FAQ’s
What is Occupational Health?
Occupational health can feel like a “mystery service” until you use it. This page keeps it simple, whether you’re an employer, a manager, or an employee attending an assessment. Occupational Health Nurses and Doctors train specifically in how work affects health and how health affects work. At Global OHS, we help prevent and address ill health in the workplace by providing independent, clinically informed guidance.
Occupational Health Nurses and Doctors specialise in the relationship between work and health. We help prevent and address workplace ill health by offering independent clinical opinions. We base our advice on the employee’s health and the employer’s risk assessments.
As a result, we help employers understand what adjustments and support could help an employee stay in work while managing a health condition. We also help employers manage workplace controls that protect employees from aspects of work that could affect their health.
Do we need occupational health if we already have HR?
Yes. HR and Occupational Health cover different areas.
As Registered Nurses and Doctors, we work as qualified health professionals with specialist knowledge in health and work. We consider how health affects work and how work affects health. HR teams apply company policies within legal frameworks. However, Occupational Health completes a clinical health assessment and provides medical insight. That insight helps the employer decide next steps in the best interests of both the employee and the business.
What is a Safety Critical Medical?
If you work in a safety critical role, your health helps keep you safe while you operate machinery. Your colleagues also rely on your health to keep them safe.
Depending on the role and working environment, we usually assess to one of two standards: DVLA Fitness to Drive a Car (Group 1) or DVLA Fitness to Drive an HGV (Group 2).
What is health surveillance?
Some work involves processes or substances that can affect your health. For example, noisy machinery can affect hearing. Cutting machines and workplace chemicals can affect breathing or skin.
Your employer carries out risk assessments for these activities and puts controls in place to reduce risk. Health surveillance checks whether hazards still reach people when controls should prevent exposure. For instance, a hearing test can identify early signs of noise induced hearing loss. Likewise, a health questionnaire can highlight symptoms that suggest accidental exposure to a health hazard.
Is occupational health confidential?
Yes. The Data Protection Act 2018 and the common law of confidentiality protect health information. Occupational health professionals must follow confidentiality rules through the law, their employment contract, and their professional regulator.
That said, we may need to share information if the law requires it. For example, we may act if we believe someone faces a serious risk of harm.
Where are occupational health records stored?
We store the occupational health records we create electronically within our occupational health software.
The system includes a clinical portal where we upload information, a manager portal where managers download reports and submit referrals, and an individual portal where you can view your data. We encrypt the software to reduce the risk of unauthorised access.
How do we make a referral?
Managers submit referrals through the manager portal.
The referral asks questions about the employee, so managers should discuss the referral with the employee before they submit it.
What happens during an occupational health assessment?
At the start of the assessment, the Occupational Health Nurse introduces themselves and explains the purpose of the appointment. They then talk through the referral with you and explain your rights under UK GDPR before moving forward.
We record calls and store the recordings as part of the clinical record. Only Global OHS colleagues access those recordings.
Next, the health assessment covers your current treatment, symptoms, and any challenges you experience. Before the appointment ends, the nurse discusses the report and clinical opinion, including the key health information that helps the employer consider adjustments and support.
You also have the right to see the report before we send it to your manager. This step allows you to confirm the accuracy of the health information and provide consent for us to share the report. The nurse will ask whether you want prior sight and will follow your choice. If time runs short, we send the report to you for prior sight automatically, and the nurse will explain this at the end of the appointment.
What happens after an occupational health assessment?
After the assessment, the Occupational Health Nurse reviews the referral and selects the information that helps the employer understand the situation. They then form a clinical opinion and include recommendations that the employer can consider.
We can only recommend options for the employer to consider. We share the report with you before, or at the same time as, we send it to your manager. Your consent and prior sight choice determine the timing.
Is occupational health there for the employer or the employee?
Both. We stay impartial.
We assess health and write reports. Throughout the assessment, we prioritise the employee’s health and wellbeing. When we write the report, we consider the employer’s risk assessments and operational frameworks alongside the employee’s health.
