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Edited by
John Hobson
Julia Smedley
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iv
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v
Contents
Abbreviations ix
Contributors xv
vi Contents
Contents vii
Index 843
vi
ix
Abbreviations
x Abbreviations
Abbreviations xi
xii Abbreviations
Abbreviations xiii
Contributors
xvi Contributors
Contributors xvii
xviii Contributors
Chapter 1
Introduction
This book on fitness for work gathers together specialist advice on the medical aspects
of employment and the majority of medical conditions likely to be encountered in the
working population. It is primarily written for occupational health (OH) professionals
and general practitioners (GPs) with an interest or qualification in OH. However, other
professionals including hospital consultants, personnel managers, and health and safety
professionals should also find it helpful. The aim is to inform the best OH advice to man-
agers and others about the impact of a patient’s health on work and how they can be sup-
ported to gain or remain in work. Although decisions on return to work or on placement
depend on many factors, it is hoped that this book, which combines best current clinical
and OH practice, will provide a reference to principles that can be applied to individual
case management.
It must be emphasized that, alongside relieving suffering and prolonging life, an im-
portant objective of medical treatment in working-aged adults is to return the patient to
good function, including work. Indeed, the importance of work as an outcome measure
for health interventions in people of working age has been recognized by both the gov-
ernment and the health professions, and was emphasized in the recent UK government
report Improving Lives: The Future of Work, Health and Disability.1 Patients deserve good
advice about the benefits to health and well-being from returning to work so that they
can make appropriate life decisions and minimize the health inequalities that are asso-
ciated with worklessness. A main objective of this book is to reduce inappropriate bar-
riers to work for those who have overcome injury and disease or who live with chronic
conditions.
The first half of the book deals with the general principles applying to fitness to work
and OH practice. This includes the legal aspects, ethical principles, health promotion,
health surveillance, and general principles of rehabilitation. There are also chapters
dealing with topics such as sickness absence, ill health retirement, medication, transport,
vibration, and travel. These are specific areas that most OH professionals will be required
to advise about during their daily practice.
2
The second half of the book is arranged in chapters according to specialty or topic. Most
chapters have been written jointly by two specialists, one of whom is an occupational
physician. For each specialty, the chapter outlines the conditions covered, notes relevant
statistics, discusses clinical aspects, including treatment that affects work capacity, notes
rehabilitation requirements or special needs at the workplace, discusses problems that
may arise at work and necessary work restrictions, notes any current advisory or statutory
medical standards, and makes recommendations on employment aspects of the condi-
tions covered.
Term Definition
Impairment Any loss or abnormality of psychological, physiological, or anatomical structure
or function
Source: data from World Health Organization (1980). The International Classification of Impairments, Disabilities, and
Handicaps. Geneva, Switzerland: World Health Organization. Copyright © 1980 WHO.
3
those who are disabled were defined as having reduced ability to carry out day-to-day activ-
ities (in line with the Equality Act 2010). The key conclusions were as follows:
◆ Among 11.9 million working-age people with a long-term health condition in 2016,
7.1 million were disabled.
◆ People in employment have better levels of well-being and lower risk of death than
those who are out of work.
◆ Despite increasing rates of employment in the general population in recent years,
fewer disabled people (48%) were employed compared with the non-disabled popula-
tion (80% employed)—a gap of 32%.
◆ However, those with long-term health conditions that are not disabling have similar
employment rates to people with no long-term health condition.
◆ There is a similar distribution of disabled people working across different industries
and workplaces of various sizes, compared to non-disabled people.
◆ Disabled people are more likely to work part-time than non-disabled people.
In the UK, there are 3.4 million disabled people in work and 3.7 million out of work com-
pared to 27 million non-disabled people in work and 6.7 million out of work. However,
disabled people are twice as likely to leave work and nearly three times less likely to find
work compared to non-disabled people.
