Rank: Forum user 
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I am currently preparing a paper for our senior management team on the pro's and cons of pre-employment health questionnaires.
The sorts of things I'm covering include:
1. Their value post Equality Act.
2. Provision of information that facilitates reasonable adjustments.
3. Opportunity to gain knowledge of pre-existing medical conditions .
I'm putting a good case together (I think) to keep on using them, but am conscious that this is only my view. I'm sure I'd get a more rounded argument with the views of others put into the melting pot.
Any thoughts out there folks?
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Rank: Forum user 
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Wainwright: You'll find that pre-employment questionnaires are effectively illegal, so you can't have them however good your argument.
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Rank: Forum user
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Quite right - my mistake - post offer health checks!
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Rank: Super forum user 
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I don't think that they are 'illegal', my understanding is that the OFFER of work has to be made before the health questionnaire is completed, thereby ensuring that the initial recruitment process is not 'swung' by knowledge of any health issues.
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Rank: Super forum user
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I thought you could under section 60- when a conditional offer is made.
We still use them here- if there is someone with a medical condition that the task may exacerbate, then you need to know.
Andy
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Rank: Super forum user 
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You are obliged to ensure persone with any of the protected characteristicesare not disadvantaged during the recruitment process i.e. you are allowed to ask if they need any adjustments or assistance in getting to the test or interview. You must not use that information during the interview or selection process.
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Rank: Forum user 
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Rank: Super forum user
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I'm sure you can manage to fit in somewhere.
after all, the list of "health professionals" is quite long:
A medical practitioner - this could be a GP, consultant or hospital doctor
A dentist
An optician
A pharmaceutical chemist
A nurse, midwife or health visitor
An osteopath
A chiropractor
A clinical psychologist, child psychotherapist or speech therapist
A music therapist
A scientist employed by a health service body as head of department
Anyone registered as a member of a profession to which the Health Professionals Order 2001
I'm sure you can get to be a "music therapist"
Mind you, since people are being assessed for fitness for work (DfWP) by OccHealth now, and not doctors/nurses (I promise not to mention those who died before their appeals against being found fit for work)......
Anyway, doctors and nurses prefer to be considered Primary Healthcare Professionals to separate them from the dross.
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Rank: Super forum user
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And if you're in OccH you almost certainly can be a "health professional"
In fact about 2.5 million people have access to "confidential" health records.
Given that many NHS computers operate with an "allowed" persons card in the slot, without the person being there, most of the day, I should say even the cleaners have access.
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Rank: Forum user
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The introduction of the Equality legislation, as in most legislation was well meant. Unfortunately it also has the unintended consequences of hamstringing employers, particularly in construction were good physical health is usually a prerequisite. Now my HR Manager has informed me we can no longer use the pre employment medical questionnaire to ascertain if potential employees have a medical condition that could restrict the type of work activity they can carry out. But whoa there, once offerred employment we can ask the question! Then employers are saddled with making reasonable adjustments to accommodate them. Cart and horse come to mind.
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Rank: Super forum user
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After the interview process, is it still legal to make an offer of employment subject to medical fitness?
Could a health questionnaire be part of this medical?
Take Care
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Rank: Super forum user
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Rank: Forum user
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Slightly concerned. Though I can appreciate the humor presented, the importance of the issue remains.
The clinical professionals listed by the act are clear, and CMIOSH isn't one of these. Our own opinions to being health professionals, or indeed being employed within OccH, is arbitrary given the conditions of the acts. Neither by citing possible negligence by other organizations is justification to managing negligence within our own. What we should be looking for is clear guidance on this matter with represents to our professions.
I would agree that the ED Act has befuddled the issue as well. And here we are still without any clear guidance from the Government with respects to have you are to manage this quagmire. Although, we do represents a group of people who can be collectively for being too fussed about details, or equally not being fussed enough - so I can see that we will all get blamed for it regardless.
I've also been trying to figure out how this is going to work with our students at college - where we are trying to identify needs for education.
Andrew Böber CMIOSH FRSPH FRGS
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Rank: Super forum user
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According to the Gov you can ask applicants about their health PRIOR to offer of a job.
You just have to have a variety of reasons:
to help the person recruiting to find out whether you can take part in an assessment
to help them decide whether they need to make reasonable adjustments for you to a selection process, like an interview or test
to help them decide whether you can carry out a task that is an essential part of the work
to help them to monitor diversity among people applying for their jobs
if they want to know you are disabled because they want to increase the number of disabled people they employ
if they want to know you are disabled because it is a requirement of the job that you have a disability
for the purposes of national security checks
At least one should provide a reason/excuse to get the info.
Mind you, i can see why plenty of places would want to know about disability prior to an offer of employment. It would certainly be expensive hiring someone in a wheelchair if your place has stairs and no elevator.
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Rank: Forum user
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