Client stories Ausgrid boosts employee health with preventionXpress screening

As the largest electricity distributor on Australia’s east coast, with a workforce of over 4,000, Ausgrid places a high priority on the safety and wellbeing of its employees.

In line with the National Male Health Policy (2010), Ausgrid (formerly Energy Australia) adopted the preventionXpress (pXs) screening program to support the health and wellbeing of their workforce. Over eight years, pXs delivered more than 7,400 voluntary, confidential preventive health checks with Ausgrid staff at 18 worksites in NSW.

The positive results of the eight-year screening program were wide-ranging, with an overall significant reduction in key indicators of preventable chronic disease, including a decrease in psychological distress and depression and decrease in individuals with measured high blood pressure.

Australian men are less likely to visit healthcare professionals compared to women, and more inclined to delay or avoid seeking medical care (ABS 2023).

With a workforce of 80% males, and 30% of field-based staff working with high-voltage electricity and a high level of commuting across network areas, Ausgrid recognised the need to engage male employees about their health; raise awareness about preventable health problems affecting men and encourage them to learn more about their own health.

Delivered onsite by a trained healthcare worker, the pXs screen incorporated a range of screening scales, assessments and physical health checks, with a focus on five chronic preventable diseases, including cardiovascular disease, obesity and diabetes.

Employees were informed of their risk factors for a range of preventable diseases and provided with information to take action to reduce risk factors and maintain good health.

Ausgrid used the de-personalised pXs reports to help design their own workplace health programs and as a benchmark to measure progress on an annual basis. This included the closure of the onsite canteens, which previously stocked a large range of unhealthy food and drink options including sugary drinks and snacks.

The pXs health screen improved productivity and staff morale, reduced absenteeism, workplace injuries and staff turnover, and helped to improve work culture, with the sustained improvement of health in Ausgrid staff.