Expert Witness: Chaperones and accompanying persons, part 3: legal problems

Part 3: The final part in our series

Summary:

In the final part in our series on accompanied OH consultations, Diana Kloss explains the relevant law and ethics.

Dr Momeda Deen’s two-part article on accompanied occupational health (OH) consultations, together with The At Work Partnership’s (AWP’s) online survey on the subject, have comprehensively aired the practical problems involved with third parties accompanying patients in OH consultations. In this brief article I will highlight legal issues that may arise.

Chaperones
Intimate medical examinations are not normally undertaken in OH clinics, as Deen writes, so chaperones are not usually required. If, exceptionally, an intimate examination, as defined by the GMC4, may be necessary, the employee should be offered the option of having a chaperone present, even if the OH practitioner is of the same sex as the patient. Best practice would dictate always making provision for this, especially if female employees’ religious or cultural beliefs make physical examinations particularly sensitive…

Diana Kloss is a barrister, former part-time employment judge, Acas arbitrator and author.

Author: Kloss D

Tags case management consent

Occupational Health at Work October/November 2023 (vol. 20/3) pp33-35

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