In certain types of work activity there is an inherent risk to health, whether it is by way of hearing, breathing,vibration, skin problems or other ailments. Risk assessments will clarify which jobs are at risk and what types of problems could arise.

Until now, it has been up to individual companies to control this and, within the parameters of relevant laws, decide on their own approach using health surveillance – the process of checking whether or not work is damaging to employees.

However, as of April 6th this year, new HSE legislation stipulates that companies must undertake health surveillance. Not doing so is not only illegal, but leaves companies wide open to prosecution should an employee suffer from any work-related health problems.

My colleague, Dr Euan Thompson is a particular expert in this subject, and advises that the emphasis is on assessing the risk and having systems in place to monitor it.

This starts with the risk assessment, which will identify the hazard, The risk then needs to be controlled – where the most obvious solution is to eliminate the risk altogether, but obviously isn’t always possible. Lesser methods include substituting it for something less harmful, shielding, enclosure of the process, ventilation, or, as a last resort, personal protective equipment.

Systems of work, job rotation, limiting the number of exposed people, and training can all also reduce health risks.

The company must be able to prove it has controlled the risk, which is why Health Surveillance is essential to ensure any possible damage to workers is picked up. Health surveillance must be undertaken by a qualified professional, everything must be recorded, and the process repeated at regular intervals.

A number of work procedures are covered by legislation such as the UK Noise at Work regulations. These are of particular importance as the new law reduces the levels of acceptable noise in the workplace and places greater emphasis on audiometry, which checks the hearing of all employees. This will mean major changes to employers as they will need to look at measures to reduce noise overall, as well as sending their exposed workers for hearing surveillance.

Aside from audiometry, health surveillance can mean skin or lung examinations and tests, as well as blood tests specific to the substance being tested - for example, biological monitoring for lead, where its level is measured in the blood. Health surveillance is also required for HAVS (hand-arm vibration sysndrome), common to those using high powered tools.

Another vital part of health surveillance is pre-employment benchmarking. An employee’s past employment may have been costly to their health if their previous employer did not control the risks to them. Pre-employment testing is therefore crucial, not only to ensure the well being of the individual, but also to have the benchmark measured - it could prevent their current employer from becoming caught in the ‘shared liability trap’, where legal action for damages is taken against all previous and current employers. Don’t get caught out!