Development of Evaluation Criteria for Occupational Health Management Systems: Delphi Study

Abstract

Background: This study aimed to develop evaluation criteria for assessing a large-scale enterprise's occupational health management system (OHMS). Methods: A literature review was conducted, and the OHMS evaluation criteria were selected. A two-round Delphi survey was conducted with 20 panelists in the fields of occupational and environmental medicine and industrial hygiene. The evaluation items were formulated based on the results of the first-round Delphi survey, written opinions submitted by experts, and focus group interviews with company health management managers. If the content validity ratio (CVR) of each evaluation item was less than 0.42, the item was rejected. Results: The first Delphi survey questionnaire consisted of 36 evaluation criteria in 5 areas according to the Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle based on the literature review. These areas included 5 plan items, 6 do items, 4 check items, 3 action items, and 12 occupational health service items. From the first Delphi survey, out of the 36 evaluation items, 10 exhibited excellent content validity with a score of 0.7 or higher, and 25 demonstrated good content validity with a score lower than 0.7, but higher than 0.474. The evaluation items underwent significant revisions by incorporating written opinions from experts and feedback obtained from focus group interviews with health managers. The second Delphi survey questionnaire presented 31 evaluation criteria across four domains. Three criteria did not meet the CVR standards, and 28 items in four domains were finally selected. Conclusion: Using this evaluation tool, the company's health management director will be able to continuously monitor and improve the system by evaluating the system that produces performance rather than evaluating performance.