Posted By Paul Leadbetter Margaret You should not be able to receive confidential medical information without the employee's permission even if you are paying for the consultation. All you are entitled to is an opinion on fitness for work (yes or no). Paul

Posted By Geof And to put the icing on the cake - they will charge you for storing these records, which you have no access to. Also you have no authority to have them destroyed if you are not willing to pay - so you have to pay for them to be stored. And to add insult to injury they will not pass these records on to any other person/company unless they are occupational health related so that your H&S advisor/consultant has no access to them or cant store them either. A storage bill for the life of the company and 100% Catch 22.

Posted By Geof I personally think it reasonable for the employer to be able to see the reports if they are paying for them. Consider a medical condition that the employee hasn't admitted but that could affect his/her safety or that of his/her colleagues.

Posted By douglas erskine Unfortunately the dice are loaded and the poor auld H&S ramifications take second fiddle.The employee has the final say as to who may see his medical record.How ever in the event of a claim the "medical expert" witnesses will pick up a small fortune arguing as to when the damage occured

Posted By Geof John I've re-read your postings. It's not clear to me what you are looking for in your 'statements'? The expression 'chips' and 'well balanced' comes to mind! Can we not just discuss the original thread or do I have to throw my hands up in the air a second time? Geof

Posted By Geof Does the Occupational Health Practitioner have to report epilepsy?

Posted By Geof John You wrote: 'In all my time in employment (35 years) I have yet to meet an employer who cares about H&S. They care a lot about the paperwork, but nothing about the effects poor H&S has on the employees. In that they are ably helped by their H&S consultants, who also care more about the financial aspect of their contract/s than H&S.' Really. I suggest this is a limited, but extremely cynical, experience of the world of work. Of course, if you keep looking for the dark side you'll find it. Gary Player said '... the more I practice, the luckier I get ...'. You see John, the more you look on the bright side the sunnier it becomes. So how about putting forward some of the positives instead of complaining all the time? Geoff

Posted By David Edward Partington This thread seems to have lost it's way and therefore I am re-stateing the question. We have recently sent an employee to an oestopath (not a doctor), after he alledgly recieved a back injury in a work related accident. The oestopath has since told me that the employee has lower back trouble built up over the last number of years. When i asked for a report detailing such, he said he could not provide such a report without the employees permission. In the past we have sent employees to Occupational Health Consultants, and have recieved reports, without obtaining such permissions. In both cases we are paying for the treatment/examination. What is the offical line, must we recieve the employee permission before the oestopath can provide us with a report. This statement by the doctors is b***ocks. An employer has a duty of care. If we do not know what the problem is then we cannot fix it. Why else would one send a person to a doctor if not to discuss the problem.... This idea of havingg some secret arrangement between an Occ doctor and a patient is of no use to anyone. It does not change anything. On the occassion that I come across such people - usuallyy a DSE injury I will insist on the report - how else would I know what the problem is and therefore how to fix it? Regards David.

Posted By lawrence baldwin What is the consensus for drug and alcohol testing particularly if blood is taken, (sample following a positive roadside breathtest by police surgeon)or random D&A testing requested by offshore companies, is the result at the sole discretion of the individual whether he/she passes on the information? and any subsequent inference of non-co-operation would then rest with the individual? Seems such a statement as fit for work Y/N may not satisfy certain employment criteria, half pint of beer may well make the person fit for work but breaches contract of employment if company requires zero tollerance. Just a thought sprung from the thread for which I don't know the answer.

Posted By Paul Murphy TechSP Well done Steve, reality at last. Try the Access to Medical Records Act 1988. Why was protection brought in for employees? Simple. Abuse by employers, using health reasons to dispose of employees. This was mainly a problem (and still is) in the public sector. For those of you pontificating about H & S above, why not give more ammo to Clarkson & Co. The link below gives an outline of the provisions of the AMRA. http://www.asu.org.uk/advisor/amr060400.html Hope it of use.

Posted By John Murgatroyd http://www.healthyworksheffield.org.uk/news7.pdf Actually, you need to visit the site above. But I'll put the section from it below, for your info. exec strt: Employees have a right to know what information you are seeking about them if you make a health inquiry to their GP or any other health professional. They also have a right to see any report that is written about them. This last right has been supported by case law under the Article 8 of the Human Rights Convention in a case where an Occupational Health Medical Adviser had supplied a report without first obtaining the individuals consent, "preferably in writing". (Cornelius-v-Dr N de Tranto, 30 06 00 Case No: 98 C 38). To avoid such challenges, and to comply with the requirements of the Act, is relatively simple when deal- ing with Occupational Health matters. The following criteria apply: Statutory medical examination: As are required Under Health & Safety Law. Group results can be posted without individual consent because they don't identify any individual employees. All other medical examinations: Individual consent is required to referral and to examination or screening. Applying to GPor others for a report: Individual consent to seek the report and the right to read the report before it is sent to the employer or the employers medical adviser. Access to occupational health or other medical records Only with the individuals (preferably written) and informed consent. The advice given to employers "should generally be confined to advice on ability and limitations of func- tion. Clinical details should be excluded and even when the individual himself has given clinical informa- tion to management, the occupational health practitioner should exercise caution before confirming any of it". (Information Registrar's guidance note on Occupational Health Communications) Where a medical research project involving employees is being conducted only the individual can give consent to personal or documentary access to information. Neither the employer nor the employee rep- resentative can act on the individuals behalf. Disclosure of occupational health records is also controlled by the Act. Once again written informed con- sent is needed unless a subpoena for the records has been issued by the court. The only other excep- tion is where access is in the interests of public safety. Legal obligations to disclose information are list- ed below: Reporting of notifiable diseases 1984 Notification of drug addicts 1973 Notification of acts of terrorism 1989 Reporting of injuries, diseases and dangerous occurrences at work and of work related diseases 1995 Complying with all this legislation is based in the main on the tenet: "What would I want for me and mine, when would I say no"? end strt: So, you need to read the human rights convention. Also the disability discrimination act. You REALLY need to talk to a solicitor specialising in EMPLOYMENT LAW or get counsel to advise on similar.

Posted By Robert K Lewis We have gone all round the houses on this one. The only answer for any employer is to ask for written permission to have a copy of any report BEFORE sending the employee. As for an ostespath who will make a verbal report- such behaviour is a clear breach of professional ethics. Margaret would you care to name and shame such a malfeasor John Anybody can see any report in any file concerning any information that is held on the person. It is a right we all have. Bob

Posted By Robert K Lewis John My apologies as I was not clear that I meant on anybody can view information held by others which concerns themselves personally; not for them to view anybody els's information. I am a firm holder to the ethics of confidentiality and I believe strongly that no person has a right to know anything about me except that which I choose to reveal or allow to be revealed. Hence my comments concerning the osteopath. Bob