Work

[dee123]

good afternoon all

yesterday one of the managers rang me at home to tell me that head office is requesting my medicail files, i knew this was going to happen so i mentioned it the the consultant on monday at the hospital and was told it was against the law in uk, so confused,do i ahve to give them my permission and if i dont then what will happen if i dont?? also i thought your place of employment was not allowed to ring you at home whilst on the sick... i have kept them upto date with what is going on...(although not told them yet that i shallbe pff sick for the next 3 months... whoopsthey will find out when i take my sick note in 2moro as at doctors).
again i thank you all
take care and look after yourself as best as you can

Dee.x

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[Climbing rose]

Hi Dee - sorry you have this stress when you have enough to cope with anyway. I am not 100% sure of the UK law, though i think what your consultant means is that they can't legally access your medical records UNLESS you give written permission. What happens if you don't give that permission, though, I am not sure. And yes, I think you're right they should not really have rung you at home. Someone on the boards may have more exact knowledge of the leagl situation, but I'd also recommend you call your local Citizen's Advice Bureau - they sould be able to advise you, and if they can't, they should put you in touch with someone who can. The other info source to try is the Department of Work & Pensions (and maybe also dept of Health?) website.

Hugs to you,
Sandra

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[dollface]

Hi Dee,

When I initially went off sick, I was asked to sign a consent form to allow my employers doctors access/request a medical report from my gp/consultant. There is also a section that allows you to request that your doctor lets you see the report before it is sent off to whoever requested it, but I think there is a time scale to do this in.
I don't know what happens if you don't give your consent but I think if you don't give your consent they (employer) might use this against you if they choose later to dismiss you.

If you're in a union you might be able to ask for some advice or the citizens advice.

Take care and hope someone will be able to give you a more conclusive reply.


Abi

[Bern2]

Hi Dee

Some employers have no notion about the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA), some do.

Try these web sites for information and advice so when you contact your employer you have some idea of what should happen.

Disability Rights Commission http://www.drc.gov.uk/

You can phone them for advice. A good site with all sorts of advice and support.

http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/indg397.pdf

http://www.hse.gov.uk/sicknessabsence/index.htm Health and Safety Executive

http://www.jobcentreplus.gov.uk/JCP/Custom...Work/index.html (http://www.jobcentreplus.gov.uk/JCP/Customers/HelpForDisabledPeople/AccesstoWork/index.html)

If you are a member of a union get hold of the Equal Opportunity Rights Rep now! They can guide you through the system. However, you can make the first move if you wish. This need not be a confrontational issue. I invited my employer to my home to talk things through because I felt more comfortable doing it at home. I felt more in control. If your employer does not know the problems you are encountering, they cannot address them or consider 'reasonable adjustments'.

The first thing to do is speak to your employer, Human Resources if you have one, and ask for a referral to occupational health so that you can be assessed for 'reasonable adjustments' which may include an extention of sick leave! They will need your permission/signature for your medical record to be seen by the Occ Health Doctor. Keep detailed notes about who you speak to what was said and the time and place. It will be useful later when you need to refresh your memory. If you are not happy say so, you are entitled to have a union rep/friend with you in interviews

This project will take some time so if I can help further just let me know.

Once you can get the right support the worry will become less.

Let me know how you get on.
Regards

Bern