With regard to common illnesses that affect those of working age:
◆ The overall cost of ill health among working-age people is around £100 billion
annually.4
◆ Sickness absence is estimated to cost employers £9 billion annually.5
◆ About 14% of people with epilepsy are unemployed (compared to 9% of those with
disability) but there is no evidence that those with epilepsy (or diabetes) are at in-
creased risk of injury or absence.6
◆ A cohort study of 20,000 French electricity workers reported that diabetics were 1.6
times as likely as other workers to quit the labour force.7
◆ In England in 2014, 19% of people of working age had at least one common mental
health condition. One in two people on out-of-work benefits had a mental health con-
dition, compared to one in five of all working-age people and one in seven of those in
full-time employment.8
◆ The Health and Safety Executive estimates that in 2014/2015, 1.3 million working-
aged adults in Britain were suffering from an illness which they believed was caused or
made worse by work, with 500,000 new cases each year. This caused 25.9 million lost
working days and at a cost of £9.8 billion.9,10
The socioeconomic impact of working-age ill health is summarized in Box 1.1.11
Evidently, common as well as serious illness can prevent someone working, but many
people who have a major illness do work with proper treatment and workplace support.
Thus, the relation with unemployment is not as inevitable as these statistics suggest.
4
Rather, the job prospects of people with common illnesses and disabilities can often
be improved with thought, both about the work that is still possible and the reasonable
changes that could be made to allow for their circumstances.
Work—the advantages
◆ Important in obtaining adequate resources for material well-being and to be able
to participate in society.
◆ Work and resulting socioeconomic status are the main drivers of social gradients
in physical health, mental health, and mortality.
◆ Central to individual identity, social roles, and status.
◆ Important for psychosocial needs where employment is the expected normal.
◆ Good work is therapeutic and promotes recovery and rehabilitation.
◆ Associated with better health outcomes and reduces the risk of long-
term
incapacity.
◆ Minimizes the harmful physical, mental, and social effects of long-term sickness
absence.
◆ Promotes full participation in society, independence, and human rights.
◆ Reduces poverty.
◆ Improves quality of life and well-being.
Worklessness—the disadvantages
◆ Higher mortality—cardiovascular lung disease and suicide.
◆ Poorer general health, long-term illness—hypertension, hypercholesterolaemia,
repeated respiratory infections.
◆ Poorer mental health, psychological/psychiatric morbidity.
◆ Higher medical consultation, medication usage, and hospital admission rates.
◆ Overall reduction in life expectancy due to the above factors.
6
while not fit for normal work, the patient may be capable of working in a suitably modi-
fied job. In doing so, it supports the right to work of those with short-and long-term
health problems, and recognizes that suitable work can bring tangible health benefits.12
Advice on completing a fit note is provided in Chapter 10 and elsewhere.13,14 The UK
government plans to review the use of the fit note in their 10-year plan to transform
work, health, and disability.1
Confidentiality
Usually, any recommendations and advice on placement or return to work are based on
the functional effects of the medical condition and its prognosis. Generally there is no
requirement for an employer to know the diagnosis or receive clinical details. A simple
statement that the patient is medically ‘fit’ or ‘unfit’ for a particular job, or requires add-
itional adjustments, often suffices. However, sometimes further information may need
to be disclosed using a fit note or in an OH report, particularly if limitations or modifi-
cations to work are being proposed. The certificated reason for any sickness absence is
usually known by personnel departments, who maintain their own confidential records.
The patient’s consent must be obtained before disclosure of confidential health information
to third parties, including other doctors, nurses, employers, or other people such as staff of the
careers services. It is recommended that all consent is in writing so this can be demonstrated
if required. The purpose of the consent should be made clear to the patient, as it may be re-
quired to help with the finding of suitable safe work. A patient who is found to be medically
unfit for certain employment should be given a full explanation of why the disclosure of un-
fitness is necessary. Further advice may be found in the Faculty of Occupational Medicine’s
Guidance on Ethics for Occupational Physicians15 (see also Chapter 4).
Medical reports
When a medical report is requested on an individual, the person should be informed of
the purpose for which the report is being sought. If a medical report is being sought from
an employee’s GP or specialist, then the employer is required to inform the employee of
their rights under the Access to Medical Reports Act (AMRA) 1988 which include the
right to see the report before it is sent to the employer and the right to refuse to allow the
report to be sent to the employer. If the report is sought from an occupational physician
it will also come under the AMRA if the occupational physician has had clinical care of
9
the patient. OH nurses often follow these same ethical principles as a matter of good prac-
tice. Even if the OH professional has not cared for the patient, it is good ethical practice
to follow the requirements of this Act. Employees are also entitled to see their medical
records, including their OH records. The healthcare worker can withhold consent if they
consider the contents to be possibly harmful to the employee but this may need to be jus-
tified in a court of law or tribunal.
