It may well have been a long, hot, summer in the United Kingdom, but that didn’t stop the Occupational Health Assessment Limited team from continuing to lead on HR, absence management, and employment news themes. A short selection of our Summer 2026 press coverage is provided below; Women’s health in the Workplace Our Practice Director, […]
A brief summary of just some of our press coverage in April 2026. Another busy month for the team, with a variety of news topics and coverage in the following publications; Practice Director appointed Occupational Health Assessment Limited are delighted to announce the appointment of our new Practice Director, Claire McCusker. McCusker has more
After many years of negative headlines, research by Occupational Health Assessment Limited suggests that Human Resources (HR) experts are finally starting to see some genuine value from the Fit Note system in supporting absence management procedures. The survey of 160 employers representing more than 600,000 employees was undertaken in March and found that more than
HR experts finally seeing real value in Fit Notes Read More »
Occupational Health Assessment Limited continues making the news in the HR & wellbeing space. In the first quarter of 2026 we generated so much coverage that we have had to break our quarterly summary into two! Below is the first of our two collections of topical news coverage. The second will be published next week:
Keep Britain Working review The Keep Britain Working report sets out a stark warning: the UK is in the grip of an “economic inactivity crisis” driven heavily by ill-health and disability. Over one in five working-age adults are now out of work and not looking at returning, a rate markedly higher than key comparators. Employers
Our late summer press cuttings Occupational Health Assessment Ltd (OHA) are the UK’s only Certified B-Corp occupational health provider. We are also a leading voice in topical HR and employment conversations. Below is a selection of our late summer press cuttings and commentary on a wide range of issues. 10 top tips for buying occupational
The population pyramid The demographics of the UK working population are in flux. Indeed, the workforce is changing shape. On a physical level the UK population has grown heavier in recent years. This increases the risk of health issues for the individual citizen and by extension increased problems for the National Health Service (NHS). But
Occupational Health Assessment Ltd (OHA) are the UK’s only Certified B-Corp occupational health provider. We are also a leading voice in a wide range of topical HR and employment conversations. Below is a selection of our August press coverage as some summer reading for our followers. HR leaders call for new wellbeing tax break Research
Employers call for a new universal wellbeing tax break to be announced in the autumn Budget statement to support NHS reforms, reduce absenteeism and help boost economic growth. A survey of employers representing more than 88,000 workers suggests that the government should consider a new tax break aimed at supporting workforce wellbeing. Occupational Health Assessment
Overwhelming support from HR leaders for a new universal wellbeing tax break Read More »
One of the stated aims of the Labour government is to reform and improve the services provided by the National Health Service (NHS). Work towards this ambition began with Lord Darzi’s report last year, and this month the government has published some ambitious plans. The key focus is to move the NHS from combatting sickness
Last week the CIPD published the 2025 Good Work Index. The theme of this year’s report is the health of the UK workforce, a subject also under scrutiny in the government’s Keep Britain Working review published in March. What new data and insights are provided for employers in these two reports on the health of
It was five years ago this week that “non-essential” UK shops reopened after the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. In this article we will look again at the Covid risk and how employers can improve workplace control of infectious diseases. Much has happened in the half-decade since the start of the pandemic, and Covid
Yesterday’s surprise announcement by the Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, was the abolition of the administrative body NHS England. NHS England decision The background to that decision was to avoid duplication of work undertaken at the top of the NHS, thus freeing up some additional funds – in what remains a very challenging economy – to
The NHS waiting list has long posed a challenge to both individuals and businesses in the UK. Yet now there is some good news, with the government delivering the promised 2 million extra appointments in just the first six months of their term. Crisis over? This rather promising progress could be seen as a sign
The Alzheimer’s scandal Potential harm to thousands of people on clinical trials, the misdirection of £34Bn of research funding and over two decades possibly chasing down a blind alley in search of a cure for Alzheimer’s. The scandal involving allegedly faked research into Alzheimer’s disease could be the biggest medical fraud of our time. Everyone
The quarterly Occupational Health Assessment Ltd Employment Webinars began in the early summer of 2024. These webinars attract a large and growing audience of senior HR, Finance, and C-Suite professionals. Attendees are treated to a highly topical, fun, informative and interactive update on many current employment issues from truly expert speakers. The success of our
Further delays in social care reform Why further delays in social care reform will continue to impact employers Reform to the provision of social care services in England has long been a political hot potato. Indeed, the report published by the Dilnot Commission way back in 2011 stated; “The current social care system is widely
At the end of 2024 the government took the controversial decision to overlook the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman’s recommendation to award compensation to those people represented by the Women Against State Pension Increases (WASPI) campaign. The WASPI campaign centred on the increase of state pension age for women born in the 1950s, which many
The Labour government came into office with the promise of boosting growth in the British economy. With this in mind the Get Britain Working White Paper was published by the DWP in November 2024. The launch was accompanied by much coverage in the spoken and written national media. The White Paper seeks to improve productivity.
