Health declarations, not medical records
What health information the Fitness pack keeps, why a member's declaration is not a medical record, and how a club decides when to ask for a doctor's note.
By Achekam · · 4 min read · For Fitness businesses in South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya
Launching soon. The Industry CRM add-on described in this article is launching soon. This article describes it as it will work at launch.
Gyms and spas ask about health for good reasons. A trainer should know if a new member has a heart condition before putting them through an intense class. A therapist should know about pregnancy or recent surgery before a deep-tissue massage. But asking about health is one thing, and building a file of members' medical details is another, with far more risk and responsibility attached.
The Fitness, wellness & spas pack in Achekam's Industry CRM draws that line clearly. It keeps the member's own health declaration, for one narrow purpose, and keeps no medical records at all. This article explains what that means day to day, and what your club still has to decide.
A declaration in the member's own words
When someone moves from trial to membership, the pack's workflow sends them a health declaration to complete. It goes as a request, and their answer moves the task on.
The declaration is the person's own statement about their health. It is not a doctor's assessment, and it is not a medical record. The club keeps it for a single reason: to decide whether to ask for a doctor's note before the person starts training or treatment.
That narrow purpose is useful. It tells staff why the declaration exists, which in turn tells them what to do with it: read it, make a decision, record the decision. It is not a reference document for trainers to consult every session, and it is not a place for ongoing health notes.
Deciding whether to ask for a doctor's note
The pack does not make this decision; a person at the club does. To make it consistently, agree the rules before the first declaration comes in.
A practical approach:
- Agree the triggers. With advice from a qualified professional, list the answers that mean "ask for a doctor's note before starting", such as a declared heart condition, recent surgery or pregnancy for certain activities.
- Name who decides. One or two senior staff, not whoever happens to be on the desk.
- Record the outcome, not the detail. Note that a doctor's note was requested, received, or not needed, and the date. The decision is what the club needs to keep.
- Tell the member. If you need a note, explain why and what it should say, for example that the person may take part in a particular kind of exercise.
When a member's answers raise no flags, the decision is simply that no note is needed, and they can start.
What not to store
Because the pack keeps no medical records, the club should not try to turn it into one. Some examples of what stays out:
| Fine to keep | Keep out of the pack |
|---|---|
| The member's completed declaration | Doctors' reports and test results |
| Whether a doctor's note was requested | Prescriptions and medication lists |
| Whether the note was received, and when | Diagnoses written up by staff |
| The decision that the member may start | Running notes about a member's health |
If a member hands over a doctor's letter, read it for what you need, which is usually a yes or no on taking part, record that outcome, and agree with the member what happens to the letter itself. The less sensitive information the club holds, the less it has to protect.
Staff notes deserve the same care. "Prefers morning classes" belongs on a member's record. "Seems to be struggling with depression" does not, however well meant.
When circumstances change
A declaration describes the member on the day they joined. Months later, a member may become pregnant, have an operation or pick up an injury. Rather than adding running notes to their record, ask the member to update their declaration and make the same decision again: is a doctor's note needed before they continue, or before they try a particular class or treatment? The outcome replaces the old one, and the record stays a set of decisions rather than a health history.
Starter wording to review
Each industry pack sets the documents members are asked to complete and to sign. In the Fitness pack, that includes the health declaration and the membership agreement. Every contract or agreement in the pack is marked as starter wording that the club must review before use.
Treat the declaration's questions with the same care, even though it is not a contract. Have a qualified professional look at whether the questions fit the activities you offer: a yoga studio, a boxing gym and a spa need different things. And have your adviser look at how you collect and keep health information, because the rules on personal and health information differ between South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya. In Kenya, for example, the Data Protection Act, 2019 sets the principles for processing personal data, the rights of the people it concerns, the registration of data controllers and processors, and breach notification.
Who should see the declaration
Decide who in the club needs to read declarations, and keep it to them. In most clubs that means the person who decides on doctor's notes and, where relevant, the trainer or therapist about to work with the member, told only what they need: "cleared to start", or "no inversions until the note arrives".
Front-desk staff who sell memberships and take payments rarely need the detail. Instructors on payroll, covered in paying instructors per class, need to know a member is cleared, not why. A short written rule, explained at induction, prevents most mistakes.
Putting it into practice
Agree your triggers and your decision-maker, review the declaration's questions with a professional, and brief staff on what stays out of the system. Then walk through the full sequence a new member follows, from booking to first invoice, in from trial visit to signed membership, and check that the declaration step fits naturally into it.
General guidance only, not advice on your own circumstances. Tax and payroll rules change: check the current position with the authority or your adviser.