Any doctor being asked for a medical report should insist that the originator of the re-
quest writes a referral letter containing full details of the individual, a description of their
job, an outline of the problem, and the matters on which opinion is sought.
At the outset, the doctor should obtain the patient’s consent, preferably in writing, to
carry out a consultation and furnish the report. Even if the patient has given consent, the
report should not contain clinical information, unless it is pertinent and absolutely es-
sential. The contents should be confined to addressing the questions posed in the letter of
referral and advising on interpreting the person’s medical condition in terms of functional
capability and their ability to meet the requirements of their employment. The employer
is entitled to be sufficiently informed to make a clear decision about the individual’s work
ability, both currently and in the future, and any modifications, restrictions, or prohib-
itions that may be required. The doctor should express a clear opinion and offer the em-
ployee an opportunity to see the report before it is sent. The employee can then request
correction of any factual errors but they are not entitled to require the doctor to modify
the opinion expressed, even if they strongly disagree with it. A patient’s return to work
or continuation in work may depend on the receipt of a medical report from their GP,
consultant, or OH adviser. It is in the patient’s interest that such reports are furnished
expeditiously.
When writing a medical report the OH professional should always remember that the
document will be discoverable if litigation ensues. It should be clear from the report’s
content, letter heading, or the affiliation under the signature, why the doctor is qualified
to address the subject in question.16
3. The patient’s condition may make certain jobs and work environments unsafe to them
personally (e.g. liability to sudden unconsciousness in a hazardous situation; risk of
damage to the remaining eye in a patient with monocular vision).
4. The patient’s condition may make it unsafe both for themselves and for others in some
roles (e.g. road or railway driving in someone who is liable to sudden unconsciousness
or to behave abnormally).
5. The patient’s condition may pose a risk to the community (e.g. for consumers of the
product, if a food handler transmits infection).
There is usually a clear distinction between the first-party risks of points 2 and 3 and the
third-party risks of point 5. In point 4, first-and third-party risks may be present.
Thus, when assessing a patient’s fitness for work, the OH professional must consider:
◆ the level of skill, physical and mental capacity, sensory acuity, and so on needed for
effective performance of the work
◆ any possible adverse effects of the work itself or of the work environment on the
patient’s health
◆ the possible health and safety implications of the patient’s medical condition when
undertaking the work in question, for colleagues, and/or the community.
For some jobs there may be an emergency component in addition to the routine job struc-
ture, and higher standards of fitness may be needed, on occasion.
For point 6, where there may be no specific job in view and the assessment must be
more open-ended, health assessments may be required, for instance, by employment or
careers services in their attempt to find suitable work for unemployed disabled people. It
is important to avoid blanket medical restrictions and labels (such as ‘epileptic’) that may
limit their future choice.
Recruitment medicals
Employers often use health questionnaires as part of their recruitment process. These
should be marked ‘medically confidential’ and be read and interpreted only by a physician
or nurse. A specific health questionnaire should not be returned to a non-medical person
and to do otherwise could be seen as a breach of the Data Protection Act.
Some individuals may be reluctant to disclose a medical condition to a future employer
(sometimes with their own doctor’s support), for fear that this may lose them the job. It
must be pointed out that should work capability be impaired or an accident arises due to
the concealed condition, dismissal on medical grounds may follow. An employment tri-
bunal could well support the dismissal if the employee had failed to disclose the relevant
condition. It is not in the patient’s interest to conceal any medical condition that could
adversely affect their work, but it would be entirely reasonable for the applicant to request
that the details be disclosed only to an OH professional.
For some jobs (e.g. driving) there are statutory medical standards and for others,
employing organizations lay down their own advisory medical standards (e.g. food
handling, work in the offshore oil and gas industry). For most jobs, however, no agreed
advisory medical standards exist, and for many jobs there need be no special health re-
quirements. Job application forms should be accompanied by a clear indication of any
fitness standards that are required and of any medical conditions that would be a bar to
particular jobs, but no questions about health or disabilities should be included on job
application forms themselves. If health information is necessary, applicants should be
asked to complete a separate health declaration form, which should be inspected and
interpreted only by health professionals and only after the candidate has been selected,
subject to satisfactory health.
