
• Respiratory protection (mask fittings) 
• Leave of absence and return-to-work processing 
• Worker’s compensation management 
• Medications for business travel 

“Healthy workers are productive workers,” said Karen Mahoney, Manager of Occupational Health. “If they’re unhealthy and they can’t work, then that’s a detriment to the whole organization. Our goal is to keep everybody at work and keep them healthy.” 

You don’t need an appointment to be treated at Occupational Health for minor work-related injuries. Karen pointed out the most common injuries: 1) slips, trips and falls 2) overexertion from heavy lifting, and 3) bites, kicks or other injuries from patient behavioral violence. 

Employees also come to Occupational Health for monitoring, such as annual hearing tests for those in noisy areas; equipment for proper ergonomic setup at work stations; and accommodations for the Americans with Disabilities Act. 

Bridget Page, Director of Occupational Health Employee Wellness and Employee Safety, said Occupational Health does evaluations to make sure workers are physically fit for the demands of their role – whether they lift heavy boxes in materials management, or work a desk job. 

Occupational Health provides quick and convenient care for work-related injuries/illness so that employees can get back to their work area. “You’re still on the clock, you come see us, we typically have you in and out in about 30 minutes,” Bridget said. “If you needed medication, we can get medicines ordered to the retail pharmacy.” 

Services that Occupational Health is unable to provide include emergency care for chest pain, breathing problems or major injuries; treatment for illnesses such as sinus or urinary tract infections; management of chronic conditions such as high blood pressure or cholesterol; prenatal and maternity care or gynecology exams; birth control or narcotics prescriptions. 

Occupational Health and CareATC keep separate records but work collaboratively when employees need referrals from one site to the other. “Earaches, sore throats and sinus infections are acute care things that CareATC takes care of,” she said. “CareATC can also be your medical home to help manage your chronic health conditions like diabetes, high blood pressure or high cholesterol.” 

How to Access Occupational Health and CareATC

Any visit to CareATC is 100% covered by Cook Children’s when enrolled in the HRA or EPO plans. For those enrolled in the HSA1 and HSA2 plans, the cost for a diagnostic visit is only $10. Employees not enrolled in a Cook Children’s medical plan have access to acute medical care at CareATC for $10 per visit. 

For help with anxiety, depression, emotional trauma or other mental health concerns, two options are available. Employees can make an appointment through CareATC with one of two onsite therapists by going to www.careatc.com/patients , or by calling 1-800-993-8244. The second option is to call the Employee Assistance Program for up to six free visits. The EAP number is 1-800-395-1606. 

The CareATC Fort Worth-Henderson Health & Wellness Center is located at 500 S. Henderson St. Hours are Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 7 a.m.-6 p.m. and Tuesdays and Fridays from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Appointments can be made on the CareATC mobile app, the Patient Portal at www.careatc.com/patients, or by calling 1-800-993-8244. 

Cook Children’s Occupational Health is located at 901 7th Avenue, Suite 4200. Hours are Monday through Friday from 7 a.m.-11:45 a.m. and 12:30 p.m.-5p.m. Contact the department at 682-885-3837 (or ext. 53837) or email occhealth@cookchildrens.org.