Australian Trucking Association (ATA) chair Mark Parry and TruckSafe chair Paul Fellows say the Australian government should bulk bill overnight sleep apnoea tests for truck drivers and other safety critical workers.
The pair are releasing the joint ATA and TruckSafe submission to the National Transport Commission’s (NTC) review of health screening for commercial vehicle drivers.
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The NTC is looking to expand the commercial vehicle driver medical standards in Assessing Fitness to Drive to include better screening for heart disease, diabetes and sleep disorders.
Mark says that for years, the ATA has argued that the commercial standards should include preventative screening for the key health risks to road safety.
“Our submission argues that these low or no cost screening tests should be prescribed in the standards. A GP undertaking a commercial medical would work through the screening procedure and, if needed, refer the driver for specialist follow up,” he says.
The submission claims that one of the priority health risks for truck drivers is obstructive sleep apnoea, a condition where a patient’s upper airway is obstructed repeatedly while they sleep. Untreated sleep apnoea can cause drivers to fall asleep behind the wheel. A 2012 study showed that 41 per cent of Australian long distance truck drivers have sleep apnoea.
“The case for acting on sleep apnoea is compelling. Our submission documents its toll of deaths, serious injuries and ruined lives,” Mark says.
“One of the barriers to addressing sleep apnoea, however, is the cost of confirming the diagnosis after a driver’s GP refers them to a specialist for investigation.
“An overnight sleep study at a clinic can cost $1,500, with the driver needing to find $997.60 in out of pocket costs after the Medicare rebate. The most effective treatment for sleep apnoea is with a CPAP machine. The machines cost about $2,000; follow up appointments are needed to calibrate them.
“The government should offer incentives to encourage sleep clinics to bulk bill sleep studies for truck drivers and other safety critical workers. It should also fund a long term loan scheme for CPAP machines, similar to the one run by the New Zealand hospital system.”
Paul says it’s vital that changes to the standards protect truck drivers’ jobs.
“The screening tests that we are talking about highlight if further investigation is needed. They are not diagnostic,” he says.
“That’s why AFTD needs to be amended so a driver who is referred to a specialist as a result of health screening can continue to drive unconditionally, provided they make an appointment to see the relevant specialist at the earliest practicable opportunity.”
Paul says that doctors, employers and drivers need more information about high risk medical conditions and how to manage them.
“TruckSafe led the way on this by requiring our member companies to provide drivers with health information in the 1990s and 2000s. Our new TruckSafe safety management system has a sample worker health and wellbeing policy that requires the development and implementation of health management programs,” he says.
Mark says the changes should be supported by a nationwide health screening campaign to be run by Healthy Heads in Trucks and Sheds.
“Our submission recommends that the government provide Healthy Heads in Trucks and Sheds with $1 million per year over four years to deliver 16,000 health screenings and distribute health awareness resources, including mental health resources, to 40,000 drivers,” he says.
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