Posted By Robin B We have recently had some problems with skin sensitisation so I have some knowledge. 1. Refer your employee either to your occupational health provider or their GP. Either of them sjhould then refer to the local dermatology dept. Once you recieve written confirmation of sensitisation you must RIDDOR it. 2. In the meantime anyone suspected of being sensitised must not work with the substance. Also secondary/cross contamination from touching door handles telephones etc can be a problem. You have to be very sure that your people's hygiene [hand washing, no contaminated overalls in canteens, toilets etc.] and your housekeeping is of the highest order. The really importeant thing is to have a procedure in place that flags up any skin care problems and allows for investigations to be undertaken by the professionals. Wish you luck as sensitisation seems to be flavour of the years with our inspectors. Robin

Posted By Robin B Certainly substances given as R42/43 are IDENTIFIED as being sensitisers. What if this one hasen't been YET? If an employee thinks he/she is sensitised to this particular cleaning agent, the situation must be investigated by professionals. Follow the route to the dermatologist and they will administer a standard patch test and you can be pretty sure of the results [if their procedures are good!]. In the meantime, until proven/disporoven, the employee should not be permitted to work or come into contact with the substance. If you do nothing and things turn out badly, the person and the HSE would likely have justifiable grounds for action I should say Im speaking from experience here but the substance in our case was/is a known sensitiser that we cant substitute, but the experience has, dare I say it, made me super-sensitive to this type of exposure. Robin

Posted By Fred Pratley Your post indicates a skin problem. As has already been suggested, unless you have your own resources, get your employee to visit their G.P. and ask for a referral to a local skin specialist who will be able to perform "patch testing" to see which (if any) of the common chemicals the person may be sensitive to. However, you MUST ensure no contact occurs between the material and the person, even if that means relocating the individual. Also, check that nothing has changed recently in their domestic surroundings, e.g. have they recently changed hand soap. This is probably one of the most difficult things to sort out. Remedies I have found to work vary from checking simple good industrial hygiene is used, i.e. pay for a decent hand wash soap, (not the cheapest as this is always a false economy) to simple use of barrier cream etc. Most important, change only one thing at a time, so you can keep track. Trust this is of use.