Health professions worry for WCA fairness

Concerns are mounting among healthcare professionals over the fairness of the Work Capability Assessment (WCA).

The mental health charity Mind has reinforced its misgivings over the UK test to establish whether people are fit to work, claiming that the test is limited to a person's ability to function.

Paul Farmer, chief executive of Mind, stated: "The test remains too focused on people's ability to function, disregarding the question of whether they can cope with the more subjective stresses and strains associated with the workplace."

The WCA is designed to determine those who have a limited capability for work and qualify for Employment and Support Allowance.

While patients will automatically be treated as being unable to work if they are in the hospital or have some other limited circumstance, in certain cases where a doctor's note is not provided an individual will have to undertake an ESA50 Questionnaire.

Concerns have mounted over the ability of the WCA to measure a person's mental proclivity for work, and not just their physical competency.

Read about support and personalised care at Barchester care homes for anyone with mental health concerns.