Company doctor

LegacyUser

Hi,

I am being requested to attend the company doctor next week but dont want to attend this doctor over personal issues that I cant go into at the moment (trust being 1 major issue).

I have no problem going to any other doctor that they nominate or even my own doctor.

Any advice please.

Eoin

What does your employer's policy say about it? I imagine you'll just have to ask HR if there's an alternative.

Going by a lot of the posts I've seen here, it's obvious that doctors are very quick to hand out sick certs these days, so I can understand why an employer might want their own Doctor to review the issue.

daheff

tell your HR that you have reservations about this Dr and ask to see another one.

Neyite

Can a Company doctor discuss your personal medical information with the Company without your permission though?

I would have imagined that they can only confirm for the Company you have a valid reason for absence, that the sick cert your doctor issued is a genuine one and matches up with the reason you are out, but that they would not be able to discuss in detail your condition.

Or maybe I am totally wrong - maybe another poster might be able to confirm this.

mm_surf

Neyite wrote: »

Can a Company doctor discuss your personal medical information with the Company without your permission though?

I would have imagined that they can only confirm for the Company you have a valid reason for absence, that the sick cert your doctor issued is a genuine one and matches up with the reason you are out, but that they would not be able to discuss in detail your condition.

Or maybe I am totally wrong - maybe another poster might be able to confirm this.

It's a bit of a yes & no answer unfortunately.
An employee being examined by the company doctor is in theory allowing full disclosure, which could be anything.
However, the doctor is also obliged to keep confidentiality for anything that isn't work related, either directly or indirectly.

If anything is work related however, then you can assume it can & will be discussed between doctor & company. Then company internal policies will apply regarding who gets what information (which can be an even bigger minefield)

E.g. Employee is off with a sore back for a week. Employer asks employee to see company doctor.

Scenario A: Employee injured back playing golf, is fully fit & healed & work is unaffected
-Doctor will only need to confirm to employer that the absence was genuine, and no risk is posed by returning to work. Everything except absence period should be confidential if the employee wishes it. Employer only needs to know anything that relates to work (in this case the absence period) HR would be the only company contact here, usually.

Scenario B:Employee injured back playing golf, is not fully fit & healed & work is restricted
-Doctor will inform the company of all relevant details. How the injury happened is irrelevant. Doctor may need to consult with company supervisor to determine if any work practises are a risk for the recovering employee. In these cases, its usually HR & employee's direct management that are "in the loop". H&S personnel may be involved as well, but only in so far as any risks to the recovering employee are concerned.

Scenario C: Employee injured back at work
- How the injury occurred is now of concern to the company, so may be discussed in full with HR, Management, H&S, Insurance, Solicitors (as appropriate)
- How the injury happened is of concern to any other employees at risk of the same sort of injury, so they may be "in the loop" also.
- The employee's previous medical/accident history may also be relevant, and discussed.

Scenario Employee is pursuing a claim against the company
- Everything is discoverable, including previous medical history

Generally speaking, unless it's work related, HR & H&S won't care about your medical history.

M.

mm_surf

1guest1 wrote: »

Hi,

I am being requested to attend the company doctor next week but dont want to attend this doctor over personal issues that I cant go into at the moment (trust being 1 major issue).

I have no problem going to any other doctor that they nominate or even my own doctor.

Any advice please.

Sorry, almost forgot your original query!

Request another Doc. Your HR should have no problem with this. Just make sure that it's clear that you have a problem with that particular doctor and are quite happy to see anyone else.

M.