Confidentiality

The Occupational Health Advisor is a trained nurse with a specialist qualification, and is required to work within the ethical and legal constraints of the healthcare profession.

This includes maintaining a confidential health record on every member of staff seen or advised by the service.  Details of a medical condition may only be disclosed with the individual's consent, or in very rare circumstances, when there is an overriding public safety concern.

A manager or Head of Department/Section with concerns about the health or well-being of a member of staff, may seek advice from the Occupational Health Advisor, usually in consultation with Human Resources.

In response to a formal referral to Occupational Health, the Manager/Human Resources will be given a statement of the individual's fitness for duties or advised regarding the extent to which a medical condition affects the individual's ability to perform their work duties.

Occupational Health will always gain written consent to obtain medical information from an individual's treating doctor/s,  when a decision affecting their employment becomes necessary on grounds of ill health.