Pre-Employment Functional Assessments (PEFA)

A pre-employment functional assessment is an evaluation of an individual’s physical capacity to safely perform the demands of a certain job. A PEFA is conducted by a qualified exercise physiologist, physiotherapist, or occupational therapist.

By assessing the candidate’s physical strength and cardiovascular fitness against the demands of their proposed role, we are able to determine whether they are physically fit for the role, and may assist with early identification of risk factors for musculoskeletal conditions.

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Benefits of Pre-Employment Functional Assessments

Investing in PEFAs has been demonstrated to be beneficial in screening for any candidate injuries and/or musculoskeletal conditions, identifying risk factors, and reducing risk of work-related injuries. Studies have shown that when workers do not meet job demands of a pre-employment functional assessment, the risks of injuries at work increase (Legge et al, 2013).

Australian Workers' Compensation Statistics (2020-2021)

The Australian Workers’ Compensation Statistics Report 2020-2021 highlights 130,195 serious claims over the financial year, with the main causes of serious claims being body stressing (37%), falls, trips, and slips (23%), and being hit by moving objects (16%).

Occupations with the highest frequency rates of serious claims in 2020-2021 included labourers, community and personal service workers, and machinery operators and drivers. Industries with the highest frequency rates of serious claims in 2020-2021 were: agriculture, forestry and fishing; healthcare and social assistance; and manufacturing.

PEFAs are particularly valuable for these industries, as well as occupations requiring manual labour and/or repetitive movements and postures.

Lambton Physiotherapy and Sports Medicine (LPSM) offer a comprehensive pre-employment functional assessment, which includes the following:

Pre-Exercise Screening (PAR-Q)
Medical History Screening
Anthropometry – Height, Weight, Waist and Hip Circumferences, Blood Pressure, Resting Heart Rate
Vision Test (Visual Acuity & Ishihara Colour Test)
Lung Test (Auscultation Assessment)
Grip Strength
Whole Body Range of Motion
Musculoskeletal Tests (Manual Muscle Tests, Special Tests)
Postural Tolerances – Standing, Sitting, Squatting, Kneeling
Balance Tests
Cardiovascular Fitness Step Test
Manual Handling / Lifting Assessment (Floor to Waist, Waist to Shoulder, Shoulder to Overhead, Pushing/Pulling, and Lifting/Carrying)
Urine Drug Test

Occupation specific testing can be developed upon review of the company’s existing job descriptions/task analyses.