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What health surveillance is not:
o Nice to have medicals
 Health promotion
 Blood pressure checks
 Cholesterol checks
These would be provided by your
company Health and Wellbeing
Programme or GP
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Health surveillance allows for early identification of ill health and helps identify any corrective action needed.
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Health surveillance may be required by law as per the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and statutory health
screening requirements as laid down by the Health and Safety Executive [HSE] if your employees are exposed
to noise, vibration, solvents, fumes, dusts, biological agents and other substances hazardous to health, or work
with compressed air.
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Specific regulations act as guidance for Employers such as Noise at Work Regulations 2005 and the Control of
Vibration at Work Regulations [2005] and COSHH [2002]
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Employees have a legal responsibility under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and other health and safety
laws to comply with requests for health
surveillance.
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Occupational Health Consultancy is a team of impartial and independent Specialist
Occupational Health Nurses/Registered Nurses/Technicians and Occupational Physicians who
carry out health surveillance working within best practice guidelines.
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General Practitioners [GP] work within Primary Care Practices – it is sometimes relevant to refer an employee
to their GP for health surveillance follow up.
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Risk Assessment and Control – the starting point is your risk assessment to identify the
hazards in your workplace and who is at risk
Do I need Health Surveillance? – this will be dependant on your risk
assessment/potential harm to your employees/control measures
What sort of Health Surveillance do I need – consider this if your employees are
exposed to noise, dusts, fumes, biological agents and other substances hazardous to
health such as lead, radiation, asbestos
Set up and design health surveillance according to need.
Identify who will do the health surveillance – a competent Occupational Health Provider
Implement health surveillance for those who need it.
Manage performance, interpret the results and act on the results. It is advised to review
your health surveillance programme to ensure it is still appropriate periodically
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Name
DOB
Gender
Address
National Insurance Number
Job role
Date present employment started
Length of time in job
Changes in job since employment
The Occupational Health Provider will keep medical records confidential
COSHH records have to be kept for 40 years
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Health records:
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The date they were carried out and by whom.
The outcome of the test/check the decision made by the occupational health
professional in terms of fitness for task and any restrictions required. This should
be factual and only relate to the employee's functional ability and fitness for
specific work such as carcinogens, rubber manufacturing and leather dust to
name a few, with any advised restrictions.
The record should be kept in a format that it can be linked with other information
(e.g. with any workplace exposure measurements such as air sampling, noise
survey for example)
Health records are different to medical records in that they should not contain
confidential medical information.
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Medical Records are:
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Compiled by Doctor or Nurse using a format as per best practice
Information obtained during health surveillance – clinical notes, biological
results, non work issues.
Confidential and may not be disclosed unless written consent from the
individual or by a court order
Employees can have access to this information concerning themselves
through written request under Data Protection legislation
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Staff member name & DOB
Staff number
National Insurance number
Manager/Team Leader
Date commenced employment
Occupation/Job role (Plus list of all jobs in organisation)
Health surveillance required / substances / hazards involved
Any job changes, with dates, undertaken during this employment
An advice letter to be sent out to client, highlighting the legal necessity
for keeping the only copy of COSHH records on site.
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• How long should I keep records?
40 years as a general rule or longer if required by specific regulations as some
health effects do not emerge for a long period after exposure
• Who can see the health records?
In addition to the employer they can be seen by the employee, HSE and an
employee’s representative with consent
• What if my company ceases trading?
You should pass the records to the employee or to the HSE
• I run an employment agency. What are my health surveillance responsibilities?
As an agency supplier you are responsible for health surveillance, Before
placing with a business you need to check whether they will be doing work
that requires health surveillance.
• What do I need to do if I use temporary or agency workers?
The business user is not legally required to perform health surveillance
however you can after discussion with the agency perform this on their behalf
• Any other questions?
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