Ask Atos Healthcare disability assessment questions

Atos_Healthcare_representative · 10 January 2013 at 6:18PM

mazza111 wrote: »

• Completing the Work Capability Assessment questionnaire
• Appointments/Assessments
• Travel and travel expenses to the assessment
• Home visits
• Health Care Professionals and their qualifications

To give this ATOS rep a chance. They aren't all monsters. I will stick to that.

Where can one get help filling in the ESA50? And should the HCP receive a copy of this so he/she knows what they are dealing with. Do you think that applicants should be advised to seek help when filling these forms in?

Travel Expenses- I was at a WCA with my disabled daughter. Parked in a car park and were told that they only pay £5 for parking. Horrified to get back to the car park to be charged £7.50, after waiting over an hour after the given time, that's quite a lot out of £56/week ESA assessment rate.

Appointments should be kept to time. Remember a lot of people are on strong medication and are being left sitting for an hour, the decent ones usually get there early, as we've all been taught to do, only to be seen over an hour after appt time. I do realise there can be circumstances can make things run late, but do feel over an hour is a wee bit too long to expect some people with severe medical conditions to wait. Don't you think after 10 or so minutes, it would be the decent thing to do to tell the applicants that the doctor is running late. And apologise for that lateness? My poor lass was scarlet in the face and in so much pain while waiting, it's heartbreaking to see your children in so much pain.

HCPs - I've always found that the doctors who do these assessments seem to be more thorough than nurses or PTs etc, especially when it comes to more complex medical issues. Do ATOS have any method in decided who completes the medical? For example, my daughter has quite a rare condition. When she was mainly suffering from depression she was seen by a HCP who ignored the PH problems, but when the rare condition was mentioned first and foremost on the ESA50 and the fit note, she was seen by a GP. I was just wondering if there is method in how they are selected at ATOS.

There is much more I could say about ATOS and it's HCP and the lies that they have told, but I'll save that for DT like I always have before.

Andrea - I do hope you will heavily moderate this thread, as I'm sure people will benefit from getting advice on it. Although, no more advice than they will get from our own benefit gurus who have been a godsend to me since I had to claim benefits.

You can get help filling out the ESA50 from the office of DWP handling your claim

Atos Healthcare reimburses the full cost of parking while attending an appointment with us.

We aim to keep waiting times to less than 15 minutes. Sometimes this is longer as the length of some appointments are difficult to predict and we deal with a range of different benefit assessments. We keep our booking policy under constant review, however I‘m sorry for the discomfort caused on this occasion.

There are a limited number of medical conditions that only a doctor would assess. However, as the assessment looks at daily function, the DWP have asked Atos Healthcare to deploy a range of health care professionals, all of which are fully trained and have the approval of the Secretary of State.

Atos_Healthcare_representative · 10 January 2013 at 6:20PM

hldomster wrote: »

Could you please describe what happens when you receive the ESA50 questionnaire.

1) Who looks at this and how do they decide whether or not the person is required to attend a medical?

2) Do you have certain conditions or circumstances where you automatically call a person for a medical, or vice versa, certain conditions or circumstances where a person would not be called for a medical?

3) After the medical assessment (if a person is called for one) what happens to the medical report produced? Does this go straight to the Decision Maker or is this looked at by an ATOS HCP along with the other evidence submitted by the claimant before making a recommendation to the DM?

Before a face to face assessment is arranged an Atos Healthcare professional will consider all available evidence to decide whether advice can be provided to the DWP without the need for a face to face assessment. Any medical evidence provided with the questionnaire is helpful, especially if it’s from a medical professional providing your care and treatment. For example, if any of the Support Group criteria are clearly met, for those with the most severe functional restriction, a face to face assessment won’t be needed

At a Work Capability Assessment a medical report is produced and provided to the DWP. The medical report form is detailed and gives comprehensive information to the decision maker in DWP. It provides a medical, social and employment history; details of medication and any side effects; a description of your “typical day”, the health care professional’s observations of you and also the results of any physical examination (which will only take place if appropriate). The final part of the report is the advice provided in relations to the “descriptors” (areas of function stipulated by DWP). You can obtain this full medical report from the office of DWP handling your claim.

Atos_Healthcare_representative · 10 January 2013 at 6:24PM

photomad1975 wrote: »

Why is it when people are score 15 / 16 points they arebeing told they are fit to work. I thought it was score 15 points or more andyou are unfit to work and put in the WRAG group or possibly the support group?

Why do the goal posts keep being moved?

The DWP award points in respect of benefit claims and you would be best placed discussing this with the office handling your claim. I'm sorry this is not more helpful but we do not decide entitlement to benefit and they will be able to explain. They also have a booklet called the ESA214 which provides considerable detail about the Work Capability Assessment. This is available from the DWP website.

smudge75 · 10 January 2013 at 6:24PM

Can you tell me when a person has ME and fibromyalgia who does this person have the assessment with is it a doctor or a nurse ?

Atos_Healthcare_representative · 10 January 2013 at 6:28PM

silks wrote: »

To Atos:

I have received an ESA50 and am unable to write, or leave my home and have no one to assist me. Who do I telephone to assist me with filling in this form? They will have to visit me at home. CAB are too busy and cannot come out and I cannot get to them.

Your response would be appreciated.

