Australia National Standard for Health Assessment of Rail Safety Workers 2024 2.2.2: Match assessments to categories and add task-specific requirements: Category 1 and 2 Safety Critical Workers receive a Health Questionnaire and clinical examination screening for conditions that affect vigilance, Category 1 adding a cardiac risk level assessment and screening for conditions causing sudden incapacity; Category 3 workers receive a Track Safety Health Assessment of hearing, vision and mobility with self-report of other conditions; requirements for colour vision, hearing and musculoskeletal capacity are set per task and communicated to the health professional; functional or practical tests may supplement but never override the criteria

What does 2.2.2 require?

Each worker receives the assessment matched to their category. Safety Critical Worker assessments (Categories 1 and 2) combine a self-administered Health Questionnaire, reviewed by the Authorised Health Professional, with a clinical examination of the key body systems to find conditions that may impair vigilance and attentiveness, for example cardiovascular disease, diabetes, epilepsy and other neurological conditions, neurodevelopmental disorders, sleep disorders, substance dependence, psychiatric conditions and hearing and vision problems; no fitness decision can rest on the questionnaire alone. Category 1 workers additionally have a cardiac risk level assessment and an examination focused on conditions that could cause sudden incapacity such as hypoglycaemia, epilepsy and transient ischaemic attack. The Track Safety Health Assessment for Category 3 covers audiometry, visual acuity and fields and a general musculoskeletal assessment, with conditions that cause loss of attention or consciousness identified only by self-report, so operators must tell Category 3 workers to notify a supervisor or seek a Triggered Health Assessment if they develop such a condition, a serious injury to eyes, hearing or limbs, a serious brain injury or another serious condition. Certain tasks have requirements independent of category, for colour vision, hearing and musculoskeletal capacity, which the operator assesses per task and communicates to the health professional. A functional or practical test may supplement a clinical assessment, conducted by suitably experienced people such as an occupational therapist or principal driver working with the Authorised Health Professional, but practical tests of colour vision or hearing are not recommended, results are not transferable between operators, and no such test can override the fitness for duty criteria.