Hi All

An individual at work recently informed H.R and myself (EHS&Q) that they might be very ill, but would not go into specifics.....eventually conceded that it may be cancer......waiting on her test results! The illness is now affecting her at work.......collapsed twice over the course of three weeks.....the last event resulted in her being taken away in an ambulance. I want Occ health involved...H.R disagree......because we do not know what is exactly wrong!

Not work related illness.

Your thoughts!

Thanks in advance

Consultancy does not hint at what the business may be.

If we are talking a machine shop and an employee falling in to a machine through fatigue or other matters you have no choice but to address the potential for serious injury to the individual by OH intervention - how else do you assess capability?

Remind HR that most manslaughter charges arising from drunk fighting are associated with the deceased striking their head against hard objects (road, kerb etc.) and that a death on premises will impact production whilst any investigation is conducted.

Then there are the issues with any medication that require a specialist view - think you are well beyond "take two aspirin and call me on the morning"

HR need to wake up to their title and look after the human resources within the business rather than running scared of potential claims or precedents - you can bet ecolleague are aware and a caring response goes a long way with the entire workforce.

Catch - yUSUC "feel really loved"

In essence you are both right....it isn't work related but as you say it is now affecting her work....having dealt with this and cancer myself it is difficult to get through that barrier with most people when the C word is mentioned. The individual will most likely want to continue at work (as I did) with some adjustment. That advice should come from a healthcare professional....please bear in mind that some with not want it as they will just refer out to the consultant in charge of her treatment...but it is her decision and you are required to make reasonable adjustment to accommodate her wishing and feelings. Best to PM any further information if you need to... Best to your colleague it is right what they say together we can beat this :)

I was listening to an advert this morning about support etc, so have you considered :-

http://www.macmillan.org...mOkfzDmM0CFQJf2wodBb8G3w

They note training for HR and Managers. I would hope HR could be trained and they train the managers.

Chris

Just to cover yourselves, a medical from an Occupational Health Professional could be useful, if nothing else, they can provide guidance to the individual, which might feel less like a 'nosey work colleague' and therefore they may be more likely to listen and heed the advice given.

I recently had a colleague have chest pains which, after I had called an ambulance, resulted in a heart attack. As a precaution, we sent him for a medical before returning to work, along with his Dr's note, if nothing else, to prove that we had taken due care.

In addition, I know of an incident where a guy walked off on a construction site whilst doing a group site walk, but he wandered off on his own, tripped, knocked himself unconscious and broke his nose. He hadn't told anyone where he was going, or more crucially, that he suffered from haemophilia. He wasn't found for some time and nearly bleed to death as a result.

An Occupational Health consultation can provide enough information and advice to ensure these events do not happen, or at least to allow an employer to implement the necessary measures to drastically reduce the risk of a serious situation occurring.

They might be very ill and mentioned cancer, they have not been diagnosed yet.

I think it is HR and looking at reasonable adjustments, I am unsure what role Occ health will play at present as there is no diagnosis. There is nothing wrong in working with HR to complete an assessment then let them sort out the work arrangements.