Monday 02 / December / 2024
Muscat: The Public Authority for Special Economic Zones and Free Zones (Opaz) has adopted a number of initiatives aimed at improving the health of employees, with the goal of enhancing performance efficiency and creating suitable conditions in the workplace.
These initiatives include implementing several programmes throughout the year to raise awareness on how to handle emergency situations, prevent chronic diseases, promote positive thinking among employees, and prepare them to deal with stressful work conditions.
The programmes aim to equip employees with the necessary skills to cope with challenges they may face in their daily work duties or in their personal lives.
Abdul Majid bin Abdullah Al-Ansari, General Director of the Support Services Sector at Opaz, stated that these initiatives align with the Authority’s strategic plan within the framework of the Institutional Excellence Programme.This programme includes objectives that involve the Authority’s management taking necessary measures to ensure the presence of employees who enjoy good health and possess the skills suitable for the nature of the Authority’s work and achieving its goals.He added that this year, several regular health check-ups were conducted to ensure the physical well-being of employees during working hours.
In addition, workshops and initiatives were carried out for employees on first aid, healthy nutrition, and general health care through early detection of chronic diseases, as well as initiatives to promote mental health and ways to deal with stressful work conditions. These initiatives were executed in cooperation with several hospitals and private healthcare centers.
He pointed out that the programs implemented this year included increasing knowledge of first aid techniques, whether at work or at home.
They focused on training employees on how to deal with various emergency situations such as burns, fractures, wounds, drowning, head injuries, choking, and cardiac arrest, among other emergencies, with the goal of providing necessary support to the injured until medical care arrives.
As a parallel administrative measure, Opaz’s building was equipped to ensure the availability of first aid tools and medical devices related to testing blood sugar levels, blood pressure, and body temperature.
A small pharmacy containing medications for seasonal illnesses was also set up. Employees were trained and provided with certified first aid certificates to assist their colleagues at work or help their families and friends as part of their community service beyond the official work framework.
Abdul Majid Al-Ansari added that these initiatives focus on promoting awareness about healthy eating and its impact on employee health, both physically and mentally, which in turn improves energy levels, concentration, and productivity at work.
The initiatives aim to prevent chronic diseases such as obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure.
They included a workshop on healthy nutrition, a weight check-up with body mass index calculation, and sports consultations by specialists invited periodically by the Authority in areas such as weight management, calories, and nutrition.
The goal is to improve employees’ dietary habits, benefiting both the employees and the Authority by reducing work hours lost due to sick leave, enhancing physical activity, and improving employees’ physical and mental health.
A mental health initiative was also held under the slogan “Positivity and Well-being,” which included several activities such as a workshop on positive thinking and ways to cope with signs of burnout.
Additionally, consultations with specialists, as well as blood sugar, blood pressure, and eye tests, were provided. A discussion session was held with a center specialising in psychological and social counseling.
The event, held in observance of World Mental Health Day on October 10, 2024, aimed to encourage positive thinking among employees by urging them to adopt an optimistic view of life, thus improving mental health, increasing productivity at work, reducing stress, and developing coping skills to handle daily pressures and challenges.
Abdul Majid bin Abdullah Al-Ansari, General Director of the Support Services Sector at Opaz, concluded by noting that this year also witnessed the implementation of several other initiatives directed at employees, which have positively impacted the services provided by Opaz to investors in the economic and free zones and industrial cities.
He emphasised that these initiatives have contributed to increased productivity, faster completion of work, enhanced social relationships, and the creation of a supportive environment that promotes employee well-being.
