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1 . Using occupational health at work

Occupational health is a type of medical service.

An employer might want to use occupational health to help:

when an employee is struggling with their physical or mental health
make the right reasonable adjustments for disabled people at work
when an employee has been off sick for a long time or is returning to work after sickness absence
reduce the amount of time people need to take off sick
keep to other health and safety regulations
control risks to mental health, such as too much pressure at work, bullying and harassment

Occupational health could be through the employer's own occupational health service or an outside agency.

Checking if your work uses occupational health

It's a good idea to check if your organisation has an occupational health policy.

This should say:

when an occupational health referral or assessment can be made
how, where and by who it's carried out
what both the employer and employee need to do
what the next steps are

Smaller organisations might not have an occupational health policy or scheme. In this case, the employer should take the advice of both the employee and the employee's doctor.

2. Occupational health assessments

When an employee's health could affect their job or be affected by the work they do, their employer can ask them if they'll agree to an assessment with an occupational health adviser.

The occupational health adviser carries out an assessment of the employee and reports back to the employer.

This can help the employer understand what their employee needs to:

feel better
return to work
do their job
avoid anything that could cause further health or absence issues

What happens in an occupational health assessment

The occupational health adviser might ask the employee about:

their health
any treatment they're having
any concerns they have about returning to work

Sometimes the occupational health adviser might need to get more information from the employee's doctor. In this case, the employee should be told the reason and asked to sign a consent form.

The employee has the right to see the doctor's report before it is sent to the occupational health adviser.

Whether the employee gets paid for attending occupational health appointments should be written in the organisation's policy, so it's a good idea to check.

Example of using occupational health at work

An employee has had a back injury. Their employer asks an occupational health adviser to carry out an assessment.

The assessment says that the employee needs their work chair adjusted. The employer arranges the adjustment. This helps the employee work comfortably and without making their injury worse.

The employee does not have to agree to an occupational health assessment, but it's a good idea as it can help them:

get any support they might need
get back to work quicker

How an occupational health assessment is used

An occupational health assessment is a useful addition to a doctor's medical report because it's more focused on:

how the employee does their job
how the job might affect the employee's health

The employer should consider the recommendations of both the occupational health and doctor's reports.

If there is any conflicting advice, they should talk with their employee and come to an agreement on the best course of action.

The occupational health adviser will check with the employee first that they can show their report to the employer.

The employer and employee can then plan the best course of action to help the employee back to work.

They might agree that the employee needs:

a phased return to work, for example reduced working hours or lighter duties
a referral for an appropriate course of therapy, for example physiotherapy or counselling
adjustments to their workspace, for example an ergonomic chair
more time off work

Depending on the health issue, the employee's progress might need to be assessed again before a firm agreement can be made about their return to work or to full duties.

If an employee is unhappy with how occupational health has been used, they should raise the issue with their employer.