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FAQS

The Occupational Doctor has taken a medical specialization developed to address the occupational health risk. The subject of the occupational medicine is to prevent the adverse effects of work on human health, as well as to treat and remedy the patients. At the same time, it aims at addressing the environmental and ecological problems, thus considering the health and safety at work an integral part of Public Health.

Businesses must have at their disposal an Occupational Doctor if they employ 50 and more employees or have at least one worker but their work is related to carcinogens, lead, asbestos and/or biological factors.

The Occupational Doctor must possess and practice the medical specialization of occupational medicine as this is certified by the relevant medical association. Exceptionally, the duties of the Occupational Doctor are entitled to exercise the following:

Doctors without specialization who on the 15.05.2009 had contracts with enterprises for the provision of occupational doctor services and can prove the performance of their duties continuously for at least seven years,

Doctors who on the 15.05.2009, were acting as occupational doctors without holding the title or practicing the specialization of the occupational medicine but a title of another specialization.

The occupational doctor provides suggestions and advising to the employer, the workers and their representatives, in writing or orally, on the measures to be taken for the physical and mental health of workers. The occupational doctor records his/her written suggestions made in a special ledger. The employer must take signed notice of the instructions entered in the ledger. The occupational doctor may not be called to verify the legitimate or not absence of a worker, due to illness.

Moreover, the occupational doctor performs medical check-ups of the workers: according to their workpost, after their recruitment or change of workpost, as well as periodic medical check-ups at the discretion of the labor inspector at the request of the Inspectorate for Health and Safety at Work, where this is not defined by law. The occupational doctor ensures the implementation of medical examinations and measurements of factors of the working environment in accordance with the law provisions in force each time. He she also appraises the suitability of employees for a particular job, evaluates and registers the results of the examinations, issues a certificate of the above assessments and communicates it to the employer. The content of the attestation must ensure the medical confidentiality in favor of the employee and can be checked by the health inspectors of the Ministry of Labor and Social Security to accredit the employee and the employer.

The occupational doctor supervises the implementation of health protection and of accident prevention measures and to this end:

– reviews regularly the workposts and reports on any omission, proposes measures to act against omissions and oversees their implementation

– explains the need for the proper use of personal protection equipment

– investigates the causes of occupational diseases, analyzes and evaluates the results of surveys and proposes measures to prevent these diseases

-supervises the workers compliance to the health and safety rules, informs workers about the dangers arising from their work and on how to prevent them

– provides emergency treatment in the event of an accident or sudden illness. Performs vaccination programs to employees according to mandate of the competent health department of the prefecture, where the company is located.

The occupational doctor is obliged to observe the medical and business confidentiality and must be informed by the employer and the employees of any factor in the workplace that has a health impact. He/she announces through the company to the Labor Inspectorate occupational illnesses due to work.

The supervision of workers’ health at the workplace can not entail any financial burden to them and must take place during their working hours. The occupational doctor in the context of his/her and the employer’s obligations and in accordance with the specific provisions in force, is obliged to refer workers to specific additional medical examinations, in case the company does not possess the appropriate infrastructure. These examinations are carried out either in companies certified as External Providers of Protection and Prevention (ΕΞ.Υ.Π.Π), or in appropriate services of the private sector or in competent units of the insurance funds organizations of the National Health System (Ε.Σ.Υ.), as appointed by the Ministry of Labor and Social Security and of Health and Social Solidarity. Thereafter, the occupational doctor gets informed and evaluates the results of the above examinations. Expenditure resulting from the application of this action shall be borne by the employer.

For each employee, the occupational doctor responsible for the company, shall keep a relevant medical file, including an individual occupational risk booklet, showing the results of the medical and laboratory examinations whenever a worker undergoes the respective examinations. Additional medical data may only be collected by the worker himself, to be processed only if this is strictly necessary for the assessment of his/her fitness for a particular post or job, for the fulfillment of the employer’s obligations regarding health and safety of workers and for establishing the employee’s rights and the corresponding provision to him/her of social benefits.

Yes, they have to; moreover, and in accordance with the legal provisions in force, the employer is obliged to refer to a medical check-up every employee after his/her recruitment; thenafter medical checks should take place at regular intervals as well as when employees are changing posts and before undertaking a job which risks exposure to harmful factors.

The employer shall ensure that the following are recorded and updated:

-book of registration of the collective (in anonymity) results of the biological examinations, which are indicative of the maybe exposure, when such examinations are foreseen;

-the individual medical records of the workers exposed to the factors. The file shall be kept by the occupational doctor, held responsible for the protection of the medical confidentiality.

A worker is prohibited to be employed in a work involving exposure to harmful factors if this is conflicting to the findings of the medical examination.

Those entitled to be informed of the employee’s file and the individual booklet, are the health inspectors of the competent Labor Inspectorate and the doctors of the Insurance Fund Organization under which the employee is registered, as well as the employee himself. In the case of termination of the employment, the booklet is delivered to the respective employee concerned. It is forbidden to register in the occupational risk personal booklet of the employee and to process, any information or data other than the results of the medical and laboratory tests to which he/she is submitted each time. Those who record or collect or process data or information in violation of paragraph 10 are punishable by the administrative and penal sanctions provided for, in Articles 21 and 22 respectively of the Law 2472/1997 “Protection of individuals from the processing of personal data” (Government Gazette 50 / A). In the event of material or non-material damage, Article 23 of Law 2472/1997 shall apply.

Yes, the employer must, among other things, designate the workers responsible for the implementation of the First Aid measures. These workers must have received appropriate training, their number be adequate and have available the appropriate material, depending on the size and the specific risks of the company and the installation.

