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Session Evaluation

AOHC 2026 Concurrent Sessions

Work Fitness and Disability Management

314 - Evaluating Fitness for Duty: The Role of Routine FCEs in Oil & Gas Operations

Tuesday, April 21, 2026
10:15 AM - 11:15 AM CT
Location: Chicago Ballroom IX
Claim 1.0 CME

All relevant financial relationships have been mitigated.


Disclosure(s):

Chinwe Okala, MBBS, MPH, MFOM, FACOEM: No financial relationships to disclose
Mike Wasik, BS in Exercise and Sport Sciences, M.Ed.: No financial relationships to disclose
Perla manlapaz, MD: No financial relationships to disclose
Luis A. Castillejo, MD: No financial relationships to disclose
Session Description: This session presents a 10-year review of 15,000 Functional Capacity Evaluations (FCEs) conducted across oil and gas operations in the Americas, with a pass rate exceeding 90%. It explores clinical reasons for failed evaluations—primarily cardiovascular and musculoskeletal limitations—and uses data to highlight implications for disability management, fitness-for-duty decisions, and responder readiness. The session also examines how routine FCEs are integrated into occupational health programs, evaluating whether their widespread use delivers meaningful clinical and operational value or introduces inefficiencies. Attendees will critically assess whether current FCE practices effectively identify fitness or inadvertently contribute to operational risk, and explore strategies to enhance protocols that support workforce safety, cost-effectiveness, and business continuity.

Educational Gaps: Physicians may use routine FCEs as standardized tools for FFD decisions without fully evaluating clinical relevance, job specificity, or operational value. This session explores ways to enhance interpretation where clinically appropriate, align evaluations with functional risk, and reduce inefficiencies.

Is this session being sponsored by an ACOEM Section or Component?: No

Has this session previously been presented?: No

The AOHC 2026 theme is Healthy workers. Healthy world: By evaluating the clinical and operational value of routine FCEs, this session supports safer job placement, injury prevention, and cost-effective workforce health strategies—advancing the well-being of workers and the sustainability of global operations.

Learning Objectives:

  • 1Describe the clinical and operational outcomes routine FCEs conducted in our operations, including key reasons for failed evaluations. The session will explore how routine FCEs inform clinical decision-making in fitness-for-duty assessments
  • 2. Evaluate the limitations of standardized FCE protocols in identifying functional risk and job-specific fitness in high-hazard work environments.
  • 3. Identify strategies to to enhance clinical evaluation frameworks improve the value, interpretation, and efficiency of FCEs in fitness-for-duty decision-making and occupational health program design.