Health checks and personal health profile of night workers

Take extra care of your night workers

In many industries, night work is a basic condition, but it is essential that night work does not unnecessarily impair the health of the worker. As night work negatively affects the body's natural circadian rhythms, it increases the risk of several serious diseases such as cancer, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. As an employer of a company where employees work at night, you are obliged to offer your employees a health check-up, also known as a health check or personal health profile.

The health check/health check must, as far as possible, be offered during working hours and must be free of charge for the employee. The Danish Working Environment Authority does not have a fixed template for the content of the health check/health check, but states that the check must be comprehensive in relation to the health problems that night work can cause.

At Health Group, we have chosen that a health check should include all the elements we offer in our personal health profiles, i.e. measurement of cholesterol, long-term blood sugar (HbA1c), BMI, fitness, blood pressure, etc. but at the same time, a health check for night workers has an increased focus on sleep habits and general well-being. Research shows that sleep conditions and circadian rhythms have a huge impact on an employee's health. The reason why night work is linked to cancer and other diseases is that the body normally uses the night to rebuild the immune system, repair defects in our cells and clear out a number of waste products. Exposure to light at night disrupts this delicate system and the necessary biological processes. Therefore, it is important to ensure that the normal circadian rhythm is maintained as much as possible.

What can you do to improve conditions for night workers?

There are several things you can do to improve the well-being and health of night workers, both as an employer and employee - and at Health Group we are keen to use our knowledge to provide advice at both levels. For employers who want to improve their employees' working conditions at night, we recommend, among other things, to allow for breaks on a regular basis, preferably a power nap around 4 am, and to avoid giving employees many night shifts in a row, as this increases the risk of illness. In addition, we recommend giving employees access to training facilities and permission to exercise during working hours, and it is important that employees are aware that they can participate in a free health check/health check. In this context, it is absolutely essential that employees feel comfortable with the offer - unfortunately, we sometimes experience that employees do not participate in a health check because they are worried about the results, or even that their employer should become aware that they are ill.

Let Health Group take care of your health check-up

A health check carried out by Health Group is always 100% confidential and has the sole purpose of helping and advising the employee about their own health. When we talk to the employee, our health consultants are experts in tracking down exactly where a possible challenge lies for the individual. Therefore, advice can move in several directions, but mainly the advice in connection with the health check is about ensuring the best possible conditions and helping the employee to find sustainable solutions that ensure as healthy a working life as possible.