Boss requesting medical records

Super_Mum_4

The husband of a friend of mine was recently diagnosed as suffering from depression. His wife and I had sensed for some months that things were going downhill for him, and it culminated in a suicide attempt, which we felt was more of a cry for help. That incident then led him to seek medical help and he was signed off work by his doctor while he was prescribed anti-depressants etc. So far, he has been off work for just over a month.

His employer is aware that the reason he is off work is due to the depression and it has also been detailed as the reason on the sick notes from his doctor, and they have kept in touch so that his boss is aware of how things are progressing. However, he was recently sent a letter by his boss requesting his written permission to see his medical records, using the excuse that he needs to see the full medical records to determine his current state of health in relation to his ability to perform his job, and to determine what his future health may be. The letter went on to say that refusal to grant permission could be to his detriment since they may be forced to make a decision about his future without the benefit of any expert medical opinion.

This has now put pressure on my friend who has started to become very stressed over the issue, which is the last thing he needs when he’s trying to overcome depression. He loves his job, but is worried that, whilst his boss knows about the depression, he doesn’t know about the suicide attempt and it is something that he wouldn’t feel comfortable for his boss to know. A further concern is that whilst a GP is bound by medical in confidence rules over conveying information to others, his boss is not, and hence, he has no control over what his boss can/will do with his medical notes and information once he has them.

He has the option to view the medical records beforehand before they are sent to his boss, and he can refuse altogether for his medical records to be released. But he is then concerned that if he takes the latter option, his boss may try to put pressure on him and force him out of his job.

What options are open to him in terms of releasing his medical records? If he chooses not to release them, where does he stand legally in terms of his future employment with his present employer? Can his boss sack him for not releasing, or agreeing to release the medical records? Can his boss sack him outright becauise he is ill off work for too long, even though his doctor has signed him off?

Apologies for the numerous questions but I'm just trying to help him out and to ease his fears, so any help and information would be welcome.

Mrs_Ryan

I think that if in the GP's opinion releasing the records would cause problems or cause the patient undue distress, or he or she simply thinks the employer doesnt need to know, the GP can refuse to release the records - this happened to me when I worked for Abbey, it was standard practice to request medical records after 10 days of absence but my GP refused to release mine. As far as I know, the employee cannot be penalised for this.

Zazen999

No - the boss can't see the records and nor should he.

Occupational Heath can ask permission to contact the doctor and obtain a report, which can be seen by the person before it gets sent [so that he can check details], but to do this the person needs to give permission for this.

The person's boss is not qualified to make decisions based on medical evidence, whereas an Occupational Health Doctor paid for by the company will be.

Fleago

I was just about to post similar comments to Zazen! People are often under the impression that their employer is asking permission to see their medical records, but this is not the case.

By signing consent, a person is only allowing the employer or their occupational health provider to ask questions of their employee's medical practitioners. Examples of the type of questions commonly asked are "how long is the employee likely to be absent from work?" and "are there any support measures that can be put in place to facilitate a return to work?". And, as Zazen says, the employee is, if they choose, entitled to see any report a medical practitioner writes for the employer before it is sent to them.

In terms of your other questions, yes an employer can dismiss an employee for being off too long, even though the absence is certified by a doctor. Before doing this, the employer should go through a process to manage the sickness absence and to try to help the employee return to work. Refusing to consent to medical advice being sought, should not in and of itself lead to dismissal, however, doing so means that the employer might not have information to hand that could be helpful to the employee's position and it may lead them to decide on an outcome that could have been more favourable to an employee if their doctor's input had been considered.

Finally, I would be very surprised indeed if any report from the doctor to the employer made any reference whatsoever to the suicide attempt and if the employee is concerned at all about this, then they should simply tick the box saying they require to see a copy of any report before it is sent to the employer. By doing this, if there is anything contained in it that they are unhappy with, they can see their doctor, explain their reasoning and ask their doctor to amend their report before sending it to the employer,

prowla

Super_Mum wrote: »

... whilst his boss knows about the depression, he doesn’t know about the suicide attempt and it is something that he wouldn’t feel comfortable for his boss to know...

Hope his boss isn't a member of MSE then!

terra_ferma

Two pieces of relevant legislation have not been mentioned:

Data Protection Act. (this will cover information held about him by the employer).

Disability Discrimination Act (serious long-term forms of depression are often covered). This makes it more difficult (but not impossible) for your friend to be dismissed, as he could claim discrimination. Employers tend to be more careful when this applies.

I suggest he gets in touch with unions/cab/acas to seek advice.