Ethics Guidance for Occupational Health Practice 9th Edition - Book - Page 46
3.46. Workers should be notified of the transfer to a new provider on a particular
date and be given the option to ‘opt out’ of the scheme, but specific individual
consent to transfer will generally be impractical unless the workforce is very
small. Consultation with workers’ representatives (e.g. trades unions) is a
common method of communicating this activity. It is the responsibility of the
existing occupational health provider to ensure that this duty is discharged.
Some records, for example, relating to hazard control, may have commercial
secrecy considerations, and outgoing providers must maintain confidentiality in
this respect as well as in relation to personal records.
3.47. If the worker declines transfer of their records, there are various options. If the
records are not required for retention by statute:
The records can be offered to the worker to retain.
The records can be offered to the GP to retain (with consent). The records may
be destroyed according to the process outlined above.
Alternatively, the records can be retained by the outgoing occupational health
provider (but a storage charge may be applied).
Where an organisation (employer or occupational health provider)
closes down
3.48. Where an organisation (employer or occupational health provider – including
single handed practitioners) closes, records not required for retention by
statute may be dealt with as above. If the employer is closing, the occupational
health provider may retain the records for an appropriate period of time, but it
is likely that this service would not be remunerated. If the occupational health
provider ceases to trade, the records could, with consent or opt out, be
transferred to another occupational health organisation.
Where a worker changes job
3.49. Where a worker changes job, it is unusual for records to transfer even if the new
occupational health provider is the same as the provider for
their previous employment. In any event, records relating to the new
employment should be kept separate from those relating to a former
employment.
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