The reason for a pre-placement health assessment should be confined to fitness for the
proposed job and only medical questions relevant to that employment should be asked
(Box 1.3).
Special groups
Young people
Medical advice on training given to a young person with a disability who has not yet
started a career may be different from that given to an adult developing the same med-
ical condition later in an established career. It is particularly important that young people
entering employment are given appropriate medical advice when it is needed. A young
person with atopic eczema may not wish to invest in training for hairdressing if advised
that hairdressing typically aggravates hand eczema. A school-leaver with controlled epi-
lepsy might be eligible for an ordinary driving licence at the time of recruitment but they
and their employer may need to be advised if vocational driving is likely to become an
essential requirement for career progression.
In general, young people, defined as under 18, are regarded as a vulnerable group by the
Health and Safety Executive and may be at increased risk of injury or health problems in
the workplace. This can be due to them working in an unfamiliar environment and lack
of maturity among other factors. There may also be physical factors where they lack the
strength to carry out manual handling activities as safely as older workers. They require
additional training and supervision and there should be review of an employer’s risk as-
sessment (see ‘Useful websites’).
Supported employment
Supported employment is a model for supporting people with significant disabilities to
secure and retain paid employment. It uses a partnership strategy to enable people with
disabilities to achieve sustainable long-term employment and businesses to employ valu-
able workers. The same techniques are also being used to support other disadvantaged
groups such as young people leaving care, ex-offenders, and people recovering from drug
and alcohol misuse. Employment terms and conditions for people with disabilities should
13
be the same as for everyone else including pay at the contracted rate, equal employee
benefits, safe working conditions, and opportunities for career advancement.
Where a medical condition has significantly reduced an individual’s employment abil-
ities or potential then supported work should be considered as an alternative to medical
retirement. Further information about supported work and a directory of organizations
providing supported employment is available from the British Association for Supported
Employment (see ‘Useful websites’).
Functional assessment
To estimate the individual’s level of function, assessments of all systems should be made
with special attention both to those that are disordered and relevant to the work. This
includes physical systems, sensory and perceptual abilities, psychological reactions, such
as responsiveness and alertness, behaviour towards colleagues or customers, and other
features of the general mental state. The effects of different treatment regimens on work
suitability should also be considered such as the possible effects of some medication on
alertness, or the optimal care of an arthrodesis. Any general evaluation of health forms
the background to more specific inquiry. Assessment should also consider the results of
relevant tests. The following factors may be material but are not exhaustive:
◆ General: stamina; ability to cope with full working day, or shift work; susceptibility to
fatigue.
◆ Mobility: ability to get to work, and exit safety; to walk, climb, bend, stoop, crouch.
◆ Locomotor: general/specific joint function and range; reach; gait; back/spinal function.
◆ Posture: ability to stand or sit for certain periods; postural constraints; work in con-
fined spaces.
◆ Muscular: specific palsies or weakness; tremor; ability to lift, push or pull, with weight/
time abilities if known; strength tests.
◆ Manual skills: defects in dexterity, ability to grip, or grasp.
◆ Coordination: including hand–eye coordination if relevant.
14
be mentioned. Artificial aids or appliances that could help at the workplace (e.g. wheel-
chair) should be indicated.
◆ Specific third-party risks that could be conferred on other workers or members of the
community (e.g. via the product such as infection in food handlers, etc.).
1. Strength
Expressed in terms of sedentary, light, medium, heavy, and very heavy.
Measured by involvement of the worker with one or more of the following activities:
(a) Worker position(s):
(i) Standing: remaining on one’s feet in an upright position at a workstation
without moving about.
(ii) Walking: moving about on foot.
(iii) Sitting: remaining in the normal seated position.
(b) Worker movement of objects (including extremities used):
(i) Lifting: raising or lowering an object from one level to another.
(ii) Carrying: transporting an object, usually in the hands or arms or on the
shoulder.
(iii) Pushing: exerting force upon an object so that it moves away (includes
slapping, striking, kicking, and treadle actions).
