Where do I stand?

[Oddsocksandmeatballs]

I work for the NHS, I work in families homes and not on a ward. I am an asthmatic, one of my triggers is cigarette smoke and until recently, this has not been a problem. But now one of the homes we go into has a bathroom that is very obviously used by a smoker. The bathroom contains the only toilet in the house and we are expected to bath the child we are caring for. I recently had a nasty chest infection and said at my back-to-work interview that cigarette smoke is a trigger and requested that I did not go to this family (I work in a team, there are others that can go), I am still be regularly rostered on to go to this family. Can I say no?

I would get a letter from your GP stating you are asthmatic and any cigarette smoke in your environment, albeit of an indirect nature, will risk triggering an asthma attack which can be fatal.

If they don't respond positively to that by being a responsible employer and not putting you in danger, they are at serious risk of criminal charges if anything were to happen to you. I think you'll find you are allocated to a different client.

I feel very sad for that child, so cruel in this day and age when the harmful effects of smoking are so widely known about.