The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) recently launched a consultation on proposals to review the current sicknote system for employees, and replace it with a ‘wellnote’ that will focus on what people can do, rather than what they cannot. Simon Bond, head of employment at Midland law firm Challinors, considers the potential value of a change.
Health Secretary Alan Johnson’s plan to get rid of Britain’s “sicknote culture” has been met with opposition from all sides.
This new plan has stemmed from a belief among ministers that many people who go off work on long term sick leave are not re-entering the workplace and are instead ending up on benefits for years, eventually becoming unemployable.
It was pointed out by Johnson that going to work is generally seen as a positive influence on people’s health, particularly for those suffering with mental illnesses such as depression, and these new plans aim to facilitate a return to work for such people.
The proposals focus on moving away from doctors writing sicknotes and having them write “well notes” instead. A well note would supposedly focus on what the patient/employee was able to do rather than what he/she could not do. In theory it would be a chance for employees to be able to resume work on lighter duties and increase their workload as their health improved. The proposed system places particular emphasis on improving ‘communication’ between GPs and employers.
However the plans have been much criticised, particularly by GPs themselves, who resent the idea that it will be down to them to decide not only whether a person is capable of doing their job but also, in the event of that person not being able to perform their usual duties, what other job they may be capable of doing.
Doctors have argued with some force that this is a question for an occupational health professional and not a GP, whose relationship with their patients is generally not such that they would feel comfortable dictating the type of work that person should be doing.
Although the proposed new system clearly has good intentions, one cannot help thinking it is practically flawed. Employers undoubtedly lose out on much time and money because of the so-called sicknote culture and the ease with which certain employees seem to find doctors willing to sign them off work indefinitely, but the idea of “well notes” would surely present the same problems.
A malingering employee is not going to be persuaded back into work by their GP, and those who are genuinely ill should not be forced to go back before they are physically capable. Above all, it is illogical that the responsibility should fall at the feet of the GP when such decisions are what the occupational health service was designed for.
The DWP is now taking the finalised draft of the new wellnote form to its evaluation phase, which will include inviting feedback from several hundred GPs, who will be using the new form and responding to a number of case study ill health scenarios, as well as an expert panel.
In addition the DWP has asked the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) to co-ordinate consultation meetings with its members as part of the evaluation process. The proposed “wellnote” is the latest step taken by the government to promote the health and wellbeing of staff, as it looks to work with employers to improve how to identify health risks such as stress.
However, it is a very different scenario for a doctor to confirm to an employer that a patient is unwell, to judging whether that individual is well enough to do their job.