Work-related illness The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) was first established half a century ago, and it is undeniable that the HSE has made a massive difference to work-related illness since inception. In a press release issued last week the HSE’s Chief Executive, Sarah Albon, said; “This year marks 50 years since the legislation which
Should ADHD be a diagnosis? People with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) often struggle to concentrate. They commonly have issues with timekeeping, as well as with relationships with other. They are more prone to suffering from alongside anxiety and depression. These patterns can have profound impacts on the workplace. The rate at which ADHD is
Incredible new steps for bionic legs Professor Hugh Herr is an American rock climber, engineer and biophysicist. At the age of 17 he was caught in a blizzard while climbing and ended up losing both his legs below the knee to frostbite. Ever since then, he’s worked on inventing prosthetic legs that work and feel like real legs.
A breakthrough in treating Endometriosis In the UK, 1 in 10 women of reproductive age will suffer from Endometriosis. About 1.5m women in the UK are currently living with the condition. It arises when cells similar to those the endometrium, the lining of the womb, are found elsewhere in the body. The condition can strike anytime between puberty
New treatments for Alzheimer’s New treatments for Alzheimer’s are welcomed by patients and doctors. Nobody needs a string of statistics to understand how devastating Alzheimer’s can be for patients, their loved ones and society. Treatments for the condition have been notable in their scarcity, particularly after one of the largest pharmaceutical firms in the world pulled out of the market
Can an injection treat obesity? In 2019/2020 there were over 1 million hospital admissions in the UK where obesity was a factor, an increase of 17% on 2018/2019. The Health Survey for England 2021 estimated in the same report that 25.9% of adults in England are obese and a further 37.9% are overweight. Around 2 in every 3 patients were female (64%)
‘Breakthrough’ drug extends breast cancer survival time A ‘breakthrough’ drug aimed at treating breast cancer is continuing to show positive results in Phase III trials. The drug, Capivasertib, first attracted headlines when some of the first trial results were published at the San Antonio Breast CancerSymposium in December 2022. Now the full trial results have been published
Monkeypox is spreading fast Monkeypox was rarely reported outside Africa until this April year. Cases have spread to 75 countries and the rate of transmission is increasing in some parts of the world. Last week, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. The WHO has issued recommendations
Monkeypox – just how serious is it? There are now reportedly 20 cases of Monkeypox in the UK and a handful of cases have been identified in Spain, Portugal, Canada and the USA. Cases have reportedly also been found in Australia, Sweden and Italy, although have not been confirmed at the time of publishing (16:00 19th
New treatments for Alzheimer’s Alzheimer’s is notorious for the number of failed attempts to find treatments for the disease. Research over decades is yet to find any treatment that reliably works. Early in 2018 the world’s largest drug manufacturer, Pfizer, pulled out of all research into the disease, following a numberof setbacks in their research programmes. The most recent
Targeted therapy extends breast cancer survival About 150 women are diagnosed with breast cancer in the UK every day. It is one of the leading causes of death amongstfemales aged 50-64. We all know someone who has been affected by the disease. Now a clinical trial tracking a combination of drug therapies for nearly ten years has
Spinal implant reverses paralysis Just before Christmas an Italian man, Michel Roccati, stood up and walked on the streets of Lausanne, Switzerland. Four years before his spinal cord was completely severed in a motorcycle accident. He had been paralysed from the waist down for life. He walked again with the aid of a device which
A new drug therapy for womb cancer Womb cancer affects just under 10,000 women in the UK every year. It is the 4th most common cancer affecting women in the UK. It is sometimes called uterine cancer or endometrial cancer. Survival rates for womb cancer are usually very good and, if the cancer is found early (at Stage 1)
A new type of treatment for Lymphoma Lymphoma is a cancer that starts in the lymph glands or the lymphatic system. Lymph glands drain away waste fluids from the body and also contain cells that fight infections. The lymphatic system is the tubes, vessels and glands that connect lymph nodes together, plus the spleen. Types of Lymphoma There
HSE extends spot checks to stress The Health & Safety Executive (HSE) has the power to enter any business premises in the UK to check employees are working safely. The HSE carries out thousands of unannounced inspections every year which often result in fines or enforcement actions. In October the HSE announced they were extending the scope of their existing
Malaria becomes resistant to treatment in Africa Malaria is a serious tropical disease spread by mosquitoes. If it isn’t diagnosed and treated promptly, it can be fatal. However, it is preventable and curable. The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimated the number of malaria deaths in 2019 at 409,000, with children under 5 accounting for the
A revolutionary new cancer test Nearly ten years ago a scientist at the world’s largest gene-sequencing business, Illumina, noticed an anomaly as she examined blood samples from pregnant mothers. In some samples the DNA of the unborn child was normal, whilst that of the mother was not. The scientist, Meredith Halks Miller, suspected the changes
Please note, we do not sell, prescribe or dispense Spravato. Esketamine nasal spray treats depression A new way of treating the most severe form of depression is now available in the UK. Esketamine is a powerful drug delivered as a nasal spray (under the brand name Spravato). Originally licensed in the UK in late
Advances in treatments for Alzheimer’s An estimated 50 million people worldwide have dementia, mostly due to Alzheimer’s disease. It is a debilitating disease with incredibly profound impacts on patients, families and society as a whole. Given the fear that many understandably feel about the disease, it is remarkable that there have been so few advances
New evidence proves flight socks reduce DVT risk Although travel overseas may seem far away at the moment, evidence published today about deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and long haul travel is still newsworthy. This is because deep vein thrombosis can be very difficult to deal with and can cause life-threatening problems. A simple pair of socks has