(iv) Pulling: exerting force upon an object so that it moves nearer (includes
jerking).
The five degrees of physical demands are (estimated equivalents in Mets):
S Sedentary work (<2 Mets): lifting 10 lbs (4.5 kg) maximum and occasion-
ally lifting and/or carrying such articles as dockets, ledgers, and small tools.
Although a sedentary job is defined as one that involves sitting, a certain
amount of walking and standing is often needed as well. Jobs are sedentary if
walking and standing are required only occasionally and other sedentary cri-
teria are met.
L Light work (2–3 Mets): lifting 20 lbs (9 kg) maximum with frequent lifting and/
or carrying of objects weighing up to 10 lbs (4.5 kg). Even though the weight
lifted may be only negligible, a job is in this category when it requires walking or
standing to a significant degree, or sitting most of the time with some pushing
and pulling of arm and/or leg controls.
M Medium work (4–5 Mets): lifting 50 lbs (23 kg) maximum with frequent lifting
and/or carrying of objects weighing up to 25 lbs (11.5 kg).
H Heavy work (6–8 Mets): lifting 100 lbs (45 kg) maximum with frequent lifting
and/or carrying of objects weighing up to 50 lbs (23 kg).
V Very heavy work (8 Mets) lifting objects in excess of 100 lbs (45 kg) with fre-
quent lifting and/or carrying of objects weighing 50 lbs (23 kg) or more.
(a) Stooping: bending the body downward and forward by bending the spine at
the waist.
(b) Kneeling: bending the legs at the knees to come to rest on the knee or knees.
(c) Crouching: bending the body downward and forward by bending the legs and
the spine.
(d) Crawling: moving about on the hands and knees or hands and feet.
6. Seeing
Obtaining impressions through the eyes of the shape, size, distance, motion, colour,
or other characteristics of objects. The major visual functions are defined as follows:
(a) Acuity:
Far—clarity of vision at 20 feet (6 m) or more.
Near—clarity of vision at 20 inches (50 cm) or less.
(b) Depth perception: three-dimensional vision: the ability to judge distance and
space relationships so as to see objects where and as they actually are.
(c) Field of vision: the area that can be seen up and down or to the right or left
while the eyes are fixed on a given point.
(d) Accommodation: adjustment of the lens of the eye to bring an object into sharp
focus; especially important for doing near-point work at varying distances.
(e) Colour vision: the ability to identify and distinguish colours.
18
OH reports should avoid terms such as ‘fit for light work only’. The dogmatic separation
of work into ‘light’, ‘medium’, and ‘heavy’ often results in individuals being unduly limited
in their choice of work. Jobs can be graded according to physical demands, environmental
conditions, certain levels of skill and knowledge, and specific vocational preparation re-
quired, but OH practice requires more specific adjustment of the job to the individual.
The O*NET Program provides a database of 1000 occupations and categorizes their de-
mands, tasks, and activities (see ‘Useful websites’). The database contains hundreds of
standardized and occupation-specific descriptors on almost 1000 occupations covering
the entire US economy. The database, which is available to the public at no cost, is con-
tinually updated from input by a broad range of workers in each occupation.
The physical demands listed in Box 1.4 express both the physical requirements of
the job and capacities that a worker must have to meet those required by many jobs.
For example, if the energy or metabolic requirements of a particular task are known,
the individual’s work capacity may be estimated and, if expressed in the same units,
a comparison between the energy demands of the work and the physiological work
capacity of the individual may be made. (See also Chapter 26.) Energy requirements
of various tasks can be estimated and expressed in metabolic equivalents, or Mets.
(The Met is the approximate energy expended while sitting at rest, defined as the rate
of energy expenditure requiring an oxygen consumption of 3.5 mL per kilogram of
body weight per minute.) The rough metabolic demands of many working activities
have been published and the equivalents for the five grades of physical demands in
terms of muscular strength adopted by the US Department of Labor are listed for
information in Box 1.4. Work physiology assessments in occupational medicine pro-
vide a quantitative way of matching patients to their work and are commonly used in
Scandinavia and the US.
◆ stress
◆ nature of the work, workload, work schedules, work environment (heat, cold, humidity,
air velocity, altitude, hyperbaric pressure, noise, vibration).
