Medical Records

[baggieal]

Seems like the driver of the bus that over turned sadly killing the 15 year old school girl had medical issues at the wheel. Sadly the driver died too but surely when any employee is responsible for others checks should be made on medical records. Would an employer of a pilot, driver etc employ an individual or keep them employed if they had medical issues or had suicidal tendencies? Remember that German pilot who had suicidal tendencies and crashed the plane sending all those kids to their deaths. Had the airline had access to this pilots medical records this could have been avoided. Asking a GP to notify an employer of any risks might be too long winded.

Seems harsh but for me where an individual has others in their care, they should not be allowed to continue if their medical records mean others could be in any danger. Opening up a minefield! Not at all - I certainly wouldn’t want a pilot flying me if they were unstable, suffering from depression or shown suicidal tendencies. Surely an employer could relocate an individual to a desk job etc or they could seek employment elsewhere. Others want to be safe and have total trust in a person at the controls. Nobody is blaming the driver of that coach but if there were medical issues - should he have continued to drive children?

[phild]

Commercial airline pilots must possess a valid Class 1 Medical certificate to be eligible to fly and attend medical evaluations every year until the age of 40 and then every 6 months until the age of 65, to ensure they remain fit to fly and retain their certification.

Not sure if coach drivers have to these types of tests but I suspect not.

[mickd1961]

My grandad drove National Coaches until he was 65 and he handed in his driving licence as soon as he retired and never drove again.

As he was pulling the bus into the garage towards the end of his working life his foot slipped in the clutch and he only just stopped the bus before it would’ve crushed a workmate against the wall.

It scared him and he knew he was past his best so he stopped driving completely.

Looking at the photos of this poor driver today I thought he looked a very unwell man, he looked gaunt and red faced and more like 50+ rather than just 40.

Coach drivers invariably seem to look overweight and unhealthy, I do think they should be under more medical scrutiny.

Sadly, his issues have cost a young girl her life.

[Omegstrat6]

Current regs. are that if someone gets their category C HGV licence at 20, for example, they do not legally have to pass another medical until they are 45 and although it is recommended that these drivers then take annual tests, legally the licence only has to be renewed every 5 years until they reach 65 when they have to renew annually which will entail a medical each time. The onus is on the driver, not the company. Similarly, however, ordinary car drivers have to renew their licences every 10 years until they reach 70 when it becomes every 3 years but there are no mandatory medicals. Again, whilst you may face fines for not informing DVLA of any medical conditions that may impact (or stop) your ability to drive, the onus is on the driver. An ever increasing number of elderly drivers on the roads and the subsequent number of related accidents is causing concern amongst driving groups like the RAC but nothing much has been done about it so far. Maybe they rely on higher insurance premiums to encourage older drivers to stop? Coach and bus drivers obviously are responsible for their passengers, but any vehicle can cause loss of life.