A Pre-Employment Medical Check (also known as a Pre-Employment Functional Assessment (PEFA)) is a practical screening process that helps confirm whether a candidate can safely meet the inherent functional requirements of a role before they start work.

These assessments support better hiring decisions and help businesses reduce the risk of workplace injuries, workers compensation claims, and early turnover—particularly for roles involving physical demands, safety risks, machinery, manual handling, repetitive work, or high-risk environments.

Problem

Many employers want to confirm a candidate’s fitness for a role, but it can be difficult to:

• Clearly define the physical and functional requirements of the position

• Ensure the assessment is aligned to the role (not “generic”)

• Coordinate the process quickly without delays to onboarding

• Receive a report that is easy to interpret and useful for decision making

Without an assessment that is aligned to the job’s inherent requirements, employers may miss key risks or end up with incomplete information that does not support a confident hiring decision.

Solution

On Demand HR partners with Altius to provide streamlined, role-specific Pre-Employment Functional Assessments (PEFAs) for our members.

A PEFA provides insight into a candidate’s ability to safely meet the physical demands of a job through objective screening tools such as:

• A detailed medical questionnaire

• Musculoskeletal screening

• Functional testing tailored to the role’s inherent requirements

This process helps ensure the candidate is suited to the role and provides a strong foundation for a safe and productive employment relationship.

What happens next (Process)

Once you submit the request form below, the following will occur:

1. On Demand HR reviews your request – We will review the position details you provide and confirm the role type, duties, and work environment.

2. We draft key functional requirements (inherent requirements) – Based on the information you provide (and our understanding of the position title and typical duties), we will draft our best estimate of the key functional demands that should be assessed.

3. You approve the assessment focus areas – We will send you the proposed functional requirements for review and approval to ensure the assessment reflects your workplace and the position.

4. We send the referral to Altius on your behalf – Once approved, we send the final referral directly to Altius, including the agreed assessment focus areas.

5. Altius contacts the candidate to book the appointment – Altius will liaise directly with the candidate to schedule the assessment at a suitable time and location.

6. You receive a detailed report – After the appointment, Altius provides a detailed outcome report directly to your business to support your recruitment decision.

Pricing and invoicing

Because On Demand HR has an established relationship with Altius, one-off pre-employment medical checks are billed to On Demand HR, and the cost is passed through to you on your next invoice.

For the most up-to-date pricing (including optional add-ons), please refer to:

www.ondemandhr.com.au/pricing

Optional add-on tests (available at additional cost)

Depending on the role, you may wish to add additional screening to the standard PEFA. These can be completed at the same time as the assessment (where appropriate).

Drug and Alcohol Testing

Drug and alcohol screening is used to reduce the health and safety risks posed by recreational drug use—particularly in safety-sensitive roles.

Testing may be conducted via:

• Saliva (oral fluid) testing with results available in minutes, and/or

• Urine testing (including chain-of-custody testing at an accredited pathology provider where results may be used for formal/legal purposes).

This is a practical option for roles involving driving, machinery, high-risk work, or where your business has a drug and alcohol policy in place.

Audiometric Testing (Hearing Test)

Audiometric testing provides a snapshot of a candidate’s hearing ability and is especially relevant for workplaces with exposure to hazardous noise (e.g., manufacturing, construction, warehousing, or plant environments).

This screening helps to:

• Establish a baseline of hearing health

• Support WHS compliance in noise-exposed roles

• Identify hearing issues early and reduce future risk and claims

Spirometry Testing (Respiratory / Lung Function Test)

Spirometry assesses lung function by measuring how well a person can inhale and exhale air. It helps identify or confirm respiratory conditions that may affect work capacity.

It is commonly recommended for roles involving:

• Dust, fumes, chemicals, vapours, or airborne particles

• Work in confined spaces or environments with respiratory hazards

• Use of respiratory protective equipment

Spirometry may detect conditions such as asthma, chronic bronchitis, or other airflow limitations that may impact a candidate’s ability to safely perform certain tasks.

COPE & Resilience Screening (Psychosocial Suitability Add-On)

COPE and Resilience Screening helps measure how a candidate tends to respond to stress and challenging situations.

This assessment explores:

• The person’s primary coping styles (effective and ineffective)

• Their ability to “bounce back” after stress

• Their resilience profile in response to difficult events

This can be a useful add-on for roles that involve high pressure, emotional demands, frontline conflict, or environments where psychological resilience is a key requirement.

Why businesses use PEFAs (Key benefits)

Pre-Employment Functional Assessments can help businesses to:

• Ensure candidates are well matched to the physical demands of the job

• Reduce the risk of early workplace injuries and preventable claims

• Clarify how medical history may affect work capacity

• Support safer onboarding and better role understanding

• Improve safety culture and set clear expectations from day one

• Identify health issues that may benefit from early management strategies

If you would like to arrange a Pre-Employment Medical Check / PEFA for a candidate, please submit the form below and On Demand HR will guide you through the process.