FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS Question not answered below? Contact us now and we’ll get back to you with an answer Contact Us Prepare for your appointment Why do I need a pre-employment medical? You have been requested to have a pre-employment medical by your current or potential employer. Pre-employment medicals help ensure you and your colleagues are not put at risk. They can also help identify any modifications to the job that may be needed to help keep you safe. Some jobs require pre-employment and ongoing regular medical screening to keep workers safe, like those exposed to hazardous substances, working on or around rail lines, coal mining, or in the offshore oil and gas industry. If you have further questions, please contact your employer/future employer directly. What does a pre-employment medical include? Pre-employment medicals and health assessments may include an online questionnaire and a face-to-face appointment. The questionnaire will ask about your medical history and is used to ensure any physical assessment components are safe for you to complete. It also forms part of the overall result provided to your employer. The medical components will depend on the job you are being assessed for, and may include: Blood pressure Vision Height Weight Drug and alcohol screening Hearing (audiometry) Lung (spirometry) Fitness assessment Please reach out to your employer or our customer service team if you would like further information on what testing is required for your assessment. How long does a pre-employment medical take? Your pre-employment medical may take between 15 minutes to 2 hours, depending on the type of assessment booked. Please refer to your Candidate Dashboard for more information. Do I need to do a pre-employment medical if I’ve had one recently? Yes. If you’re applying for a job with a new employer, or changing jobs with your current employer, you will need to participate in a new pre-employment medical assessment if asked to do so by the company. The roles may have different requirements, meaning the assessments may have different components too. What if I’ve had a previous injury or illness? Many people have had a previous injury in their life. Be honest in your assessment. The assessors are looking to see that there has been appropriate rehabilitation of the injury or illness, and to see if there are any ongoing risks to your safety or the safety of others around you. If there is, they may make a recommendation on appropriate modifications to the workplace to mitigate the risks. Some pre-employment medicals and health checks have very strict requirements that must be met in order to pass. These include rail medicals, coal miner medicals, fitness to drive assessments and oil and gas UK medicals. Full medicals and legislative medical assessments: May require up to date medical reports for any current conditions – please bring along a letter or any additional information from your GP or relevant health professional (e.g. Psychiatrist, Endocrinologist, Physiotherapist) regarding any health conditions that are being treated, managed or monitored (including but not limited to: sleep disorder, type 1 and 2 diabetes, sports injuries, ADHD and other mental health conditions). Please provide any previous Workers Comp/Workcover injury documentation. If this is not provided at the assessment it may delay your medical result. If you are unsure if you need to provide a medical letter or report, please either contact the employer or our Customer Service Team on 1300 552 722. What should I bring to my appointment? Photo identification, such as a valid driver’s license or passport Glasses, contact lenses or hearing aids if you use them A list of medications, both prescription and non-prescription, which you may have taken in the last 30 days (not required for standalone spirometry or hearing assessments) Medical Report on any current conditions may be required if you are undertaking a Legislative medical. See below Legislative Medicals. Your assessment paperwork will tell you if you need to bring anything else. Make sure you complete your online questionnaire before your appointment to find out. Talk to your employer/future employer about what’s included in your assessment, if you’re not sure. What should I wear? Please wear: Enclosed footwear, like sneakers Comfortable loose-fitting clothing or activewear It’s important you are comfortable and can move unrestricted as health assessments may include functional assessment components requiring you to bend, stretch and lift and may also include some exercise. Will I need to pay on the day? If you have been requested to take a medical health assessment by a company, the company will usually pay all fees. However, some company’s may request the candidate to pay and as such our customer service team will reach out to you regarding this. If you have personally requested a medical, the full fee is due when you book the appointment. Can I choose where my appointment is? We do our best to book your appointment at the closest location to you. Some travel may be required due to appointment availability or for specialised assessments. You can talk to our Customer Service Team if you have questions about your assessment location on 1300 552 722. Can I bring a photo of my ID, or a photocopy? No. You must bring your original, government issued valid (current) ID. The Assessor will need to see the original ID on the day. What types of photo ID do you accept? We need to see a valid (current, not expired) photo ID to make sure all assessments meet the requirements set out in the Australian and New Zealand standards. Acceptable valid photo ID includes: Drivers License Passport Firearms License Government Staff ID Proof of Age Card Working With Vulnerable People Card High Risk Work Card Student ID Can I bring my child with me to my assessment? You can bring your child only if they can be left unsupervised for short periods of time, like during an audio assessment. Is the assessment invasive? Assessments are not typically invasive. You may need to remove some layers of clothing to allow for blood pressure measurements, or