Non binding guide to good practice for implementing Directive

CHAPTER 4 HEALTH SURVEILLANCEHealth surveillance is about putting in place systematic, regular and appropriate procedures for thedetection of work-related ill health, and acting on the results. The aims are primarily to safeguard thehealth of workers (including identifying and protecting individuals at increased risk), but also to checkthe long-term effectiveness of control measures.Implementation of health surveillance is a clear Member State competence and there are differences inhealth surveillance practices across the European Union. It is not the intention of this guide to providedefinitive guidance on health surveillance. In this chapter we re-state the requirements for healthsurveillance given in the vibration directive and review some of the assessment techniques available.Some health surveillance techniques related to hand-arm injury are described in Annex F.4.1 WHEN IS HEALTH SURVEILLANCE REQUIRED? 4.2 WHAT RECORDING IS REQUIRED?Member States shall adopt provisions to ensure theappropriate health surveillance of workers where thehand-arm vibration risk assessment indicates a riskto their health. The provision of health surveillance,including the requirements specifi ed for health recordsand their availability, shall be introduced in accordancewith national laws and/or practice.Member States shall establish arrangements to ensurethat, for each worker who undergoes health surveillanceindividual health records are made and kept up-to-date.Health records shall contain a summary of the results ofthe health surveillance carried out. They shall be kept ina suitable form so as to permit any consultation at a laterdate, taking into account any confi dentiality.PART I Guide to good practice on Hand-Arm Vibration – CHAPTER 4 HEALTH SURVEILLANCEEmployers should provide appropriate healthsurveillance where the risk assessment indicates arisk to workers’ health. Health surveillance should beinstituted for workers who are at risk from vibrationinjury, where:• the exposure of workers to vibration is such thata link can be established between that exposureand an identifi able illness or harmful effects onhealth,• it is probable that the illness or the effects occur in aworker’s particular working conditions, and• there are tested techniques for the detection of theillness or the harmful effects on health.In any event, workers whose daily vibration exposureexceeds the daily exposure action value are entitled toappropriate health surveillance.Copies of the appropriate records shall be supplied tothe competent authority on request. The individual workershall, at their request, have access to the health recordsrelating to them personally.4.3 WHAT TO DO IF INJURY IS IDENTIFIED?Where, as a result of health surveillance, a worker isfound to have an identifi able disease or adverse healtheffect that is considered by a doctor or occupationalhealth-care professional to be the result of exposure tomechanical vibration at work:Information for the workerThe worker shall be informed, by the doctor or other suitablyqualifi ed person, of the results of their own personal31