Pre-employment medical - specific doctor requested

Ficheall

I've been offered a job in another county and, amongst other irritating things requested (such as an original birth cert), they require that I undertake a medical exam with a specific doctor and submit a hard copy of the report within ten days from now. Given that I do not intend to start work until July, and the doctor specified is five hours away by train, how strongly can I "request" that they accept another doctor's evaluation?


(The role is academic and requires no manual labour or machinery operation of any sort.)

_Brian

You can ask but not insist.
Their game, their ball and so their rules.

mvl

Ficheall wrote: »

I've been offered a job in another county and, amongst other irritating things requested (such as an original birth cert), they require that I undertake a medical exam with a specific doctor and submit a hard copy of the report within ten days from now. Given that I do not intend to start work until July, and the doctor specified is five hours away by train, how strongly can I "request" that they accept another doctor's evaluation?


(The role is academic and requires no manual labour or machinery operation of any sort.)

has the contract been signed ?

I flew over for a face 2 face (my ticket/accommodation was reimbursed) and same time I had the medical with a specific doctor.

I think in my case the company was using this specific doctor for insurance reasons, and it was non-negotiable.

OMM 0000

Ficheall wrote: »

I've been offered a job in another county and, amongst other irritating things requested (such as an original birth cert), they require that I undertake a medical exam with a specific doctor and submit a hard copy of the report within ten days from now. Given that I do not intend to start work until July, and the doctor specified is five hours away by train, how strongly can I "request" that they accept another doctor's evaluation?


(The role is academic and requires no manual labour or machinery operation of any sort.)

How much do you need this job?

skallywag

The requirement for a medical is a strange one which I have never really understood when it concerns jobs with no specific 'physical effort' requirement. No company which I have ever worked for has requested one, with some of these companies being large organizations with plenty of processes and legal savvy etc. Other companies do indeed insist on them, and I do not see the logic behind why some insist and others do not, for the same type of role.

Coming back to the OP's case, I would imagine that if they are insisting on it then you are going to have to go along with their choice of doctor, as otherwise they may question the validity of the results.

Car99

Get on the train if you want the job if not stay at home .

Captain Flaps

skallywag wrote: »

I do not see the logic behind why some insist and others do not, for the same type of role.

They're standard if you're being offered any kind of life or health insurance as a perk, that seems to be the main differentiation.

silent_spark

You could always ask if they have another listed/registered doctor or practice that is nearer to you, but I would accept it if they don’t and want to use this particular one. I would see it as part of the interviewing process, and not rock the boat at the start of a contract.

Jim2007

Ficheall wrote: »

how strongly can I "request" that they accept another doctor's evaluation?

In direct proportion to how badly you want the job

Ficheall wrote: »

(The role is academic and requires no manual labour or machinery operation of any sort.)

Are academics somehow exempt from dropping down die once they sign the contract???

You may have some condition that you are not aware or perhaps are aware of it and are trying to get the job for the sick and disability benefits. These days no one is going to take you at your word for these things, it is too risky for them.

AndrewJRenko

So do you get to travel at their time and expense for the medical? If it's five hours each way, that could mean an overnight trip. Is the doctor located at your new work location?

Glass fused light

Ficheall wrote: »

I've been offered a job in another county and, amongst other irritating things requested (such as an original birth cert), they require that I undertake a medical exam with a specific doctor and submit a hard copy of the report within ten days from now. Given that I do not intend to start work until July, and the doctor specified is five hours away by train, how strongly can I "request" that they accept another doctor's evaluation?


(The role is academic and requires no manual labour or machinery operation of any sort.)

Why: If the job is providing health care insurance cover or pays full sick leave they are looking for illnesses which would result in a lot of short term sick days or a very long sick period. Plus the health reason could be covered under any disability legistation ie they can't sack you but must reasonably accommodate you.

Other: You can offer a number of alternative doctors who provide corporate screening. However from the employers side how long will it take for them to on board a new supplier for a one off request. HR have a process for selecting a service provider eg if it's from another country the data doctor can and will provide could be different. The finance department have a process to satisfy the auditors that its a genuine payment etc.
All of this takes time and effort so it depends on how much you want the job and how much they want you. It will give you a good indication on how they view the needs of the employee against additional work load.

Anon31985

I think you just have to see this as part of the interview process. Its not really any different to people from all over Ireland going through central recruiting in Dublin for example even though the jobs are located in other counties.

I guess you could request to use a different doctor but I personally wouldn't be making a big deal out of it. It's inconvenient but a necessary step in their process.

Congratulations on the job.

meeeeh

In some countries medical is mandatory in certain circumstances (first employment, position employee did not work in before etc). Often organization would have a contract with certain practice and they would cover the cost of medical.

I think you can enquire if they would be prepared to accept cert from another gp. But from an employer point of view a gp friendly to candidate might not mention red flags that gp contracted and paid by organisation would.

BattleCorp

We insist that all new starters in our company complete a medical with our company doctor. We won't let anybody start without a medical being carried out first.

The company we use for carrying out the medicals have offices in three or four places around the country (Dublin, Cork, Galway etc.) so maybe you could enquire with your prospective employer if their company doctor has an office nearer to where you live.

Failing that, you'll just have to suck it up and go for the medical at the location of their choosing.

Car99

Car99 wrote: »

Get on the train if you want the job if not stay at home .

I'll take a wild guess and say it is a job in the public sector.

Whereas the rest of us would go with your approach, the mentality in the public sector is different. Every little thing that requires some flexibility on behalf of the employee is to be challenged right away.

Ficheall

As it turned out, they eventually got back to me saying they were willing to wait for the medical/forms etc until I had moved and was ready to start, which seems much more reasonable.

For better or for worse though, after much deliberation I decided to stick with my current job, which is definitely duller, but allows me to work remotely, which I am finding incredibly difficult to give up.