for a skin check, if this is included in your assessment. You do not need to remove your undergarments. You can request a gender specific assessor, like a female assessor, if you want. Call 1300 552 722 to discuss your specific needs. What does a urine drug and alcohol test include? You may be required to take a urine drug and alcohol test. Substances screened for include: Cannabis Opiates Methamphetamines Amphetamines Benzodiazepines Cocaine Alcohol You will be asked to pass urine in the presence of one of our assessors. The assessor will always act professional, respectful and with regard to your privacy. Make sure you declare any medications to the assessor and on the health questionnaire form, prior to your screening. Make sure you declare any medications to the assessor and on the health questionnaire form, prior to your screening. Before your appointment Why do I need to fill out the medical questionnaire before my appointment? Your assessor needs to review your answers to the medical questionnaire before your appointment. You need to complete the questionnaire at least 4 hours before your appointment. If you don’t complete the questionnaire in advance, your assessment may be delayed or need to be reschedule, and charges may apply. Can I cancel my appointment? Yes, but you need to give us 36 hours notice. Failure to notify us will incur a non-attendance fee being charged and rescheduling or cancelling your appointment within 24 hours of your appointment time (excluding weekends and public holidays) will incur a late cancellation fee. You can notify us via your WHA Candidate Dashboard or by calling 1300 552 722. What if I’m running late? If you are running late, call our customer service team on 1300 552 722 as soon as you can. We can either let the assessor know or reschedule your booking. Please be aware that a fee may apply for late notice rescheduling. How much water should I drink before my urine drug and alcohol test? Do not drink more than double the amount of water you would normally drink in a day. If you drink more than this, your sample may be diluted and voided, which could result in a second appointment being required. Will my menstrual cycle affect my urine drug and alcohol test? No, you can do a urine drug and alcohol test at any time during your cycle. Just let your assessor know at the time of assessment, as this may show in your test results. After the appointment What happens to my personal information after my appointment? Your information is maintained securely in-line with Australian Privacy Principles. WHA ensures that confidential information is accessible only to those authorised to have access for the intended purpose. View our Privacy Policy for more information Will you tell me if I get the job? No. WHA is an independent third party. We provide an assessment report to the company who requested the medical assessment. Please contact your employer/future employer directly. Who are the results sent to? Results are sent to the requesting company. You can also access and download a copy of your medical results from the Candidate Dashboard once the assessment has been finalised. Your medical health questionnaire answers can be downloaded at any time once it has been completed. For further information please refer to our privacy statement for more information. Who can access my results? Assessment results are available to select WHA staff, the requesting company, and the individual whom undertook the assessment. You will sign a consent form before completing any part of the assessment that contains more information on who can access results. How long does it take to receive the assessment results? Results are typically available through the WHA Portal within 24-48 hours of all assessment components being completed. The requesting company can also track the assessment progress and results through the Portal. How will I receive results? Results are provided through the WHA Portal and are accessible 24/7. Reports can be viewed in the portal or downloaded as a PDF file. Other What services do you offer? Please view our Services page for full details on WHAs business offering, including: pre-employment medicals annual health checks health monitoring/surveillance fitness to drive assessments rail medicals mining medicals oil and gas UK medicals drug and alcohol screening hearing testing vaccination programs and more. What type of medicals does WHA perform? WHA is a vertically integrated provider, offering the full suite of workforce medical services and specialise in tailored medical and health assessments that meet the unique needs of our clients. We provide workforce medical services to businesses across Australia and New Zealand, including pre-employment health screening, drug and alcohol screening, legislated medicals, like rail medicals, coal medicals, and oil and gas UK medicals. Find out more on our Services page. How much does a pre-employment cost? The cost of a pre-employment medical will depend on what is included in the assessment. Contact us today to talk about your needs. Call 1300 552 722 How do I access the WHA Portal? WHA clients can access the WHA Portal by clicking the ‘Login” button on the top right hand side of the menu of this webpage (wha.net.au) To become a WHA client, contact us today via phone 1300 552 722 or Enquire Now. Is assessment data shared with anyone? Assessment data is only shared with the candidate/employee and company who requested the medical assessment. WHA never shares or discloses information about individuals with any 3rd party providers, suppliers or clients and ensures that information is accessible only to those authorised to have access for the intended purpose. View our Privacy Policy for more information. Where is my information stored? All information is collected and stored in accordance with The Privacy Act 1988 (Privacy Act) under Australian Law. All assessment data and personal information is stored in WHA controlled databases. If you do require your information to be permanently destroyed, you can request this by contacting our Customer Service Team. You can also view our Privacy Policy for more information.