A pioneering health promotion programme which produces individual advice for employees has been created by occupational health specialist Abermed and subsea engineering and construction contractor Technip.

Technip is currently trialling the online Healthy Offshore Working Lives (HOWL) system, the first of its kind, on its international workforce.

HOWL allows medics to input information about employees' health and generates anonymous statistics so that health promotion work can focus on issues that are relevant to the population, rather than simply providing general health information.

The programme has been designed to be accessible from anywhere, so it can be used on offshore installations, ships or other remote locations.

Health checks are offered on a voluntary basis and are carried out by an onboard medic, monitoring height, weight, blood pressure and so on.

The employee is then given their own booklet with a record of their statistics and personalised practical tips on issues such as stopping smoking, eating healthily or losing weight.

If necessary, the medic may recommend the person seeks further medical help through their own GP.

The information can be stored according to location, vessel, type of occupation etc, to allow employers to assess particular trends and patterns.

Technip's fleet of vessels, which carries out subsea installation, construction and diving activities, works internationally and encompasses a workforce of over 1,200 people.

The large majority of the crew is male, meaning men's health features highly on the agenda. It is well documented that men find often it more difficult to discuss their health and hopefully this will encourage more open and proactive discussion.

Dr Euan Thompson, a director at Abermed, said the feedback from Technip had been extremely positive.

"This is the first time a programme like this has been developed and the feedback from Technip, who asked us to create it for them, has been really positive, he said. All our research was carried out in partnership and the trial has allowed us to fine tune the programme.

"It allows the company to compile a database which shows the issues affecting their workforce, and then implement a targeted intervention programme which deals with the key issues.

"From the individual's point of view, it also allows them to monitor their own progress and see how well they have done if they are trying to lose weight or give up smoking."

John Greensmyth, QHSES Lead, Technip commented: "The health and welfare of workforce both on and offshore is of utmost importance and we believe that offering regular opportunities to discuss health and providing information on relevant issues will help people to make positive choices, and crucially enable them take action to prevent any potential future serious illness."

Technip is continuing to use HOWL, which will be rolled out to the rest of the oil and gas industry at a conference in Kuala Lumpur in November.