Closure of OHSC system
The OHSC system for England closed on 5 October when it was integrated into the Electronic Staff Record (ESR) module.
The ESR system can be now be used by all NHS organisations in England to record occupational health (OH) clearance data for all staff who require clearance to work in the NHS, not just doctors.
Please note that the transfer does not apply to Welsh NHS organisations. OHSC in Wales will continue until further notice.
All data on the OHSC system will be securely destroyed, in line with the requirements of the Data Protection Act 1998, and all equipment securely disposed of using an approved contractor.
Please update any information you give to Doctors on joining your trust, in particular application forms and all information about OHSC should be removed from induction packs. Any application forms which are inadvertently sent to TSSI for registration will not be processed, a doctor will be contacted and the form will be destroyed.
Please return your cards and card readers to TSSI before the 30th October; using the freepost address:
TSSI Systems Ltd, Freepost NAT20914, Swindon, SN25 5BR
The freepost address will no longer be valid from the 30th October; you should be aware that any cards or card readers posted after the 30th October will be returned to you by the Post Office, which will incur a cost.
Removal of OHSC software
Following the closure of the OHSC system you now need to remove the software from your PC. The best way to remove the software is to contact your IT department and provide them with the instructions for removing OHSC software.
Unfortunately neither TSSI or NHS Employers are able to provide any technical assistance beyond the guide. We highly recommend that you contact your local IT department to gain their help in removing the OHSC software.
Benefits of the new system
- The ESR system can be used by all NHS organisations to record OH clearance data.
- Organisations will be able to record OH clearance data for all staff, not just doctors, on the new ESR system.
- OH clearance data can be transferred at the pre-employment stage. This will save time and reduce costs by removing unnecessary occupational health retesting / duplicate tests.
- Users who currently rely on the OHSC scheme will be able to start using ESR immediately from 5 October.
Next steps
We will continue to update these pages as the current OHSC system is integrated into ESR.
Further information, including frequently asked questions (FAQs) on the integration of OHSC into ESR, is available on the ESR website and any enquiries about the new system should be sent to communications@esrsolution.co.uk
If you have any questions about the closure of the OHSC system please consult our FAQs or email ohsc@nhsemployers.org.
Background
The Department of Health introduced the Occupational Health Smart Cards (OHSC) in 2001 to strengthen and streamline pre-employment health checks by enabling a doctors’ personal occupational health “fitness to practice” clearance information to transfer, via the OHSC system, to occupational health departments (OH).
Following an options appraisal the Department of Health decided to integrate the current Occupational Health Smart Card (OHSC) system for managing doctors' occupational health clearance into the Electronic Staff Record (ESR).
ESR is an integrated human resource and payroll system that provides the master workforce system for the NHS in England and Wales. It has been fully deployed since April 2008 and has successfully delivered payroll services to the 1.3m NHS employees.
The new system will enable occupational health clearance information to be recorded and electronically transferred between organisations as part of the pre-employment process.
The new system is an improvement as it will make occupational health (OH) clearance data available to OH departments prior to employment and help to streamline the OH pre-employment process.
As with the Occupational Health Smart Card (OHSC) system, the OH data will be held securely and confidentially. Only OH staff with clearance to view the applicants’ data are able to do so. Staff using ESR are already familiar with, and meeting, the highest level in IT best practice.
NHS Employers organised a series of four workshops in June 2009 to discuss the changes with the NHS staff affected by them. For more details and presentations from these events please visit our events page.