Industrial Health Programs: Dimensions and Issues

Abstract

Federal regulations and concern over the growing cost of health insurance benefits have combined to impel many companies to redefine and expand the responsibilities of the corporate medical department. This is no simple task. There are a number of dimensions of possible redefinition and a number of issues that a company must face in becoming more fully a health care provider. The health care needs of a changing work force complicate the provision of health care. The spectre of health-related liability grows as corporate health services expand. Finally, two areas little known in previous industrial health programs present themselves for possible inclusion in a program designed to improve the health status of the work force while minimizing the cost of health services. These are health education and mental health services or benefits.