General description of the work Consultant Occupational Physicians undertake
The Consultant Occupational Physician is a doctor who deals with medical fitness to work. He/She assesses and advises on a person’s fitness to undertake a particular occupation. He/She normally undertakes this assessment on behalf of the employer. He/She may also advise the employer on issues in the workplace that have health implications for employees.


Most common clinical areas / procedures leading to a claim of clinical negligence
• injuries in the workplace
• work related ill-health
• occupational health assessment leading to loss of employment
• exposure to toxins at work


Sub-Specialities / Alternative and Additional job titles
The Consultant Occupational Physician may be known as a Consultant Physician with a special interest in Occupational Health.
Some General Practitioners have a special interest in occupational health and undertake some work in this field.


Usual Qualifications
The Consultant Occupational Physician will usually have MFOM (Memebership of the Faculty of Occupational Medicine) after his/her name.
GPs undertaking occupational health work may have DOccMed (Diploma in Occupational Medicine) after their name.


Academic Appointments
The Consultant Occupational Physician may be a Lecturer in Occupational Health or Occupational Medicine.


Our Experts
The Consultant Occupational Physicians who prepare reports on negligence cases on our behalf are all experienced NHS Consultants. They are in active clinical practice and they are experienced at preparing medico-legal reports. They are willing to attend Court in the UK and Ireland provided that they are given enough notice and their fees and expenses for attending are agreed in advance.
Each of the Consultant Occupational Physicians who prepare reports on our behalf has particular areas of clinical interest within his/her practice and we match each case with the most appropriate Consultant.


The Report
The Consultant Occupational Physicians prepare their Reports for the benefit of the Courts. In other words, they prepare unbiased Reports in order to help the Court to decide the case, rather than to help one side or the other.
The Consultant Occupational Physicians examine all the documentation and details of the case and look at the standard of care that the Client received. They then give their opinion on whether or not the standard of care that the Client received fell below the standard of care he/she should have received.
Where necessary they provide background documentation and information to back-up their opinion.


Documentation required
The most important documentation is the Client’s GP and Hospital Records. This documentation will contain their General Practitioner’s Records as well as their Hospital Doctors’ Records, Operation Records, Nursing Records, Out-Patient Clinic Records and Correspondence.
There may be X-rays or CT or MRI scans. If these are related to the event in dispute then copies of these will be of help to the Consultant Occupational Physician when he/she is preparing his/her Report.
An account of events by the Client and/or the Client’s family will be of assistance to the Consultant Occupational Physician. Copies of the Cllient’s Attendances with their Solicitor will also help to clarify the areas of care that are at issue in the case.


Time-scale for the Report
Once we have confirmation to proceed with the Report the Consultant Occupational Physicians can usually prepare their Reports within 8 to 10 weeks. If a Report is needed urgently we will endeavour to have it prepared sooner than this.


Price of the Report
Once we receive all the documentation we will provide you with a quotation for the price of the Report from the Consultant Occupational Physician. If you decide to go ahead with the Report we will have it prepared and we will forward it to you on receipt of payment.
If you decide not to go ahead with the Report after receiving the quotation we will return all the documentation to you and there is no charge.


Queries on the Report / Addendums
The Reports from the Consultant Occupational Physicians are usually very clear and give a concise opinion on the standard of care the Client received.
If minor clarifications are needed then these will be provided at no extra cost.
If, after the Report has been completed, additional documentation needs to be examined by the Consultant Occupational Physician or if additional work needs to be done in order to provide an Addendum to the Report, then there may be an additional charge. If so, we will inform you of this and only proceed with your approval.


Client Examination
The Consultant Occupational Physicians do not normally need to see the Client in order to prepare a Report on the standard of care he/she has received. They can usually prepare their Report from the case notes and other documentation.
If the case does progress and a Report is needed on the Client’s current medical condition and/or prognosis for the future, then it is likely that the Client will need to see the Consultant Occupational Physician for an examination and we can make the necessary arrangements.