JoAnne Easton, R.N., C.O.H.N.(c)

JoAnne Easton is a Registered Nurse and a Certified Occupational Health Nurse with over 20 years of experience in both the non-unionized and unionized workplace. JoAnne has recently taken early retirement from her position as Occupational Health Nurse/ Nurse Care Coordinator with 650 employees, which she held for 17 years.  JoAnne additionally has certificates in occupational health Nursing, disability management, negotiation and mediation and has recently completed a certificate as a certified stress and wellness consultant from the Canadian Institute of Stress and the Hans Selye Foundation. She has also recently completed the program of the Parish Nurse Institute from the McMaster Divinity College. She is knowledgeable in managing major work programs in health surveillance, employee health management, and health promotion and disability management. She has experience on workplace wellness committees and coordinating and overseeing of external contracts. She has provided resource to the Joint Health and Safety Committee and the Emergency Response Team.

 

JoAnne has developed her health promotion programs to reflect the employee’s need, following a workplace assessment. The workplace assessment identifies cost pressures, targets areas in employee health and regions to focus resources.  She has prepared and presented health topics to employees and has collaborated with the Kineseologist in the muscular skeletal injury/repetitive strain injury program and ergonomic projects. JoAnne is experienced in coordinating health fairs for employees, liaising with the H/N Health Unit, Lung Association, Heart and Stroke Foundation, OPP, external employees assistance provider, Norfolk General Hospital and Addictions Services. JoAnne also has experience in preparing ergonomic assessment for office workstations and overseeing immunization programs.

 

JoAnne’s wide knowledge includes the duties of a Nurse Care Coordinator who assists early return to work, by early communication with absent employees and first line management. She utilizes physician reports to identify capabilities and restrictions. She is familiar with the importance of the employee’s Disability Management Team, participating along with the employee, union steward, first line manager and human resources. Following the Disability Management Team meeting she would develop a return to work plan agreed to and signed by all participants.  She clarifies capabilities and restrictions with the attending Doctor where appropriate.  She has presented employee cases to the Corporate Disability Management Team for recommendation to LTD. She has facilitated assessment or treatment with specialty medical services, i.e. Functional Abilities Assessment, Independent Medical Assessments, Physiotherapy, MRI’s and Mental Health Programs.

 

JoAnne has presented program updates and distributed quarterly reports to management, permitting review of the health related programs and an opportunity to change direction of activities if necessary.

 

JoAnne is an involved member of the community serving as Warden and Council member at her local church. She continues to serve as volunteer on the Health in the Workplace Committee of  Haldimand/Norfolk Health Unit and has been an active member of the Tool Kit Development Team. This Tool Kit project is the product of the combined efforts and resources of Waterloo and Haldimand/Norfolk Health Units. It has been a project dear to her heart and is now in the pilot phase, being utilized and evaluated by selected workplaces within the community. This is a needed resource to promote health within workplaces having little time or resources dedicated to workplace health.

 

Areas of expertise:

• Wellness policy development
• Creating realistic wellness objectives
• Creating a realistic corporate wellness plan
• Stakeholders’ invitation to corporate initiatives
• Wellness assessment planning
• Response planning to wellness assessments
• Resource knowledge and positive resource relationships for strategic response to wellness assessments
• Creating an evaluation process
• Familiar with health programs in the MSI/RSI field, cardiovascular field and mental/emotional area
• Delivery of health related workshops on mental health and physical health
• Familiar with many occupations and their physical, mental and emotional requirements. i.e. truck drivers, electricians, mechanics, supervisors, foreman, sedentary positions, operators, managers, emergency response
• Familiar with local public health planning initiative and resource package  “Project health - creating Your Healthy Workplace”
• Familiar with non-unionized and unionized workplaces
• ØKnowledgeable with facilitating employees return to work

 

Phone: 519-428-0776

Toll Free: 1-800-560-5577

Fax:  519-426-0852