Objective tests
The result of any objective tests of function relevant to the working situation should be
noted. For instance, the physical work capacity of an individual may be estimated using
standard exercise tests, step tests, or different task simulations. Muscular strength and
lifting ability can be assessed objectively by using either dynamic or static strength tests.
Work accommodation
The patient’s condition, which may or may not come within the Equality Act 2010, may
be such that their previous work needs to be modified. Both physical and organizational
aspects of the job must be considered. Simple features such as bench height, type of chair
or stool, or lighting may need adjustment, or more sophisticated aids or adaptations
may be required. The workplace environment may need to be adapted, for example, by
building a ramp or widening a doorway to improve access for wheelchairs. Advice on
work accommodation and financial assistance may be available through Jobcentre Plus
whose Access to Work advisers can visit the workplace (see Chapter 10). Information on
support available to those with disabilities is available from Disability Rights (see ‘Useful
websites’).
Certain organizational features of the work may need adjustment—for instance, adjust-
ment of objectives, more flexible working hours, more frequent rest pauses, job sharing,
alterations to shift work or arrangements to avoid rush-hour travel. A short period of
unpaced work may be necessary before resuming paced work. .
Alternative work
In many occupations, work accommodation or job restructuring is not possible and some
type of suitable alternative work, possibly only temporary, may have to be recommended.
This is usually judged on an individual basis by the OH professional who can keep the
employee under regular review.
Medical retirement
Medical retirement should only be considered as a last resort and once all other op-
tions have been considered. For instance, where further treatment is impossible or
ineffective, and if suitable alternative work cannot be provided. If the ‘threshold of
employability for a particular job’ cannot be reached, either through recovery of fit-
ness, or adjustment of work, retirement on medical grounds should be considered
before employment is terminated. A management decision on early retirement on
grounds of ill health should never be made without a supporting medical opinion that
has taken the requirements of the job fully into account. Medical retirement is discussed
in Chapter 12. Other aspects of early medical retirement in relation to the law are dis-
cussed in Chapter 2.
References 23
Key points
Useful websites
The Pensions Regulator http://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/
British Association for Supported https://www.base-uk.org/
Employment
The Health and Safety Executive. http://www.hse.gov.uk/youngpeople/index.htm
Young people at work
The O*NET program. Database https://www.onetonline.org/
of job requirements
Disability Rights UK https://www.disabilityrightsuk.org/
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14. Coggon D, Palmer KT. Assessing fitness for work and writing a ‘fit note’. BMJ 2010;341:c6305.
15. Faculty of Occupational Medicine. Guidance on Ethics for Occupational Physicians, 8th edn.
London: Faculty of Occupational Medicine, Royal College of Physicians; 2018.
16. Faculty of Occupational Medicine. Good medical practice: guidance for occupational physicians.
2017. Available at: http://www.fom.ac.uk/professional-development/publications-policy-guidance-
and-consultations/publications/faculty-publications.
17. Ilmarinen J. The Work Ability Index (WAI). Occup Med 2007;57:160.
18. Fraser TM. Fitness for Work: The Role of Physical Demands Analysis and Physical Capacity
Assessment. London: Taylor & Francis; 1992. Available at: http://www.ssu.ac.ir/cms/fileadmin/user_
upload/Daneshkadaha/dbehdasht/khatamat_behdashti/kotobe_latin/Fitness_for_work.pdf.
19. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Physical activity in the workplace. Public health
guideline [PH13]. 2008. Available at: https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ph13.
20. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Smoking: workplace interventions. Public health
guideline [PH5]. 2007. Available at: https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ph5.
21. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Obesity prevention. Clinical guideline [CG43].
2006 (Last updated: March 2015). Available at: https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg43.
22. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Workplace health: management practices.
NICE guideline [NG13]. 2015 (Last updated: March 2016). Available at: https://www.nice.org.
uk/guidance/ng13.
23. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Healthy workplaces: improving employee
mental and physical health and wellbeing. Quality standard [QS147]. 2017. Available at: https://
www.nice.org.uk/guidance/qs147.
