Background
The Government review of the current ‘sick note’ scheme which preceded the changes to the scheme in 2010 drew on studies which show that work is generally good for health, and that prolonged sickness absence can produce its own problems, including isolation, loss of confidence, mental health issues, de-skilling, and social exclusion. It also concluded that many people with health conditions could work as they recover from ill-health or injury, if they were provided with some basic support from their employer.
The old ‘sick note’ arrangements only gave doctors the option to advise patients to refrain from work altogether, or that they were fully fit for work. As a result many people who might have benefited from support in the workplace whilst recovering from illness or injury were advised that they could not work, and their employers did not have the opportunity to help them achieve an earlier return to work.
The Statement of Fitness for Work allows GPs to indicate that an individual may be fit for some work with support, and to indicate what form that support might take.
The changes to the scheme were not intended to encourage people back into the workplace who should more properly remain on sick leave but rather, where appropriate, to remove any particular barriers to returning to work. The scheme also encourages partnership working between the employee, their GP, and their employer. In light of this, the University’s Occupational Health Service (UOHS) wrote to GP practices in the local area to remind them that the University has occupational health expertise, and to encourage dialogue in appropriate cases