Health surveillance

The ongoing health checks required where workers are exposed to specific hazards (vibration, noise, silica and other dusts, sensitisers, asbestos) to detect early signs of harm and check that controls are working.

Health surveillance is a legal requirement, not an optional benefit, where a risk assessment shows exposure to a hazard for which there is an identifiable disease, a valid detection technique and a reasonable likelihood of harm. In construction that means: HAVS surveillance for anyone regularly exposed above the vibration action value (a questionnaire tier, then a nurse or doctor assessment); hearing tests (audiometry) for anyone regularly exposed above the upper noise action value; respiratory surveillance for silica and other dusts; skin checks for dermatitis from cement, resins and solvents; and medicals for asbestos work and lead. It is arranged by the employer, carried out by a competent occupational health provider, and the results (fit, fit with restrictions, unfit) come back to the employer while the medical detail stays confidential.

The point is early detection: a worker showing the first tingling of HAVS is moved off vibrating tools and keeps the use of their hands; a worker whose hearing test shows a shift gets the controls reviewed before the loss is disabling. The records are kept for 40 years for some hazards (asbestos, lead) and are asked for in claims decades later. Small contractors often skip it because nobody asked; SSIP assessors and enforcement both ask.

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