I'm sorry Atos Healthcare can’t provide advice to you about completing your questionnaire. This is a Department for Work and Pensions form issued in relation to your claim. However, if you can get in touch with Jobcentre Plus, or a local independent welfare service they will help. The Jobcentre Plus office that is dealing with your benefit claim will have a copy of the questionnaire and can go through any questions with you over the phone and will support you in completing the form. Their telephone number will be on the letters you have received from them about your benefit claim. If you don’t know their telephone number you can find out by calling 0800 055 6688. If you have speech or hearing difficulties you can contact Jobcentre Plus using a text phone on 0800 023 4888

dori2o · 10 January 2013 at 6:31PM

If a claimant is discovered to be covertly recording the assessment will the assessment be terminated, and if so why, what has the HCP got to hide, and what part of the legislation allows you to do this?

Lady_Andrea · 10 January 2013 at 6:34PM

Atos_Healthcare_company_representative wrote: »

Before a face to face assessment is arranged an Atos Healthcare professional will consider all available evidence to decide whether advice can be provided to the DWP without the need for a face to face assessment. Any medical evidence provided with the questionnaire is helpful, especially if it’s from a medical professional providing your care and treatment. For example, if any of the Support Group criteria are clearly met, for those with the most severe functional restriction, a face to face assessment won’t be needed

At a Work Capability Assessment a medical report is produced and provided to the DWP. The medical report form is detailed and gives comprehensive information to the decision maker in DWP. It provides a medical, social and employment history; details of medication and any side effects; a description of your “typical day”, the health care professional’s observations of you and also the results of any physical examination (which will only take place if appropriate). The final part of the report is the advice provided in relations to the “descriptors” (areas of function stipulated by DWP). You can obtain this full medical report from the office of DWP handling your claim.

This reply goes 100% against FoI request to DWP regarding medical reports. Please see FoI response for question 3 and 4
http:// www. whatdotheyknow.com/r equest/99541/response/251696/attach /html/2/FoI%2064%2006.02.12.pdf.html (NO SPACES)

Lady_Andrea · 10 January 2013 at 6:40PM

dori2o wrote: »

If a claimant is discovered to be covertly recording the assessment will the assessment be terminated, and if so why, what has the HCP got to hide, and what part of the legislation allows you to do this?

The Department for Work and Pensions has finally acknowledged in a recent Freedom of Information reply that claimants are not acting illegally by secretly recording medicals, provided it is for personal use only. The DWP do warn, however, that a health professional may end the medical if they discover that they are being taped.
The DWP’s admission came in a response dated 20 April, in which they admit that:
“While the Data Protection Act places certain obligations on data controllers (DWP is a data controller) with regard to the recording of interviews, telephone conversations etc, individuals such as DWP customers are not bound by any such legal expectations, however individuals would have to notify the Information Commissioner if there is an intention to make the contents of a recording publicly available.
“A claimant is within their rights to record their business with DWP for domestic purposes, that is their personal, family, or household affairs (including recreational purposes), however, publishing the recordings on the internet, or in any other way, may be going beyond domestic purposes and may indicate that you may be acting as a data controller.”
Whilst the admission is an important one, claimants must still bear in mind the possible consequences if a medical is brought to an end because a health professional discovers they are being secretly recorded.
One possibility is that DWP may refuse benefit on the grounds that the claimant caused the medical to be abandoned by acting unreasonably. In these circumstances the claimant would have to appeal the decision to a tribunal with no certainty as to the final outcome and without benefit being payable until a decision was reached

Lady_Andrea · 10 January 2013 at 6:43PM

smudge75 wrote: »

Can you tell me when a person has ME and fibromyalgia who does this person have the assessment with is it a doctor or a nurse ?

Your answer is in this FoI request
http:// www. whatdotheyknow.com/ request/atos_hcp_qualifications (NO SPACES)

mazza111 · 10 January 2013 at 6:57PM

Atos_Healthcare_company_representative wrote: »

You can get help filling out the ESA50 from the office of DWP handling your claim

Atos Healthcare reimburses the full cost of parking while attending an appointment with us.

Didn't happen I'm afraid, we were told £5 is the max and £5 is what she put on the form, despite us being there for over 2 hours.

We aim to keep waiting times to less than 15 minutes. Sometimes this is longer as the length of some appointments are difficult to predict and we deal with a range of different benefit assessments. We keep our booking policy under constant review, however I‘m sorry for the discomfort caused on this occasion.

I totally understand that times are very difficult to judge, and appointments can run over, but a little word of apology for keeping people waiting. Example, I could have taken the dd round the corner to a sandwich shop for a wee while so she could take her meds, rather than sit in an over heated office.

There are a limited number of medical conditions that only a doctor would assess. However, as the assessment looks at daily function, the DWP have asked Atos Healthcare to deploy a range of health care professionals, all of which are fully trained and have the approval of the Secretary of State.

I have one more question actually if you don't mind, and it's regarding disabled access. If you had ever been to your assessment centre in Glasgow, you would see it's not ideal. They bring out a metal ramp which is very steep. I'll be honest, I struggled to get my dd up this. If she had been there on her own, she would have had no chance of getting up these ramps. Would it not be easier to do wheelchair or disabled (DLA recipients) WCA in their homes or a more disabled accessible place?

Ask Atos Healthcare disability assessment questions

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