diagnosed yesterday , told employer and OH app on monday!

[vinylandtrinkets]

just a couple of quick question really, facts first.
hubby was diagnosed yesterday type 2 ( must be something in the water in our house) told employer straight away as gp advised 2 weeks off to get used to the metaformin, awaiting appointment with DN, gp next app in 2 weeks, all of this was told to the manager.
hubbies job is with a railway company and safety critical but allowed to take metaformin
today he gets a works email to his phone that he needs to attend an OH appointment on monday
is this normal? can they do this as only diagnosed yesterday? surely it would be better to do this after the next gp appointment??

 

[urbanracer]

just a couple of quick question really, facts first.
hubby was diagnosed yesterday type 2 ( must be something in the water in our house) told employer straight away as gp advised 2 weeks off to get used to the metaformin, awaiting appointment with DN, gp next app in 2 weeks, all of this was told to the manager.
hubbies job is with a railway company and safety critical but allowed to take metaformin
today he gets a works email to his phone that he needs to attend an OH appointment on monday
is this normal? can they do this as only diagnosed yesterday? surely it would be better to do this after the next gp appointment??

I think the response varies hugely from company to company. Asked my boss if I needed to notify HR and they weren't interested. My job isn't safety critical but I do work with big machines and radiation so I was a bit surprised.

 

[mrspuddleduck]

I would approach this as a positive thing. The company realises they have a duty of care to their employees and hopefully can support his return to work, whist negotiating any'adjustments' he may need (and is legally entitled to). They should be supportive and helpful, if they aren't they are breaking the law!! Sue xxx

 

[lizdeluz]

It's a normal procedure, duty of care/ticking boxes. However, in my case, it took my employer months and months to organise the OH appointment, and, though I changed employers at various times, I was only required to attend one of these appointments during my working life. I feel pretty sure that you don't need to worry about this.

 

[vinylandtrinkets]

thank you all for your replies, we are going to take this appointment as a good thing, even though the company can be a total nightmare and are always looking for ways to dismiss its employees. if they want a fight they will get one, if they are working by the books/law then i am impressed

 

[MarkE]

just a couple of quick question really, facts first.
hubby was diagnosed yesterday type 2 ( must be something in the water in our house) told employer straight away as gp advised 2 weeks off to get used to the metaformin, awaiting appointment with DN, gp next app in 2 weeks, all of this was told to the manager.
hubbies job is with a railway company and safety critical but allowed to take metaformin
today he gets a works email to his phone that he needs to attend an OH appointment on monday
is this normal? can they do this as only diagnosed yesterday? surely it would be better to do this after the next gp appointment??

GOOD!

My employers took me on soon after my diagnosis, and have been very supportive- which has included several sessions with the Occy Health folks- mostly due to retinopathy and laser surgery to the eyes, but also more recently a long period off thanks to a huge kidney stone and complications thereafter.

In short- the Occupational Health (in my experience) are a good thing, NOT a trap.

 

[vinylandtrinkets]

GOOD!

My employers took me on soon after my diagnosis, and have been very supportive- which has included several sessions with the Occy Health folks- mostly due to retinopathy and laser surgery to the eyes, but also more recently a long period off thanks to a huge kidney stone and complications thereafter.

In short- the Occupational Health (in my experience) are a good thing, NOT a trap.

hope your on the mend now??
yes the lady we saw was brilliant, asked all the right questions if there ever is a right question hehe
she was very informative also, very very clued in with diabetes, told hubby the types of questions to ask the nurse when he sees her next, so all in all it was a good meeting

 

[vinylandtrinkets]

went back this week to see the OH consultant all i can say is what a "T***"
after keeping us waiting for an hour with us being the only ones there, he was chatting on the phone discussing that nights dinner!

Sat there and said ok you have type 2, ok so you will need to use insulin, as type 2 turns to type 1, lose your sight or maybe a limb if your luckY!
but thats a ways off yet, ok so looking at you i think your fine to go back to work after your next DN/DR app, wont test your blood but i will test your urine, comes back in yes there sugar in your urine but your fine.

you cant get hypos/hypers on metaformin so your ok,
this is when i chip in, told him you can indeed get both as i still get hypos, he cut me dead, i asked what will happen if hubby needs to eat while doing the transport he works for " he wont need to eat you cant get hypos he need to work around his diabetes not us work around you" " work comes first sorry"

i asked again as i am very concerned about the above he cut me dead again, when i tried to explain that hubby works 10/12 hour shifts and likely will need to eat more then once during a shift would this be a problem?, as they only get 30 mins break ( this is after me raising my voice over him) he repeated the above!
asked him if hubby could eat during the working shift, raised voice again, he said he wont need to and repeated the same rubbish again

i knew we would have problems hubby bg is still over 13 every test , after night fasting its still 10 and can spike up to 18, so im thinking when he does see the gp next week she will increase the metaformin again,.


tried to explain this to the consultant, cut me dead again, i am talking about hubby not your diabetes, ! tried to explain again that everyone is different and im only going on what ive seen and my own diabetes, cuts me dead again

so as he said regardless ,whether your type 1 or 2 your fine to work a safety critical role without caring for your diabetic needs during work time! type 1 can not work for the company hubby works for

i am still fuming told hubby to ring the union guy but he wont, all i see now is major problems coming more so if the gp says no couple more days off for the up'd dose.

what if hes ill during his shift and theres only him and one other work person there ? and that person cant help as they wont see if theres are problem if they are driving. passengers i wouldnt trust,

 

[amj789]

just a couple of quick question really, facts first.
hubby was diagnosed yesterday type 2 ( must be something in the water in our house) told employer straight away as gp advised 2 weeks off to get used to the metaformin, awaiting appointment with DN, gp next app in 2 weeks, all of this was told to the manager.
hubbies job is with a railway company and safety critical but allowed to take metaformin
today he gets a works email to his phone that he needs to attend an OH appointment on monday
is this normal? can they do this as only diagnosed yesterday? surely it would be better to do this after the next gp appointment??

I think it is a great response-shows they know their responsibility and want to look after both your husband and their safety requirements.
Alot of employers couldn't care less!
This OH referral will be a legally binding -reasonable adjustments should be clear to the employer after it too.
Good luck

 

[ElyDave]

I would approach this as a positive thing. The company realises they have a duty of care to their employees and hopefully can support his return to work, whist negotiating any'adjustments' he may need (and is legally entitled to). They should be supportive and helpful, if they aren't they are breaking the law!! Sue xxx

Absolutely agree, in a safety oriented industry like the railways, this is entirely positive as an early engagement. Let's hope that it's a positive discussion.

After two years I've still not had a conversation with my HR department, my management know of the condition.