How Occupational Health Works With HR

Any employee may be referred to occupational health (OH) where there is a worry about their health or performance (regarding health implications) or a certain degree of sickness absence.

An assessment by an OH professional (doctor or nurse) can provide impartial information that can assist management when addressing these concerns.  

When to refer to OH

An employee should be referred for an occupational health assessment where:

• There is a worry that they may have work or home-related health problems that affect their health, work tasks or performance.
• There is long term or frequent absence due to sickness.
• There are problems managing a return to work after being absent, a previous illness or injury or because of a disability.

Because occupational health and human resources work together, if you are not sure whether a referral is apt, contact Kays Occupational Health Services for further advice.

How to make a referral

To get the best result for the employer and the employee, a referral will need to include enough information for an appropriate assessment to be carried out.  This helps the occupational health professional understand the nature of the employees work, and can then advise whether anything could be affecting their physical or mental health and considering any adjustments or modifications which could help the staff member to do their job.

Information that should be included:

• reasons for referral
• precise questions to be answered
• record of an employees’ previous attendance
• current job description 
• any relevant risk assessments (e.g. pregnancy)

How occupational health works with HR is to assist in a managed partnership to produce the best result for all those concerned by providing the information needed to conduct a medical assessment and then communicate the relevant information back to management.

For more information on Kays Medical Services and how occupational health works with HR contact us here