Healthcare employees

Today, with more than 7 billion in sales and 31,000 employees around the globe, MED is one of the largest suppliers to the healthcare industry (Figure 2.1). The company is known for bringing together... 

In the same way that the medical profession has recognized the need to provide its members with guidance on their relationship with the pharmaceutical industry, the pharmaceutical industry has realized that its employees need guidance as well. The industry is concerned that its employees may sully the pharmaceutical industry s reputation. The industry does not want their interactions with healthcare professionals to be perceived as inappropriate by patients or the public at large (PhRMA 2002). In order to avoid being overrun with the detailed nature of voluntary codes at the level of national associations, it is perhaps most instructive to start with the general principles contained in the IFPMA Code of Pharmaceutical Marketing Practices (IFPMA 2000). 

Reduced startup costs/less risk Less time required to show a profit Buyer receives established goodwill Business has an established clientele Business provides buyer with trained employees, inventory, physical facilities, and established relationships area healthcare providers... 

Borealis offers its employees benefits including medical and insurance benefits healthcare programs, including checkups and mental health support services. 

Employees are offered medical insurance coverage medical, dental and healthcare spending accounts a 401 (k) plan pension life insurance disability coverage discounts on Honeywell products, as well as on mortgage fees, hotel stays, and automobiles and counseling services. 

Employees are offered healthcare coverage, a 401 (k) plan, counseling services and child care benefits. 

TPC Group offers its employees medical, vision and dental plans prescription drug coverage an employee assistance program healthcare flexible spending accounts and disability coverage. 

Companies should give employees several healthcare programs from which to choose. 

With Medicare s Hospital Insurance Trust Fund, also known as Medicare Part A, workers make required contributions to the fund while fhey are employed. Upon retirement, workers receive health care benefits. By law, employers and their employees are required to pay equal portions of a payroll tax, which totals 2.9% of earned income.In 1997, almost 90% of the trust fund s income was from payroll taxes. The remaining income was generated from fhe inferesf earned from the trust fund. A beneficiary s Medicare Parf A insurance is limifed to only those hospitals accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation for Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO). The JCAHO accreditation standards include explicit and extensive professional pharmacy acfivifies, indirectly supporting professional trends for clinical pracfice (see Chapfer 18). 

In addition to specialty nursing accreditation bodies, the Joint Commission, formerly the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO), mandates specific areas in which health care institutions must ensure that employees are prepared. As part of the national emergency preparedness plan, JCAHO (2001) has mandated that all health care institutions be required to design and implement an emergency preparedness plan. In addition, each institution must establish an orientation and education program for staff and must conduct emergency preparedness drills at least twice a year. 

Last but by no means least, the availability and use of trained presentation personnel during inspections is key. Those who present to an inspector should be permanent employees otherwise there may be an impression of dependence on quality from temporary staff whose loyalty and long-term commitment to a pharmaceutical or healthcare company could be questioned. Presenters... 

Direct access to electronic documentation and records should not be offered to the inspector/investigator. If direct access is requested by the inspector/investigator, the legal department should be informed. The inspector/investigator is not an employee of the company and would have to be properly approved, involving authorization, suitable training, and competency to have access. Such access could also violate the security (e.g., closed system status) of the company s computer systems. Similarly, inspectors/investigators should not be permitted to connect their own computer systems to pharmaceutical or healthcare companies systems. 

Outsourcing tends to be encouraged by many pharmaceutical and healthcare companies to reduce the number of full-time employees in a company. The Validation Department is also included in this because it uses individual contractors or managed supplier project capabilities. There is nothing wrong with outsourcing, but the pharmaceutical or healthcare company must maintain a... 

The SPEC works in contact with mcmy organizations participating in the review and approval of clinical trials and drug products, but mainly with the SIPCDE. In order to carry out its tasks the SPEC may utilize employees of other healthcare departments, establish provisional expert commissions and task forces. Thus a provisional task force consisting of members of the SPEC and SIPCDE has drafted the regulations on bioequivalence evaluation, which later were adopted by the SPEC as standard operating procedures. 

The perception of being handicapped. The Rehabilitation Act (29USC, Section 706) requires employers to continue employment of a substance abuser as long as the employee can perform the job function and is not a threat to safety or property. The healthcare professional may be reassigned temporarily until recovery is completed. 

The guidance with respect to food and drink provided by pharmaceutical companies for healthcare professionals in many countries is that it should not be lavish and should be of a standard that health professionals would pay for themselves. This is obviously vague so it is suggested that individual pharmaceutical companies should provide guidance for their employees on what is considered acceptable in terms of cost, etc. 

No items or offers shall be offered or given to healthcare professionals, their families or employees unless they are items or activities sanctioned under the following sections of this code ... 

The Medicare systems in China are as follows government-paid medical service for state functionaries and university/college students labor insurance medical service for employees of industrial, communication and other enterprises and various forms adopted on a voluntary basis for rural populations. Under the reforms of the healthcare system proposed by the Ministry of Public Health, co-payments were introduced in 10 provinces and cities for employees of state-owned institutions and enterprises to pay for part of their treatment, including drugs (IFPMA Compendium, 1994). Approval of drugs can be revoked after two years if no part of manufacture occurs in China (usually packaging). 

Confidentiality refers to how well private information is kept private, regardless of whether it is a patient, employee, or corporation. Information is available only to authorized persons, and none will be divulged to unauthorized individuals. This invokes the concept of security in the information system. In most cases, security is maintained in the system by introducing an appropriate user s I.D. and password format for each eligible user. Recent implementation of a federal law, the Hospital Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), has made it mandatory to insure stricter confidentiality measures in the healthcare system. A PACS should strictly meet this requirement. 

In 1999 BOC Group had a turnover of 3300 million. Although the number of employees is not clearly stated, it is approximately 40000 (the annual report states that Through its merger with PresMed, Afrox Healthcare now employs 10000 people, around a quarter of theGroup s total ). 

Postexposure prophylaxis is administered to all healthcare workers according to the Public Health Service Statement on the Management of Occupational Exposures to HIV and Recommendations. The policy for postexposure prophylaxis is institution specific and should be available to all employees. 

With the rising cost of healthcare mentioned in Chapter 1, employer-sponsored health insurance is a very valuable benefit these days in the US. Anyone who s had to pay entirely for his own coverage before will understand this. Companies no longer routinely pay the full amount of the health insurance, so some employee contribution for himself and/or his family may need to come out of the paycheck. Most companies will offer the candidate a choice of plans. Don t assume that because you work in a health-related field your own health insurance will somehow be better or more comprehensive than anyone else s. It just isn t so. Even physicians can end up with less-than-desirable health insurance plans these days. 

Bayuk [7] points out that Employees must fully trust that they will have management support for decisions made in the interest of safety, while also recognising that intentional breaches of safety wiU not be tolerated. The result is a non-punitive environment that encourages the identification, reporting, and correction of safety issues. Developing such a non-punitive culture is a challenge which both healthcare organisations and manufacturers need to embrace. 

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