25
Chapter 2
Introduction
This chapter outlines some of the ways in which the law may affect the employment of
people with health issues. There are three major legal sources relevant to employment in
the UK—the common law, statute law, and (since the 1970s) European directives. Even
though the UK has voted to leave the European Union (EU), our case law has been de-
termined and decided upon by European Court decisions and they are now embedded as
precedent in our law. Current domestic health and safety legislation enacting EU direct-
ives will remain in force until or unless they are amended or repealed. Therefore, neither
statutory nor case law will change when we have left the EU.
Statutory employment protection in the form of unfair dismissal and disability dis-
crimination legislation has transformed the rights and protection for employees who are
injured or become ill at work and cannot work in the short or long term.
Common law
The English legal system is based on the common law. It has developed from the deci-
sions of judges whose rulings over the centuries have created precedents for other courts
to follow and these decisions were based on the ‘custom and practice of the Realm’.
The system of binding precedent means that any decision of the Supreme Court (for-
merly the House of Lords), the highest court in the UK, will bind all the lower courts.
This applies unless the lower courts can argue that the previous binding decision(s)
cannot apply because of differences in the facts of the two cases. The courts call these
decisions ‘fact-sensitive cases’.
When the UK joined the EU, the decisions of the Court of Justice of the European
Union (CJEU) could supersede any decisions of the domestic courts and could require
the UK national courts to follow its decisions. Scotland has a system based on Dutch
Roman law, with some procedural differences although no fundamental differences in
relation to employment law. Even though the UK has left the EU, nothing will change for
a long time as EU law is embedded in our statutes and case law.
These duties are judged in the light of the ‘state of the art’ of knowledge of the employer—
what they either knew or ought to have known.
I first saw her about the middle of January, 1881. She had an
hysterical face, but was possessed of considerable intelligence, and
when questioned talked freely about herself. The most prominent
physical symptom that could be discovered was a large tremor,
affecting the left arm, forearm, and hand. This was constant, and had
been present since her admission to the hospital. The left half of her
body was incompletely anæsthetic, the anæsthesia being especially
marked in the left forearm. Ovarian hyperæsthesia could not at this
time be made out. She was, however, hyperæsthetic over the
occipital portion of the scalp and the cervico-dorsal region of the
spine. Pressure or manipulation of these regions would in a few
moments bring on an attack of spasm. The attacks, however, usually
occurred without any apparent exciting cause.
For a period of from six to twelve hours before an attack she usually
felt dull, melancholy, and strange in the head. Frequently she had
noises like escaping steam in her ears, but more in the right ear than
in the left. She complained of cardiac palpitations. She usually had
pain in the small of her back. Her limbs felt weak and tired. Just as
the attack was coming on her eyes became heavy and misty, her
head felt as if it was sinking backward, and if not supported she
would fall in the same direction.
FIG. 18.
FIG. 19.
A series of strong convulsive movements next ensued. Her entire
body was tossed up and down and twisted violently from side to
side. Sometimes she assumed a position of opisthotonos. Her whole
body was then again lifted and hurled about by the violence of the
movements. A few seconds later she became quiet but rigid, in the
position shown in Fig. 19, corresponding to the position of crucifixion
of the French writers.
FIG. 20.
Soon she assumed the position represented by Fig. 20, and the
convulsions were renewed with violence, the patient's limbs and
body being frequently tossed about and the latter sometimes curved
upward. After these movements had continued a brief period the
patient became calm and partially relaxed; but the respite was not
long. A series of still more remarkable movements began, chiefly
hurling and lifting of the body. Eventually, and apparently as a climax
to a succession of efforts directed to this end, she sprang into the
position of extreme opisthotonos represented in Fig. 21. This sketch,
by Taylor, is a very faithful view of her exact position. She remained
thus arched upward for a minute, or even more. A series of springing
and vibratory movements followed, the body frequently arching.
FIG. 21.
As the spasms left she sat up on her bed, and at first looked around
with a bewildered expression. She turned her head a little to one
side and seemed to gaze fixedly at some object. Her expression was
slightly smiling. When spoken to she looked straight at the one
addressing her, but without appearing to know what was said, and
the next moment the former position and attitude were resumed.
After a few minutes she lay down muttering incoherently, and in
about a quarter of an hour fell asleep.
