Functional Capacity Evaluation (FCE)
How do you know what your employee is physically able to do?
FCE test results enable employers to select suitable workers for their jobs, minimising the risk of health related injuries during employment.
What are they? A functional assessment, or functional capacity evaluation as it is usually known, is based on a task analysis that examines the critical physical demands of a specific role.
Tests we conduct are job-specific and carried out under the supervision of a physiotherapist, occupational therapist or exercise physiologist and may include lifting and carrying at varying weights and ranges, simulated static and dynamic postures, and movements such as climbing ladders or stooping and kneeling.
These measures are in addition to baseline physical data such as muscle strength, range of movement, cardiovascular health, aerobic capacity, drug and alcohol tests.
Test results enable employers to select suitable workers and minimise the risk of health related injuries during employment. Studies show dramatically reduced incidence of injuries in workers who demonstrate the physical capabilities to perform required job functions compared to those who do not.
Functional assessments are useful beyond pre-employment screening and play an important role throughout an employee’s life-cycle.
Some companies use the assessments in their injury management program to determine when injured employees are fit enough to come back into a role.
Repeating assessments at regular intervals is also important. While a job may stay constant, employee abilities and health, such as aerobic capacity and physical capabilities, change with age. If a person’s abilities change, or they have a prior injury, a role can be modified or they can be employed in another role.
For employers, functional assessment programs will result in reduced insurance premiums.
