MEDEXIS MEDical EXposure Information System CEFIC Responsible Care Award 2010 – Solvay Enclosures : a presentation of the project

Plan The MEDEXIS project Industrial hygiene The occupational physician MEDEXIS: Secure combination of individual data Setting up Medexis Personnel health: Solvay strategy Questions

The MEDEXIS project A uniformly high level of personnel health protection everywhere

What is the Medexis project? MEDEXIS = MEDical EXposure Information System Harmonisation on all Solvay sites: Prevention of health risks High level medical monitoring Information management tool: “occupational medicine” and “exposure” type data Medexis deployment in 2 parts: Hygiene part Medical part

2 complementary approaches Health protection: 2 complementary approaches 2 complementary approaches to health protection: Controlling working conditions → Industrial hygienist Medical surveillance → Occupational physician

Medexis Objectives Group Project → All Solvay sites Access by hygienists and occupational physicians to complete and reliable data Good documentation on levels of exposure to dangers Medical monitoring adapted to each person and risk Information collected and retained throughout professional life: personnel computer file: the occupational health file

Access to Medexis data Access by hygienists and occupational physicians to objective, standardised, complete and reliable data, for prevention purposes: Lists of dangers: substances, noise, vibration, … and the toxicological and regulatory characteristics of each substance Risk exposure levels and protection for chemical, physical, biological and ergonomic hazards at work stations Individual medical monitoring related to potential risks, going beyond regulatory requirements

Risk prevention Medexis contribution to health protection Validated information on substances and their risks → better risk prevention Global view of risk factors → if corrective measures necessary → faster and more effective decision Employment health file Computerised and unique Monitoring throughout career → traceability for professional exposures and health data recording Always up to date clear and complete Exposure to risk factors → special attention Monitoring Individual monitoring based on high quality data Up to date “Group” recommendations and methods → same monitoring quality everywhere in the world

Apply health surveillance protocols on regard of risks & exposures Medexis: A standardising and integrating tool Organize samplings campaigns Manage key figures Recor medical results Perform medical visits Apply health surveillance protocols on regard of risks & exposures Define standard health surveillance protocols Manage persons Manage agents Assess risk & exposure Conduct epidemiology studies Perform actions for reductions risk Describe working environments Product safety Human Ressources Occupational Health Business Intelligence Industrial Hygiene Standardising Access by Hygiene and Health experts to the best methods and tools (e.g. EA-tool, medical protocols) → harmonisation Integrating Bringing medical and hygiene data + administrative data related to work roles and positions occupied into relation

The industrial hygienist prevents risks due to exposure at the work station

Aim of industrial hygiene: What is industrial hygiene? Aim of industrial hygiene: Prevent exposures at the work station, from the design of installations and for each worker concerned. Design, prevention of emissions, leaks… Personal protective equipment and personnel monitoring Work environment control and inspection (ventilation, noise…) Regulatory requirements and work station analyses

What industrial hygiene data will Medexis contain? Inventory of chemical products and non chemical agents, their physico-chemical and toxicological properties Solvay methods and tools for the evaluation of work station risks Exposure risks at each work station: chemical, physical, biological or ergonomic risks Local and international standards or standards defined or adopted by Solvay (TLV, SAEL, …) in the absence of regulations

Evaluation of health risks How does the industrial hygienist evaluate risks? Standardised tool: “Exposure Assesment-tool” Evaluation of all work station risks Validated method, conforming to international best practice Includes exposure data for each work station Applied to all Solvay sites

Industrial hygiene in Medexis Industrial hygiene data → Medexis database Information collected and available Risk knowledge at individual and collective level “Good practice” sharing Definition of best risk prevention strategies Quality procedure Who uses the industrial hygiene data in Medexis ? The hygienists, occupational physicians, management and “Health, safety and environment” managers of the Solvay Group

The occupational physician protects and monitors personnel health

What is occupational medicine? Aim of occupational medicine: Protect and monitor personnel health Examination and preventive advice based above all on the person: state of health, medical history, age and type of work are the key factors. Use of exposure data → adaptation of medical monitoring to each situation and choice of specific or complementary examinations. Individualised medical monitoring: examinations, biomonitoring Regulatory requirements, scientific references…

Use of industrial hygiene data by the occupational physician Industrial hygiene data → specific exposure risks at each work station Individual “exposure risks profile” accessible to the occupational physician + knowledge of dangers from agents → determination of appropriate medical examinations and suitable medical monitoring Medical monitoring also taking into account: hours, stress, physical and mental load, individual susceptibilities, pregnancy….

Medexis and the occupational physician Use of Medexis by the occupational physician Updating occupational medicine data Medical examination and preventive advice based on: state of health, medical history, age, type of work... Use of exposure data → suitable medical monitoring → specific or complementary examinations Medexis: Best quality for examination content and medical monitoring Electronic occupational health file = personal file, accessible to the occupational physician for my site, who is held to professional secrecy.

What will change for me? Medexis: Computerised medical file → monitoring in different professional appointments → traceability of exposures, good information transmission and good conservation of all information. Occupational health file 1st consultation: medical and professional questionnaire : Confidential Information needed for good medical monitoring, personnel history and professional risk factors encountered throughout my career Exposure report At the end of working for Solvay: personal report on exposures and the results of medical examinations supplied to the person concerned who can send them to his treating doctor

Who has access to the medical data in Medexis? Confidentiality Computerised occupational health file: no change from the professional ethics viewpoint: confidentiality and continuity maintained Access Access to the occupational health file: only the occupational physician for my site Access to collective and anonymous health data: limited to the medical professions

MEDEXIS Secure combination of individual data

Combining Medexis data Individual data → combined, collective data Combination of anonymous health and hygiene data for a large number of persons and sites → strengthened knowledge of risks and medical monitoring Combined data → health monitoring and epidemiological studies “Inter-site” health monitoring: combination of observations of groups of persons on different sites→ better detection of any risks Combined data → epidemiological studies: attempt to establish a cause and effect relation between a risk factor and a health effect

Data combination and access to personal data Computer security Combined data = anonymous: coded link to personal data only known by the responsible occupational physician Personal data secured by a set of computer provisions against unauthorised access, loss, alteration and theft. Consent from personnel Agreement for anonymous and coded use of my health data Right to information Information on the results of studies

Protection of private life Occupational health file protected by: Laws relating to the protection of private life Medical ethics: Occupational physician held to professional secrecy Deployment of Medexis in each country: Declaration of deployment of the Medexis project to the Privacy Protection Commission or a similar organisation and approval by it

Introduction of Medexis

Introduction of Medexis (1) Medexis = worldwide project → all sectors and sites where Solvay assumes responsibility for personnel health protection and prevention +/- 90 sites for industrial hygiene +/-75 sites for occupational medicine +/- 20 countries At least 10 languages +/- 300 users Doctors/nurses Hygienists

Introduction of Medexis (2) 2 parts: Introduction of the hygiene part Introduction of the medical part Medexis is part of the 25 priority Solvay Group sustainable development objectives for the period 2008-2012

Personnel health: Solvay strategy “Comply with legislation and Solvay guide values for chemical, physical, biological and ergonomic risks” “Prevent risks at source” “Evaluate the risks at each work station using a reliable, standardised method that allows comparison between work stations and sites” “Guarantee the same level of health protection everywhere by harmonised medical monitoring throughout the Group” “Provide personalised medical monitoring adapted to the risk profile of each work station and the individual characteristics of each worker” cf. Report “Pour un Développement Durable 2008-2012” (~For Sustainable Development 2008-2012)

Questions?