Following the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) revisions to the Control of Asbestos Regulations in 2012, UK regulations should be fully compliant with the European Commission’s directive on the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to asbestos at work (83/477/EEC

Health SurvaillianceThe 2012 revisions introduced a new category of asbestos work, known as ‘Notifiable Non-Licensed Work (NNLW)’. Workers in this category are exempt from requirements to hold a licence. However, employers will be required to notify NNLW with asbestos, to the relevant enforcing authority and maintain registers of work (health records). All workers carrying out NNLW must have a medical examination.

“Since 30 April 2015, to comply with the revisions, all workers carrying out NNLW must have had a medical examination to assess their state of health. The examination then needs to be repeated every three years, for as long as the worker continues to do NNLW. It’s imperative that compliance is met on these matters. Those workers who began NNLW after April 2015 are now required to have a medical examination prior to beginning NNLW.”

Medical examination
The medical examination must be carried out by a licensed medical practitioner (see below) and comply with the following:
• medical examinations must include an examination of the chest and a lung function test
• they need to be carried out by a licensed medical practitioner, eg a GP
• those workers already under surveillance via a licensed contractor and in possession of a valid certificate do not need to have the NNLW medical
• medical examinations should be carried out in work time at the employers’ expense
• the fee should be agreed with the doctor before the examination is carried out- HSE can accept no responsibility for remuneration matters
• the doctor must issue a certificate to confirm the examination has taken place and on what date – the employer needs to keep this certificate for 4 years

Those workers already under surveillance via a licensed contractor and in possession of a valid certificate do not need to have the NNLW medical.

Registered Medical Practitioners

Medical surveillance can be conducted by HSE senior medical inspectors (SMIs), and medical inspectors (MIs) (formerly known as senior employment medical advisers or employment medical advisers).
The HSE can appoint registered medical practitioners to undertake statutory medical surveillance. This is done by issuing a Certificate of Appointment under the appropriate regulations if the doctor satisfies HSE requirements. It authorises the appointed doctor to conduct medical surveillance under specified regulations for a stated period.

Although appointed by HSE, appointed doctors are not employed by HSE. The company requiring statutory medical surveillance is responsible for agreeing conditions of service and payments with the appointed doctor.