Reducing health risks & financial costs within the Energy sector

Operating in remote and challenging environments, offshore energy companies face high costs and significant risks in ensuring safe and efficient operations. To address these challenges, advanced technologies and H&S systems are already leveraged to drive efficiencies and safeguard their workforce. They also foster a well-trained, unified, and safety-driven culture where workforce well-being is a shared priority.

However, by adopting a proactive healthcare risk management approach, offshore companies can go beyond traditional measures to further mitigate risks, enhance operational efficiency, and contain costs.

Through the analysis of anonymized medical data, worker risk profiling, and patient satisfaction metrics—all visualized through live dashboards—companies gain actionable insights into key performance indicators. These insights empower organizations to proactively improve worker safety, reduce medical-related expenses, and maintain efficient operations.

This comprehensive approach represents a transformative opportunity for offshore companies to elevate workforce health and safety while achieving measurable improvements in cost containment and productivity.

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Industry Overview & Statistics

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Offshore platforms are complex environments that require significant attention to worker health and safety. Based on industry research by IOGP, OSHA and BSEE, platforms typically experience the following (based on a platform with 250 workers, and spread across 20 sites):

• The industry average Total Recordable Injury Frequency (TRIF) standardised: 1.5

• Total number of recordable injuries: 75

• DART = injury / illness leading to Days Away, Restricted duty or Job Transfer. The industry average is 1 DART case per 100 full-time workers annually. Across all workers and sites, this equates to 50 cases annually

• Telemedicine Consultations: Each injury requires an average of 5 telemedicine consultations, then the 20 sites would need to conduct approximately 375 telemedicine consultations per year. This results in approximately 187.5 hours of telemedicine consultations annually.

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The Cost of Health & Safety Challenges

The combined costs of injuries, lost time, and telemedicine consultations can create a significant financial burden for offshore platforms. Again, based on a platform with 250 workers, and spread across 20 sites, these costs break down as follows:

• Total Cost of Injuries: $15,000,000 annually
• Total Cost of DART: $20,000,000 annually
• Total Cost of Telemedicine Consultations: With each consultation averaging $200, the total cost of telemedicine consultations is approximately $75,000 annually.

When you combine the total cost of injuries, lost time, and telemedicine consultations, the annual total for a 20-site segment comes to a staggering $35,075,000.

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Data-Driven Solutions to Improve Worker Health & Safety

To address these challenges, offshore platforms can take a more proactive approach by leveraging anonymized medical data, worker risk profiling, and occupational health programs to reduce injuries and improve overall worker health.

• A Comprehensive Health Management System

A robust Electronic Health Record (EHR) system is the foundation of an effective offshore health management solution. Beyond simply tracking health records, a full-suite health management platform supports everything from basic health assessments at single-position sites to more advanced care at Level 2 clinics. This integrated approach streamlines operations, reduces administrative burdens, and ensures high-quality care for workers across various offshore sites.

2. Predictive Data & AI for Cost Containment

With the help of predictive analytics and AI-powered dashboards, offshore platforms can gain real-time insights into worker health and safety. These tools allow managers to identify emerging trends and patterns in injury types, causes, and severity, enabling proactive interventions.

This insight helps pinpoint common health risks, forecast potential medical issues, and tailor health and safety programs to meet the specific needs of employees. By using data responsibly, organizations can improve health outcomes while maintaining employee privacy.

3.Worker Risk Profiling

Risk profiling evaluates individual and group risk factors, such as pre-existing health conditions, fitness levels, and environmental exposures. This personalized approach helps prioritize high-risk employees for preventive interventions, ensuring resources are allocated effectively. By addressing risks before they escalate, companies can reduce absenteeism, improve employee well-being, and avoid costly medical emergencies.

4. Patient Satisfaction Metrics

Gathering feedback from workers about their healthcare experiences is crucial for improving medical services and building trust. Metrics such as satisfaction with telemedicine consultations, onsite medical staff, and treatment outcomes provide valuable input for refining health support systems. Satisfied workers are more likely to report issues early, engage with preventive care, and adhere to safety protocols.

5. Systems designed for Challenging Environments

Offshore platforms require solutions that can operate seamlessly in challenging environments. An intuitive, easy-to-use health management platform enables smooth collaboration between on-site teams and remote health professionals. Whether workers are offshore or on land, teams can communicate and share data in real time, creating a unified approach to health and safety management. This connectivity is critical for managing workers' health effectively and ensuring a coordinated response to any incidents that may arise.

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Impact of These Strategies on Offshore Platforms

According to OSHA industry research, companies using these technologies experience:

• 30% increase in operational efficiency
• 30% reduction in operational costs
• 35% decrease in health-related risks

Offshore platforms can therefore significantly reduce both injuries and lost time, leading to major cost savings. Here’s a look at how implementing these measures could impact a 20-site offshore company:

• Reduction in Recordable Injuries: By implementing data-driven approaches, it can reduce number of injuries by 30%, reducing it from 75 to 52.5.

• Reduction in DART: Implementing early intervention through health checks and monitoring could reduce lost time injuries by 35%. This would result in a savings of approximately 17.5 DART cases, reducing the total to 32.5.

• Telemedicine Cost Reduction: With fewer injuries, workers would require fewer telemedicine consultations, leading to an estimated 20% reduction in hours. This could save 39 hours of consultations annually.

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Financial Impact of Health & Safety Improvements

By reducing injuries, DART, and telemedicine consultations, offshore platforms could save up to $11,507,800 annually.

The breakdown is as follows:

• Savings from Reduced Injuries: $4,500,000
• Savings from Reduced DART: $7,000,000
• Savings from Reduced Telemedicine Consultations: $7,800

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Conclusion

The offshore energy sector faces a significant financial burden due to injuries, lost time, and telemedicine consultations. However, by leveraging a data-driven approach platforms can drastically reduce these costs and improve operational efficiencies.

The potential savings of up to $11,507,800 annually, based on having 20 offshore sites, highlight the significant return on investment that companies can achieve through proactive health and safety measures.

Adopting these innovative strategies is not only a financial imperative but also a step towards further safeguarding an even more healthier and more sustainable environment for offshore workers.

For further detail into these findings, please join MyC Co-founder and Medical Doctor Dr Laurent Bonnardot in this free to view webinar.

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