Dear Lucy,
Thank you for your FOI request.
Please see our responses below.
- Sickness absence
The Bradford factor is a formula used by HR departments to calculate the impact of employees’ absences on an organisation.
Q1. Does your Trust/Board use Bradford Factor scoring as part of monitoring sickness absence?
No
Q2: Does your Trust/Board’s sickness absence policy include a threshold at which sickness absence triggers performance management action?
-If yes, what is the threshold? (either days absent or, if used, Bradford Factor score)
Monitoring under the Supporting Attendance policy (not performance) as follows: 3 episodes in a rolling 6 month period or less, 5 working days in total absence in a rolling 6 months, 5 episodes in a 12 month rolling period or less, 10 working days in a 12 month rolling period or less, any pattern giving concern.
Q3: Does your Trust/Board’s record disability-related absence separately from sickness absence?
Not separately
- Disability Leave
Disability leave is a period of time off work for a reason related to an employee’s disability; for example, to attend hospital appointments or to receive treatment, usually agreed in advance.
Not specifically but any medical appointments are allowed if need to be taken as part of the working day.
Q4: Does your Trust/Board have a disability leave policy?
-If yes, please provide a link to/copy of the policy.
Not specifically, but the Supporting Attendance policy covers disabilities
Q5: Does your Trust/Board offer paid disability leave?
No
3. Championing disability
Disability champions are people in roles that provide a personal lead and commitment to championing accessibility and opportunity for disabled people within their organisation.
Q6: Does your Trust/Board have the following available to doctors and medical students:
– A disabled staff/student network
– A disability champion at a senior/Board level *
– Disability advocates/champions with lived experience
Q7: Do you have anyone who is employed in a paid role specifically to ensure that disabled doctors receive workplace support?
Not specifically, line managers with advice from Occupational Health.
– If yes, please provide a brief description of the job role
- Reasonable adjustments process
Q8: Does your Trust/Board have a reasonable adjustments policy?
Within the Supporting Attendance policy.
-If yes, please provide a link/copy
Q9: Does your Trust/Board have a centralised budget for making workplace adjustments for disabled doctors/medical students?
There is not centralised budget. Trainees and medical students can access funding for workplace adjustments through medical education budgets, but substantive medical staff would claim it through their own medical directorate budget.
Q10: Does your Trust/Board have a single point of contact/centralised process for disabled doctors/medical students to request reasonable adjustments?
Through the Supporting Attendance process.
– If no, please provide brief details of how individual employees can make requests for adjustments (e.g. via their line manager).
Via the line manager with advice from Occupational Health.