Dr. Toni Ryan is the new leader of the Work Force Strategies Team at Marsh in Singapore. As CEO of a Work Health Management Consultancy company in Australian for 28 years, Toni has worked in a wide range of industries in both the public and private sector. An experienced Clinician, Physiologist, Researcher, Published Author and University Lecturer, Toni’s passion is in collaborating with employers to develop customized solutions to sustain productive, healthy, injury free work places.

The Integrated Work Health Management model she developed as part of her PhD brings health promotion and injury management together to facilitate the engagement and retention of older workers in the healthcare sector.

The focus of her work in Singapore is to work with employers and insurers to develop and evaluate strategies to improve the health and safety of workers across the age spectrum, and in particular ageing workers.

Synopsis
Singapore faces the prospect of an increasingly ageing population and workforce within the context of a tightening labour market. A declining old-age support ratio highlights the need to develop strategies to retain workers across all age groups and in particular ageing workers. Research demonstrates that older workers can continue in employment if the physical work environment is adapted to meet their changing needs.

What are the “work-ability” implications for ageing workers? What are the health and safety risks and how can the health sector mitigate these risks to improve the retention of ageing workers? How can we identify the root causes of work-related accidents and ill-health and identify interventions to reduce these risks? What are the opportunities to redesign and manage workplace safety and health hazards for ageing workers?

A particular emphasis will be to examine best practice strategies to prevent work-related injuries and ill-health and to facilitate the early and sustainable return to work of injured workers. This will include exploring opportunities for insurers to provide financial incentives to healthcare employers to invest in injury prevention and rehabilitation strategies.