Benefits

[Jimod]

Hi All, I was diagnosed with non ischemic dilated cardiomyopathy in October. My ejection fraction was <20. They believe my condition has been caused by chemo and radiotherapy I had in the past. I am a teacher and have not returned to work. If I am considered not fit to teach by my consultant, am I entitled to any benefits?

[Milkfairy Heart Star]

I am sorry that your heart condition means you may not be able to continue to teach.

I suggest you contact your local Citizens Advice, they can advise you further about which benefits you maybe able to claim.

A Personal Independence Payment is a non means tested benefit.

Perhaps ask to be reviewed by an Occupational Health Specialist to see whether you can take early ill health retirement.

When I took early ill health retirement it was the Occupational Health Physician who assessed my ability to work.

I submitted copies of my test results, clinic letters and discharge summaries.

It might help to contact your union representative too for further support.

Good luck!

[Blearyeyed]

Hospitals and certain hospital departments have Benefits advisors on hand to help you find out which benefits and other work based help you could be entitled , it's worth calling your hospital to make an appointment with one of them.It's also worth contacting your Teachers Union for help in knowing how long you are entitled to get Sick Benefits and if there are other enhancements to this.

The National union office may be a better starting point, it might also be a good idea to look up any information they have on their website about being off work long term.

It's worth getting hold of all the facts about this before you approach your Senior Management Team at school about your decisions about remaining at school in case your situation will change and you could return , or if you are choosing to leave.

This is because quite often the school you work at don't know what you are entitled to do, or what they say you can do is influenced by the pressure and policies put on them by your LEA . LEA wishes and your personal rights aren't always the same.

The choice is yours and it may make a difference to how much you get each month. Sometimes leaving altogether is better , sometimes it isn't.

Knowing if you will be entitled to enhanced ESA , Incapacity Benefit, Disability or PIP is important before you make your choices.

Also , knowing if choosing to work part time in the future if you can could decrease your monthly income is essential.

It's important to know exactly why your Consultant believes that you are unfit for work either full or part time and to request for them to put this in writing for you as proof.

The Citizens Advice Bureau is also a valuable source of help, but so is the Government website , it's a bit bureaucratic and fiddly to navigate but you could find it's a mine of information that you didn't know about.

DWP can also be helpful and as long as you have all of your facts and evidence ready when you get to that point you can also find that they will readily choose to put you on enhanced payments because of your health conditions affect on your ability to work at all.

[mits123]

Hi Jimod

As well as all the good advice already given, there is always the option of speaking to the social prescribers attached to your GP surgery, they are also able to give you financial advice and point you in the right direction, if and when the time comes

Best wishes and take care

[Fanfab1]

hello

As per Milkfairy PIP is definitely worth pursuing, if your on sick pay look into Employment and Support Allowance (new style) as pays out for 365 days and subject to a health assessment may also continue to pay your national insurance contributions once the ESA payments stop. You can get ESA once statutory sick pay stops (even if occupational sick pay continues).

Universal credit may be an option depending on income and / or level of savings (£3000 or less).

If you have a mortgage there is a government scheme that for six months you can be interest only if your on repayment mortgage but the interest is added later once scheme ends.

Early ill health retirement before early retirement age (55) is dependent on assessment by occ health plus an appointed independent registered medical practitioner (but that’s under local government pension scheme rules). Doctors reports and recommendations regards retirement on medical grounds help considerably / are key. If your in a pension scheme in public sector it may be you get the pension you would have got if you worked to normal pension age (for life or for a few years dependent if they think you could work later but not just now). I.e. no or less penalty for taking pension early.

Also make friends with your union rep if your in a union, they can help support and advise on process - whole new world I found out!

if you have critical illness insurance, see if you have the total disability clause included - this is a clause re you can no longer do your job even if the condition is not covered. But policy’s are all different!

Again doctors reports are key.

good luck

[Shabana1974]

Hi Jimod.Your first port of call is to look up turn2us.org.uk/

Secondly find out if there's a solicitor funded to give benefit advice. My Dad lives in Northampton and he has a wonderful lady solicitor helping him for free. Citizens Advice I would say I found completely useless. I was referred to them to fill my form they then referred me to Age uk (I was only 43) to do the work that my housing association had paid Citizens Advice to do. So I reported them to my housing Association. Because Age uk got no funding to fill my form. When you get pip form really put enthusiasts on your limitations. Put as many medical records as you can. This prevented my husband from having an assessment and was issued a 10 award. He was only 55 when he had catastrophic stroke. You need to fill the universal credit online. One you have filled it in you need to write in the Journal " I need a work capability assessment "

They will send you the form for this in the post. Makesure you fill it in and attach a copy of all your medical reports.

I know my heart as slightly recovered I am 32% but as me to work I believe it to be impossible. I literally got up yesterday 10.30am by 1.30pm I needed to lay down as I felt like I would pass-out so no employer will make that much allowance.

Hope this helps

Best wishes

Shabana

[Happyrosie]

along with what’s been said. Your HR department or equivalent should be consulted and you may, depending on the terms of your pension scheme, be able to claim benefits through that source.

Applying for PIP is quite easy. You do it through the governments website. I volunteer for a local charity who employs a member of the Citizen’s Advice Bureau once a week. His experience is that a PIP always gets turned down on the first application and you appeal. At this stage, ask CAB to help you. The appeal usually gets turned down. Then you go back to the CAB if they think it worthwhile. Did this for my daughter and she got her PIP. Not for the same issues as you though.

[Milkfairy Heart Star in reply to Happyrosie]

In my experience of applying for a PIP, I wouldn't say it's in anyway easy.I found the whole process very stressful

There is an absolute art in using the right words and phrases when filling the form in. The collecting of the supporting documents is very time consuming, especially when trying to get NHS medical secretaries to respond.

You have a limited time to get the form completed and supporting documents together and submitted to the DWP.

I was fortunate that I was awarded a PIP, straight away without having to appeal. I had a severe episode of angina during the assessment and ended up in hospital soon afterwards. I have an enhanced award for both sections indefinitely.

[Happyrosie in reply to Milkfairy]

I’m sorry your application was difficult. I said ‘easy’ in that language used was simple, it only took three or four hours to complete, and what was needed in supporting documentation was available. The next stage (a telephone interview with a doctor) was stressful. And I stressed that it was turned down first time round.

[Milkfairy Heart Star in reply to Happyrosie]

We will have to agree to disagree. The PIP form is 40 pages long.

I took great care in filling the form in, carefully choosing the words to describe how my heart condition effects my life.

I sent in over 30 supporting documents.

I had a face to face interview at home.

As a result I wasn't turned down first time, I was awarded an enhanced award for both sections indefinitely.

I will have a light touch review every 10 years.

Many people probably get turned down first time because they may not realise how diligent you need to be to get the wording right. It is by no means easy language.

My application for early ill health retirement was a doddle in comparison.

[Jimod]

I just want to say a huge thank you for all the helpful and detailed replies. They are hugely appreciated.