I have simply described one attack. Sometimes she would have
several in succession, or the spasmodic manifestations would be
repeated several times in a regular or an irregular manner. Strong
pressure in the ovarian regions usually would not cut short the
spasms. They could be stopped, however, by etherization or by
active faradization of the limbs or trunk. She did not always conduct
herself in the same manner in the period which succeeded the
spasms. Sometimes, after getting into the sitting posture, instead of
smiling, she would look enraged and speak a few words. The
following expressions were noted on one occasion: “You know it!
Yes, you do! Yes! yes!” Often she was heard to mutter for hours after
the attack. Her lips would sometimes be seen to be moving without
any words being heard. Sooner or later she would fall into sound
sleep which would last several hours.
With this case before us the phenomena of the disease can be more
readily grasped. I will necessarily make free use of the labors of
Richer in my description of symptoms.
FIG. 22.
Principal Hysterogenic Zones, anterior surface of the body: a, a′,
supramammary zones; b, mammary zones; c, c′, infra-axillary zones; d,
d′, e, inframammary zones; f, f′, costal zones; g, g′, iliac zones; h, h′,
ovarian zones (after Richer).
FIG. 23.
Principal Hysterogenic Zones, posterior surface of the body: a, superior
dorsal zone; b, inferior dorsal zone; c, posterior lateral zone (after
Richer).
By comparing the notes upon the case detailed with the description
given of the typical hystero-epileptic attack, it will be seen that the
different periods, and even the phases, can be made out with but
little difficulty. After a few moments of convulsive movements and
irregular breathing the patient was attacked with muscular
tetanization, arrested respiration, and loss of consciousness. Tonic
convulsions followed, and then immobilization in certain positions.
Next came the clonic spasms and resolution. In the period of
contortions the arched position is one more extreme than any
represented by the illustrations of the French authors, although it is
closely approximated by some of their illustrations. After this position
of opisthotonos had been taken a succession of springing and lifting
movements occurred, probably corresponding to the phase of great
movements. The period of emotional attitudes was very clearly
represented by the position assumed, the expression of
countenance, and sometimes by the words uttered. Even the period
of delirium was imperfectly represented by the mutterings of the
patient, which were sometimes long continued after the attack.
FIG. 24.
She was carefully examined on the day of her admission. She was
bright, shrewd, and observant. She gave an account of her case in
detail, and said she was a puzzle to the doctors. Both legs were
entirely helpless; the feet were contractured in abduction and
extension, assuming the position of talipes equino-varus; the legs
and thighs were strongly extended, the latter being drawn together
firmly. The left upper extremity was distinctly weaker than the right,
but all movements were retained. She had no grasping power in the
left hand. She was completely anæsthetic and analgesic below the
knees, and incompletely so over the entire left half of the body. Pain
was elicited on pressure over the left ovary and over the lower dorsal
and lumbo-sacral region of the spine. Both knee-jerks were
exaggerated.
Early on the morning of the next day she had another attack of
unconsciousness and spasm, in which I had the opportunity of
seeing her. The spasm amounted only to a slight general muscular
tetanization. The whole attack lasted probably from half a minute to a
minute. The following day, at about the same hour, another
paroxysm occurred, having a distinct but brief tonic, followed by a
clonic, phase, in which both the head and body were moved. The
next day, also at nearly the same hour, she had an attack of
unconsciousness or perverted consciousness without spasm. She
had a similar seizure at 4 P.M. For two days succeeding she had no
attacks; then came a spell of unconsciousness. After this she had
one or two slight attacks, at intervals of a few days, for about two
weeks.
Between the attacks the condition of the patient was carefully
investigated. On lifting her head suddenly she had strange
sensations of sinking, and sometimes would partially lose
consciousness. She complained greatly of pain in the head and
along the spine. Her mental condition, so far as ability to talk,
reason, etc. was concerned, was good, but any exertion in this
direction easily fatigued her and rendered her restless. She had at
times hallucinations of animals, which she thought she saw passing
before her from left to right. The left upper and lower extremities
showed marked loss of power. The paralysis of the left leg was quite
positive, and a slight tendency to contracture at the knee was
exhibited. She was for two weeks entirely unable to stand. The knee-
jerks were well marked. Left unilateral sweating was several times
observed.