Medical surveillance
Employees, including classified persons, who are subject to medical surveillance under the Ionising Radiations Regulations 2017 (IRR17), must have a health record in which decisions by an appointed doctor are recorded. The appointed doctor is responsible for checking whether employees are medically fit to work with ionising radiation.
Appointed doctors
An appointed doctor is a registered medical practitioner who meets the criteria set by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), for the purpose set out in IRR17.
You'll need an appointed doctor if you're subject to medical surveillance under IRR17.
Medical appeal
If an appointed doctor declares you unfit to work with ionising radiation or restricts you to working with ionising radiation under specified conditions you can appeal to HSE.
To appeal, write to HSE's Principal Medical Adviser (PMA) within 28 days of the original decision giving the following information:
- full name
- home address
- phone number
- e-mail address
- date of birth
- gender
- name and address of employer
- work address
- occupation and description of role
- date of medical examination
- name of doctor conducting the medical examination
- the doctor's decision (for example, unfit to work or fit to work subject to conditions)
- a summary from the doctor of the reasons for their decision, if available
- reasons for disagreeing with the doctor's decision
- any evidence in support of the appeal, including recent medical evidence
You should send your appeal to: [email protected]
or:
Occupational Health Team
Health and Safety Executive
Floor 2.2 Redgrave Court
Merton Road
Bootle
Merseyside
L20 7HS
The PMA will consider your appeal and where appropriate, contact you and the appointed doctor who conducted the medical examination for further information or clarification.
They'll write to you to tell you the outcome, and where appropriate, the appointed doctor.
HSE will reject the appeal if it relates to a medical condition that appears to clearly disqualify you from undertaking your work or clearly restricts you to working under specified conditions (HSE guidance note MS33). In these circumstances, the PMA will write to you explaining their initial view and giving you the opportunity to provide any further information and evidence in support of the appeal. If they subsequently confirm their initial view, the PMA will inform you and, where appropriate, the appointed doctor in writing.
If HSE progresses the appeal, the PMA will send all relevant papers to an independent medical expert. The medical expert will consider the appeal papers and might decide a hearing is appropriate, which you may request. In attending an oral hearing, you can request that other persons also attend to support you. For example, a friend, colleague or your own medical adviser.
Once the medical expert completes their assessment of the appeal, they'll make a recommendation to HSE. An HSE Director will consider the recommendation, make the final decision and inform you and the appointed doctor (where appropriate) of the outcome in writing.
HSE will pay the fees of medical experts that consider appeals on its behalf. You'll be responsible for any travel and accommodation costs incurred in attending an oral hearing.