Remote occupational health care in Finland: how it works

Remote occupational health care works when preventive occupational health care, remote appointments and, when needed, in-person visits are agreed in the same contract. Kela also reimburses occupational health services given remotely, for example by video. When your team lives in different parts of Finland, choose a service in which remote is the default and not the exception.

This guide is for an employer whose team works remotely or in a hybrid way in several towns. It focuses on how occupational health care is arranged for a distributed team and what happens in a remote appointment in practice.

What can be handled remotely and what cannot?

In a remote team, contact usually starts with a remote connection, and a health care professional assesses whether that is enough. The table shows what works remotely and when an in-person visit is needed.

StartHealth's Basic package includes statutory preventive occupational health care and medical care delivered remotely: appointments with a doctor by video, chat or phone. Basic + Omply adds remote examination devices. Support adds an in-person appointment with a doctor on the basis of a remote assessment.

StartHealth's remote services cover Finland, and in-person services are in Helsinki. An in-person appointment is arranged according to need and the professional's assessment, and the practical arrangement and limits are confirmed in the offer. This is not a promise of a local clinic in every town, or of care arranged abroad. Compare the content of the packages on the services page.

The workplace survey and action plan cover the whole team

Preventive occupational health care covers the whole team wherever people live. Under section 4 of the Occupational Health Care Act, occupational health care is arranged to the extent required by the need arising from the work, work arrangements, personnel and workplace conditions. According to Kela, an employer must arrange preventive occupational health care if it has even one employee. The workplace survey and the action plan are therefore done also when a shared office is rarely used.

The workplace survey usually includes a workplace visit; in office work, part of it can be done remotely. In the background information, describe how the work is divided between the office and remote work and in which towns the team works. The steps of preparation are in the guide to the workplace survey.

Which occupational health care suits a team spread across Finland?

A remote team is best served by occupational health care in which remote appointments are available across the country and the practice for in-person visits is agreed in advance. The same five criteria apply when a small company looks for remote occupational health care or compares remote doctor services for companies.

1. Remote appointments available across the country. Make sure every employee can use the same service wherever they live and that remote appointments with a doctor are part of the contract.
2. Digital booking. An appointment must be found online without a town-specific phone service. Ask also in which languages the service and instructions are available.
3. Remote examination. Ask whether a doctor can examine an employee with remote examination devices and which examinations still need an in-person visit.
4. A clear practice for in-person visits. Agree in writing where an in-person visit, laboratory tests and imaging are arranged, who refers the employee there and what it costs when the employee lives far from the provider's location.
5. Itemisation for Kela. Ask that the invoice separates preventive occupational health care, medical care and any device costs, so that the information for the Kela application is ready.

If you are looking for the cheapest remote occupational health services, compare the monthly price and also the start-up costs, the prices of in-person visits and what the package leaves out. The lowest monthly price does not help if arranging an in-person visit is left to each employee.

Remote appointment: how does it work in practice?

A remote appointment with a doctor is an assessment that starts with a booking, in which the doctor and the employee talk by video, chat or phone. The employer does not take part in the appointment but makes sure the instructions are available to the whole team.

1. Booking. The employee books a time online, following the instructions the employer has shared. At StartHealth, booking is done through the booking button on the website.
2. Remote appointment: the doctor assesses the situation. The employee describes their work tasks and situation in confidence, and the doctor assesses whether a remote assessment is enough.
3. Next step. The matter is handled remotely, or the doctor refers the employee to an in-person visit, the laboratory or imaging. Remote examination devices can support the assessment if they are part of the contract.
4. Telling the workplace. The employee reports a possible absence according to the workplace instructions. Seeking an appointment does not replace the absence report.

The same principle applies to a sick leave certificate: the doctor assesses whether the certificate can be given in a remote appointment. Say in your workplace instructions when a certificate is needed and to whom it is delivered. The details are in the guide to the sick leave certificate, and the doctor's role in working with the employer is explained in the guide to the occupational health doctor.

Kela reimbursement for remote services

Kela also reimburses occupational health services that are given remotely, such as by video. Remote delivery therefore does not prevent reimbursement, but it does not guarantee it on its own either: the service must belong to reimbursable occupational health care, and the conditions of reimbursement must be met.

No promise of Kela reimbursement is given for remote examination devices or for the start-up fee of Basic + Omply. The steps, conditions and maximum amounts are in the Kela reimbursement guide.

Ergonomics and strain in remote work

In remote work, everyone's workstation and daily rhythm are different. Go through, as a team, screen placement, workstation adjustments and breaks, and how strain and availability are discussed when you do not see each other face to face.

• Agree where an employee gets support for assessing their workstation.
• Raise strain regularly, not only when problems have piled up.
• Describe remote work practices in the background information for the workplace survey.

Occupational health can help assess the strain factors of the work. More practical means are in the guide to workplace wellbeing in a small company.

Frequently asked questions