Pre-Employment Medical
Due to the introduction of the Equality Act (2010), employers have to be very careful about asking health related questions throughout the recruitment process. This is to avoid any prejudice and ignorant misconceptions that are associated with certain health conditions and how that affect someone’s ability to do their job, especially in relation to mental health conditions.
Pre-employment services can be engaged after a job offer has been made to highlight any job alterations required for an employee to safely and successfully start their new role.
Pre-placement Assessments are used to assess an employee’s fitness to work in the job or role to which they have been assigned. They highlight recommendations for any reasonable adjustments that the employer may need to put in place to accommodate the needs of the employee. They are useful both for new employees and for those employees moving to a new role within the organisation.
Used largely as a preventative measure, pre-placement assessments assess the health of an employee to ensure they are able to perform the duties required of their job and to allow for recommendations to be made to best benefit the working capacity of the employee.
Arranging health screening for new employees, whether new to the business or starting a new role, can be invaluable in preventing future problems in relation to health and safety in the workplace.
We are a SEQOHS accredited private clinic
How are the employees assessed?
Pre-employment assessments are typically carried out using a questionnaire.
This is followed up by a phone call with one of our Occupational Health nurses and in very few cases, sometimes a referral to an Occupational Health Physician is required.
Many companies find the Pre-placement Assessment by questionnaire sufficient for initial employee health screening while others find value in having their employees undergo a in clinic Pre-Placement Assessment from the outset. We would be happy to discuss your requirements with you.
More information: Pre-employment assessment by questionnaire
In most cases, employees will be assessed using a remote Pre-employment Assessment questionnaire.
The employee completes a Work Health Assessment questionnaire, which is reviewed by one of our occupational health nurses. The OH nurse/OH doctor assesses whether the employee is fit to work in their role and whether any adjustments to the role are advised, and issues a ‘Fitness to Work’ certificate. If they are unable to certify the employee’s fitness to work based on the questionnaire, they will recommend the employee attend a further Pre-employment Assessment either in-clinic or virtually.
More Information: In-clinic Pre-employment Assessment
The in clinic Pre-employment Assessment (sometimes called a Pre-placement Medical) can be arranged either following a Pre-employment Assessment by questionnaire (if recommended by the OH nurse/OH doctor) or from the outset.
A Work Health Assessment questionnaire is completed prior to the appointment. Please remember to bring a copy with you. The employee attends our occupational health clinic in London for a 30-minute medical with one of our occupational health doctors. The OH doctor will issue a Fitness to Work certificate advising whether the employee is fit or unfit to work in the role and, if appropriate, recommend any adjustments the company would be advised to put in place to accommodate the needs of the employee.
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Who should use a Pre-placement Assessment?
As the purpose of a Pre-placement Medical is to ensure that the prospective employee is physically and mentally fit to fulfil the duties and responsibilities of the proposed job role, it is suitable for most industries and job types
It offers valuable insight for a company regarding employee health.
How long does a Pre-placement Assessment take?
We have 2 type of Pre-employment Assessments:
Pre-employment questionnaire
- This is completed by the employee at a convenient time and should take no longer than 5-10 minutes to complete. It is then digitally returned and reviewed by our OH clinician and results are shared.
- In clinic pre-employment medical – This medical is a 30 minute appointment with an occupational health clinician.
If I disclose any health conditions, will this stop me from getting my job?
The purpose of the pre-employment questionnaire is not to stop anyone getting employment but to reassure the employee that if they suffer from any health condition, that their health will be supported in their new role.
It is used by companies to highlight any health conditions among their employees. They can use this information to make necessary adjustments to working conditions so that they don’t hinder you succeeding in your new role. It is important to highlight to any concerned by this medical that only in very unusual circumstances that the employee may not be deemed fit to work, either to protect the safety of themselves or others.
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FAQs
If they are unable to certify the employee’s fitness to work based on the questionnaire, they will recommend the employee attend a further Pre-placement Assessment either in-clinic or virtual.
This completely depends on the individual circumstances and varies case by case.
No. Everything you disclose is completely confidential. We cannot give the employer any information about you without your consent. We do however encourage open communication between you and the employer regarding any health concerns
Legally, you have to be honest and disclose everything to the occupational health clinician. The information is kept completely confidential and any medical information shared will not be disclosed to the employer without the employee’s consent.
