hi all
thanks for the previous replies on first aid

i have had several new challenges since christmas with overseas workers. 

we have a number of overseas workers.(thanks for the SSP stuff it was a 
conversation i had last week and will be useful)
staff are referred at 4 weeks of absence. 

1.a person is off for 4 weeks returns to their country of origin for 
treatment if they are still in their home country(poland/pakistan/iraq 
etc)....how do i advise on return to work restrictions? do i invite them 
to see me knowing they are out of the country? then how do i advise on 
likely lenght of absence etc.how do i obtain medical information to enable 
fair recommendations to be made.

2.if they are back in yorkshire and the individuals grasp of medical 
terminology is about as good as my dads! we do not want to use colleagues 
to interpret and the interpreters we have tried have little/no experience 
of medical terms also the wait for an interpreter can be weeks.

In the UK I can write to GP's...in our experience we have found that many 
go back to their country of origin (especially our polish workers) for the 
weekend for treatment/investigation rather than use the NHS....how do i 
get reliable medical info? drugs are not in the BNF and google searches 
have proved fruitless.

(a case in point is female for investigation/treatment for abdo 
pain...need to manual handle as part of role, area of genaralised pain was 
between stomach and symphis pubis- had u/s of abdomen but didnt know 
result.didnt know what area dr was looking at ie GI, renal, liver,bowel 
had pain now its gone had tablets doesnt know what)

3. pre employment stage... i had a PEHQ this week with "scezofena" on the 
mental health question. i can only assume to be "bi polar disorder".The 
medication was not one familiar to BNF/google either. arrived in england 3 
months ago....no uk GP.
as with any condition i was unsure of, i would like to know if this person 
has good symptom management/regular OPA's/prescription etc etc prior to 
signing fit.......how do i get this info?

we have used the WHO classification of diseases in the past but it this is 
not common. did you know J02 is a sore throat!

the final problem is that of a person who went to Asia on annual leave for 
4 weeks for religious celebrations and since his annual leave finished we 
have had 2 faxes from a doctor which says "back pain - strict bed rest for 
28 days = unfit to travel". given that this is not the recommended 
treatment in the UK and i am not familiar with asian health care, it is 
likely that this individual has had 2 months bed rest, his role is 
physically demanding so will probably need 
at least 2 months of physio to undo the "harm" that inactivity has done 
and a rehabilitation programme on return to work. 
this is not the first letter we have had from asia saying "back pain= 
strict bed rest for 28 days"

the HR manager has asked my opinion on what to do in cases like these.  i 
have suggested they talk to the legal team for starters. obviously the 
application of the DDA cannot be assessed as he is still in asia but the 
chap had an accident at work where he hurt his back before his holiday to 
asia and had a few days off with back pain then started his annual 
leave... funny he was fit to travel on a 5-6 hour flight before his 
holiday when his back pain was likely to be acute....call me cynical.

In answer to the previous posting we "give back" annual leave if a MED 3 
is put in. 

i know i am not the only OHN who deals with workers from overseas. I am 
eager not to treat people who chose health care in their country of origin 
any differently to a person who breaks his leg on a skiing holiday, but as 
you will appreciate there is a different perspective. i know i woudl want 
to be with my family and in familiar surroundings if i was unwell.

sorry it is a lengthy email but any advice or direction would be 
appreciated.
jacqui

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