In general, the employer must:

– with regards to the First Aid, the Fire Safety and the Evacuation of workplaces, take the necessary measures made appropriate to the size and nature of the activities of the firm, considering also the other persons which maybe present in-there, as well

-organize the appropriate infrastructure and ensure the appropriate interface with competent external services in order to immediately address issues on First Aid, Emergency medical care, Rescue and Fire Safety.

-to check regularly the facilities and the means of First Aid regarding their completeness and ability to be used.

In worksites where the number of workers exceeds 100, one or more First-Aid facilities must be provided. A First Aid Area should also be provided in other workplaces as required by the type of activity practiced and the frequency of accidents there.

First Aid areas must be equipped with the necessary First Aid facilities and materials as provided for by the legislation and as determined by the Occupational Doctor. Significant amenities of a First Aid area are the running water, to be served by one or more authorized personnel trained on provision of First Aid (First Aid Team) and allowing the easy access of ambulance bearers and strechers, as the case requires.

The employer must provide each worker with suitable and adequate training in the field of health and safety, particularly in the form of information and instructions upon his/her recruitment, of any transfer or change of duties, in the establishment of new or the change of the work equipment and introduction of new technology, specifically related to his/her job or duties.

This training must be adapted to the evolution of risks and the emergence of new risks and, if necessary, repeated at regular intervals.

The employer shall ensure that workers of subcontractors carrying out works in his business have received appropriate instructions as to the safety and health hazards of their activities in that establishment. Moreover the employees’ representatives are also entitled to receive the appropriate training.

The Inspectorate for Health and safety at Work or its representative is an advisory body and has the following responsibilities:

-to study the working conditions in the company, to propose measures to improve them and the work environment, to monitor the compliance with health and safety measures and to contribute to their implementation by the employees

-in cases of serious work accidents or related incidents, to propose appropriate measures to prevent their recurrence

-to designate the occupational risk at work places or posts, and to propose measures to address it, thus taking part in the shaping of the company’s policy to prevent occupational risks

– to get informed by the company’s management of the data on occupational accidents and occupational diseases occurring there

– to get informed of the introduction into the company of new production processes, machinery, tools and materials or the operation of new installations therein, insofar as they affect the conditions of health and safety at work

– in case of immediate and serious risk, to invite the employer to take the appropriate measures, without excluding the shutdown of equipment or installation or production process

– to probably seek the assistance of experts on workers’ health and safety issues, after the concession of the employer

The establishment of the  committee relates to the number of employees of the company as follows:

– Employees in companies employing more than fifty (50) persons have the right to establish an EYEA, consisting of their elected representatives

– In the case of enterprises employing twenty (20) people and more, employees have the right to choose representatives, with special responsibility on safety and health protection issues

-In enterprises employing up to twenty (20) employees, they have the right to consult each other and to elect by majority their representative on the health and safety of workers, who is chosen for a period of two years.

The employer must report within 24 hours to the competent labor inspectorate, to the competent services of the Insurance Fund Organization under which the employee is registered and to the Police Department of the area where the accident occurred, all work accidents.

In the case of serious injury or death, he is obliged to keep untouched/unchanged all the elements that may serve to identify the causes of the accident.

Occupational risk assessment is one of the employers’ obligations. In particular, the employer must have at his disposal a written assessment of the occupational and health risks which are present at work, including those involving groups of workers exposed to particular risks.

This assessment is carried out by the Safety Engineer, in accordance with the provisions in force. Risk assessment is a process of assessing the risks to the health and safety of workers at work arising from the emergence of a source of risk

The ΣΑΥ (SHP) is a Safety and Health Plan, ie a type of study which includes the measures to be taken in the specific project, as well as any other elements to be applied on- site to improve the working conditions and to avoid work accidents and occupational diseases.

The ΦΑΥ (SHF) is a Safety and Health file, ie a registry of the project’s data as it was finally produced (as built), as well as a recording of instructions and useful information to be taken into account during the life cycle of the project (maintenance, cleaning, conversions, etc.).

In construction sites where are present or are expected to come (more than one) work crews, the contractor of the entire project, and if he/she does not exist then the project owner, is obliged to designate one or more health and safety coordinators during the project design, as well as one or more health and safety coordinators for the execution of the project. The persons appointing the coordinators are not relieved of their responsibilities in their coordination tasks. Also, the appointment of coordinators does not affect the principle of employer’s responsibility.

5a. The coordinators appointed for safety and health issues during the design of the project:

– Coordinate the co-operation and the application of the prevention principles at the stage of the study development

– They prepare or entrust the preparation of the safety and health plan

– They compile the safety and health file

5b. The coordinators appointed for safety and health issues during the execution of the project:

– Coordinate the application of the general principles of prevention and safety according to the technical and / or organizational options, in order to program the various tasks or phases of work which are carried out simultaneously or sequentially, and predict the duration of the various tasks or phases of work.

-Coordinate the implementation of the relevant normative provisions ensuring that contractors and subcontractors and, if this is necessary for the protection of the employees, the self-employed workers, are consistently applying the principles laid down and, where necessary, implement the safety and health plan.

-Review the safety and health plan

– Organize together with the safety officer and the occupational doctor, the co-operation between contractors and subcontractors, including those in succeeding shifts on the construction site, and the coordination of the activities to protect workers and prevent accidents and occupational diseases, as well as work on their mutual information, ensuring the participation, if there is a need, for the self-employed.

-Coordinate the supervision of the proper implementation of the work processes.

– Take the necessary steps to allow the entry to the site only to authorized persons.

-Cooperate with the safety officer and the occupational doctor throughout the shift on site the construction and ask for their opinion whenever they deem it necessary.

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