Medical reports and records

Medical reports produced by GPs or other medical practitioners responsible for their care are covered by the Access to Medical Reports Act 1988 (AMRA). This provides that:

• the employer must obtain the individual’s consent before seeking a GP report;

• the individual has the legal right to a copy of the report before it is forwarded to the employer and to query items in it; and

• if the doctor refuses to accept the employee’s objections, they should be attached to the report.

AMRA only applies to reports by a medical practitioner “responsible for the clinical care of the individual” (that is, a GP or consultant). It does not apply to reports by a company doctor or external occupational health adviser. However, like GPs, these medical professionals are bound by legal and professional duties of confidentiality. This means they must only send a medical report to the employer with the worker’s informed consent. A worker’s consent can only be “informed” if they know what the report contains. In any event, it is usually sensible for the worker to spell out that they want to see the final report before consenting to its release to the employer.