Fit for Duty Evaluation

A Fit-for-Duty evaluation is performed on an existing employee post-injury through an injury management program. A Fit-for-Duty Evaluation is a functional capacity test that may only focus on the injured body part of the employee. In compliance with EEOC regulations, an existing employee may only be given a Fit-for-Duty Evaluation when it is “job related and consistent with business necessity”.

Functional Capacity Evaluation (FCE)

A Functional Capacity Evaluation (FCE) is a comprehensive medical test of an existing employee.  The FCE is a full body test used to measure an employee’s functional capacity and also help to manage an injured employee’s tasks, regardless of the location where the injury occurred or a preexisting condition.  The FCE may be used independently to document preexisting conditions and impairments, or it may be used in conjunction with the Post-Offer Comprehensive test in order to compare the employee’s results to original testing results.

An injured employee should be tested as soon after their injury as possible, during their rehabilitation, and after completion of their rehabilitation to help the employer determine when they are able to safely return to work.  When an employee is tested immediately after injury, previously collected results can be used to create obtainable goals, recommendations, or work conditioning programs to help with injury management procedures.