Medical Examination for Employee: Pre-employment and Post-hire Screening

Posted by Senter Vina on March 3rd, 2020

Every employee of the company has the responsibility of upholding the company's reputation by providing their best efforts. An employee can ensure the same by giving their hundred per cent and not being short on any account whatsoever. Professionalism is not something that is taught in business schools but acquired throughout your work experience in the industry. Several companies conduct pre-employment psychological evaluations as well as post-hire screen evaluations and medical check-ups to ensure that the individual is sound in mind and body. These are done to keep the employees in check and help them work with maximum efficiency.

Pre-employment psychological evaluation and Post-hire screen evaluation warrant the employee's efficiency

This kind of physical assessment of the prospective employee is performed only after the formal job offer has been made by the employer. This test needs to be cleared to be hired and this also gives an idea of the worker's efficiency and work experience. These evaluations put their theoretical and on-paper qualities to test and serve as a practical test wherein the employer observes if the employee's money is where their mouth is. The medical exam ensures whether the new hire can endure and meet them all or a few physical fitness demanded by the job. These tests and post-hire evaluations are often a mandate legally and the companies perform them to keep all their legal formalities in check before hiring a new employee.

The psychological evaluation tests are designed for a thorough assessment

The testing criteria are based on the same job demand analysis metrics that are utilized to create the job profile or descriptions. Since the employment is contingent on passing these medical exams and drug screens they are sketched out keeping the thorough assessment of the employee in mind. These tests are standardized by the company and are to be taken by every employee irrespective of the hierarchical position they are hired for. The drug test should follow all the guidelines and not violate any prospective employee's privacy or not subject anyone to any sort of humiliation. The medical exams determine the overall fitness of the individual. The functional capacity evaluation then determines if the individual is suitable for that profile. Other than the medical exam and drug screening there is a long list of tests that are performed to check other qualities of the person like aptitude test, an evaluation of cognitive abilities and honesty and integrity tests that assess the personality of that individual.

Determination and identification of KSAOs required to perform the job

These pre-hire and post-hire evaluations all streamline to one objective i.e. checking the Knowledge, Skills, Abilities and Other characteristics specific to the job profile. The knowledge can be tested by oral or written medium, the skills should be tested through application-based tests, abilities may be checked through performance under strenuous conditions and the other tests can determine if the candidate is appropriate for tasks specific to the job profile. The companies select appropriate tests for such purposes by following the guidelines mentioned in the Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures of 1978. They clearly mentioned ways in which the firm can maintain employee standards while taking into account their merits and skills. The pre-hire and post-hire tests that are presented to a candidate are usually the ones that are convenient for the company, competitively priced, reputable and accurate. Some other reliable platforms that guide the company in selecting these evaluations are the Mental Measurements Yearbook published by Buros Center for Testing and The Society of Industrial and Organisational Psychology. 

Difference between pre-hire and post-hire tests

The human resources department thrives on creating an environment with risk-controlled objectives, increased regulation and ensuring employee satisfaction and retention. One of the most essential parts of ensuring employee satisfaction and retention is having a safe and sound work environment. They do this by determining a prospective employee's fitness for a particular job or role. The major difference between the two types of tests is that the pre-employment test helps the company to narrow down the range of candidates who have applied to shortlist the best-suited ones. 

These evaluations hardly involve any questions on medical condition and health. Whereas the post-hire screen evaluation provides far richer data about the candidate regarding their medical history and pre-existing medical conditions. This way the company has a catalog to defend itself in case of any injury caused to the employee in the workplace due to pre-existing medical conditions. The complete Physical capacity profile done post-offer is to check if the employee will be able to perform as per the guidelines of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EOCC), ADA and Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).

The post-hire screen evaluation keeps the overall productivity in check and increases the company's throughput

These tests make sure that the employee is healthy and fit or if they have any previous medical history the authorities at the workplace are aware of it. This has a monetary benefit of the reduction of sick leave and compensations of injuries caused by the organization. They also amalgamate and math the best-suited person to your empty job position through proper verification and checks.

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Senter Vina

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Senter Vina
Joined: September 13th, 2019
Articles Posted: 4

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