An overview of Occupational Health

An overview of Occupational Health

This section aims to give a general overview of Occupational Health and dispel some of the myths and confusion surrounding it.

What is Occupational Health (OH)?

This is not always a straightforward question to answer due to its flexible nature. In its simplest form, OH is the ‘health’ component of ‘health and safety’. There is more on the close relationship and overlap with safety in the resource ‘Occupational Health and health and safety.’

OH is the medical discipline that specialises in workplace health. Its role is to protect and promote the health and well-being of employees through anticipating and preventing work-related (also known as occupational) ill-health and disability. It does this by focusing on how work can affect a person’s health and wellbeing and how a person’s health can impact their work. It does this by using the following questions as guides:

• Is the work and workplace fit for the employee(s)?
• Is the employee fit for the work they are employed to do?

If the answer is ‘no’ to either or both of the above questions:

• Why not?
• What can be done about it?

The remit of OH also includes the broader context of how work impacts the wider workforce and the wider population by looking for early health-related trends and advising on preventative measures organisations can implement.

Three critical components to the success of OH

Impartiality

OH gives independent medical advice to both the employer and the employee regardless of whether they are employed in-house or via an external contract.

This impartiality is vital for OH to be effective and to build trust from all parties. This is especially true where there may be suspicion between employees, their representatives, and the employer.

Confidentiality

Confidentiality is crucial in OH and is fiercely protected. OH professionals must adhere to the strict rules on confidentiality set down by their governing bodies. In addition to any legal issues, breaching confidentiality can result in doctors and nurses being struck off their professional registers, ending their careers.

In the UK, confidentiality may be breached in only a few exceptional circumstances, such as a court order or ‘disclosure in the public interest’. The public interest clause is restricted to when there is a genuine risk to the safety of others. Breaches are rare and always a last resort. Other countries have similar protocols.

Employee OH notes are covered by the same strict confidentiality rules as cover other medical notes such as GP records. The records can only be accessed by qualified OH professionals. OH administrative staff must sign confidentiality agreements before access is given. The records are stored separately from all other records within the organisation. Most are now electronic with strict built-in security and access measures on specialist software.

Knowledge (specialism, industry, organisation and work)

In addition to their specialist health-related qualifications and knowledge, OH professionals will rely on additional training and information to carry out their role. This usually includes:

Health and safety knowledge

All qualified OH doctors and nurses learn about health and safety as part of their training.

As a result, they can advise an employer on health and safety regulations such as physical, psychological, chemical, and environmental hazards. For example, suggesting the need for Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans (PEEPs) or legal restrictions on lone working without additional safeguards for some employees.

There is an overlap between OH and safety, and this dual knowledge has benefits for both employees and employers.

Site visits

Site visits are very helpful for understanding the workplace, nature of the work, combination of hazards and risk factors, and workplace culture. This includes office environments. If an OH professional ‘knows’ a site they are able to give more bespoke preventative advice which can help the employees, contractors and visitors from developing occupational diseases such as occupational asthma, dermatitis or hearing loss – all of which may lead to a disability under legislation.

Workplace visits

Workplace visits are another vital part of OH. Unlike the site visits, they focus on the individual. The aim is to understand the individual’s role, what the actual and potential barriers and risks are for them, and identify how to resolve them, if possible.

The nature of these assessments will vary depending on the individual needs. For example, if an individual is recovering from major surgery due to cancer and they work in a maintenance role, a workplace visit with the individual to help plan a safe and realistic rehabilitation programme is usually necessary. The workplace visit would also be used to assess if any adjustments are likely to be temporary or permanent. This is done by looking at all relevant aspects of their role and the physical, environmental and psychological demands of their role as well as the impact on the person and others.

The visits should be approached with a ‘can do’ mindset. These visits should also include consideration of what is needed temporarily and in the longer term.

What OH is not

• It is not a replacement GP service or treatment service.
• It is not the employee’s advocate.
• It is not a management or HR tool.
• It should not be part of the disciplinary process.
• It is not Occupational Therapy – that is an entirely different but equally important discipline.

Who makes up the OH team?

The format and membership of the OH team is flexible, depending on the needs and size of the organisations it works with. Therefore, there is no one ideal model.

However, the professionals that most employees and employers will work with are Occupational Health Physicians (OHP) and Occupational Health Nurses (OHN or SCPHN-OH).

Other members of the wider team can include:

• Occupational Health Technicians (OHT),
• OH administrators,
• Occupational Hygienists (also known as Industrial hygienists). They are sometimes part of the Safety team,
• Physiotherapists,
• Ergonomists,
• Occupational Psychologists.

What tasks does OH perform?

• Advising on adjustments to help an employee remain or return safely to work. This includes advising if the adjustments are likely to be temporary or permanent.
• Advise organisations on relevant policies such as absence management and how to apply them fairly and consistently.
• Help businesses comply with legislation such as the Equality Act 2010 and health and safety regulations from local to global levels.
• Data collection, audits, and analysis to identify trends on work-related health issues.
• Advice on ergonomics and workplace design, including new projects.
• Carry out statutory health surveillance as dictated by law.
• Carry out specific fitness assessments for safety-critical tasks and roles such as working with breathing apparatus, food safety, and working at heights.
• Provide training programmes, such as mental health training and training on skincare to prevent occupational dermatitis.
• Working closely with other professionals such as safety teams, managers and HR.
• Conduct risk assessments, including travel risk assessments, workplace visits and site visits.
• Contribute to health and safety committees.
• Assess employees who are referred to OH for absence management or who are experiencing disability or health-related challenges.
• Advice on graded returns to full duties and hours following absence or restricted duties due to disability, injury or ill-health.
• Give advice on the potential need for redeployment or ill-health retirement.
• Liaise with GPs and other medical specialists if required.
• Work with other professionals such as physiotherapists.
• Provide immunisations such as Hepatitis B for NHS staff and flu vaccinations for critical staff in other industries.

Further information

For more information on Occupational Health, including its role in disability, overlap with safety, and what you may need to know when procuring an OH service, please see our other resources in this Toolkit.

For more detailed information and advice about a specific situation, contact the Advice Service.

Email: advice@businessdisabilityforum.org.uk.