do i have to disclose my illness

[chaosrabbitland]

hi , im looking for some advice , im currently in retail , absolutly hate my job and the company i work for , i recently applied for a job up at our local hospital , its cleaning , and got invited for an interview , which is next week , i was diagonsed with menieres disease 4 years ago , in that time iv only had 3 major attacks ,got a bit of deafness in the affected ear , do i have to disclose at the interview i have it ? i really really want to get this job and im worried the minute i tell them i have it they will cross me straight off the list .

i should add i was diagnosed up at the hospital and im suppsed to have monthly consults , its been way longer than that now , all the clinics are behind i guess and because so far touch wood its stable they dont bother with me too much. im worried if i dont disclose it they will be able to check my records up there and find out that way

i just dont know what to do , thanks in advance

If you're offered the job you'll need to declare it to occupational health. On what you've said, I can't see it causing an issue at all.

Just to reassure you that your medical records are confidential and can only be accessed by staff directly involved in your care and not as part of any job recruitment

@LizDoingTheCanCan

If you're offered the job you'll need to declare it to occupational health. On what you've said, I can't see it causing an issue at all.

thanks , so i should declare it if and when they actually offer me the job ? i just was unsure if i had to tell them in the interview

Don't need to tell them in interview, only after in terms of what support they may need to offer.

I don’t agree that you need to declare it. However if you don’t, then you cannot later complain that your needs have not been accommodated properly.

I would strongly recommend that you do not disclose this prior to being offered the job. Once you receive your offer, you will receive an Occupational Health clearance form; with your condition and the role you’ve applied for, there’s a strong

The only reason you need to declare it is if you need reasonable adjustments as per the equality act.

If you don’t declare it then you will find it difficult to request these at a later date should you require them, but given as you say your condition is stable this hopefully won’t present a problem.

To add, you don’t need to declare this at the interview unless you need reasonable adjustments during the interview e.g. for assessments.

I have requested reasonable adjustments at interview for the London Ambulance service (disability confident, asked the question, and was for an assessment) and my interview was cancelled.

It’s a bit difficult to not declare my disability at an interview since walking in with a guide dog or cane is a bit of a giveaway, but I never declare beforehand unless I need to.

Sorry - accidentally pressed “post”.

There’s a strong chance you may be asked to use equipment that requires hearing protection, or work in environments that “may” impact on your condition or require you to have a good standard of bilateral hearing for instance. In order to protect your health, and ensure that your needs are considered I would disclose it. Your manager will not be informed of anything to do with your health without your informed consent - if OH feel that there are no adjustments that you require, it will simply be recorded on your OH file should it become relevant in the future.

I say all of the above as an OH professional.

If you don’t declare it then you will find it difficult to request these at a later date should you require them, but given as you say your condition is stable this hopefully won’t present a problem.

This isn't true.

You can choose to declare any medical condition at any time during your employment, and it should make no difference to applying for reasonable adjustments.