Injury Management FAQ's

Injury management should commence immediately following the incident or injury/disease. The injury management process involves a number of stages including first aid, initial medical treatment and return to work activities. To effectively assist an injured employee and manage the return to work process, the employer needs to be involved during all stages.

An employer is required to provide alternate or suitable duties for an injured employee as far as is practicable. Ideally the alternate duties will be:

• located within the employee’s normal work area and team,
• be as close as possible to their normal role, and
• in accordance with medical recommendations.

Only if this is not possible, alternatives should be considered.

Alternate duties:

• must comply with medical restrictions outlined by the treating medical practitioner,
• should be identified in consultation with the injured employee, line manager/ supervisor,
• should take into account the employee’s skills and experience.

The line manager/supervisor and employee are usually the most appropriate parties to identify suitable alternate duties, as they are generally the most familiar with the employee’s normal job role, skills, abilities and the requirements of the workplace and business unit.

If alternate duties cannot be easily identified, or if the employer is unsure if the tasks available are physically or psychologically suitable, an agency may need to consider engaging an Approved Vocational Rehabilitation Provider to assess the available duties and provide recommendations to the employer and treating medical practitioner.

If the employer is experiencing difficulties in providing alternative duties deemed suitable for an injured employee, other options may need to be explored. These include work trials in other locations/agencies or external 'work hardening' programmes designed to increase capacity for work.

The Workers’ Compensation and Injury Management Act 1981 requires a return-to-work programme and subsequent amended programs to be developed and documented in the following circumstances:

1. The treating medical practitioner designates the employee as partially fit (including any restriction to either working hours or duties).
2. The employee is unable to undertake their pre-injury duties and is required to temporarily or permanently undertake modified or new duties.

In the case of permanent new duties, RiskCover recommends a minimum 4 week documented return to work programme to ensure capacity to undertake duties on a permanent basis.

The return to work plan should be based on advice provided by the treating medical practitioner, as outlined on the medical certificate.

In planning the return to work, the employer will need to consider the following:

• the employee’s medical restrictions and work capacity,
• available/suitable alternate or normal duties,
• hours and days of work,
• organisational aspects. For example staffing, rostering, productivity requirements etc,
• required workplace modifications/equipment,
• potential barriers, and strategies for overcoming these.

All return to work plans and subsequent amendments must be documented.

A template is available on our website outlining basic requirements for documenting a return to work programme. This will need to be tailored to meet your agency’s requirements.

The plan should be developed in consultation with the injured employee. Return to work programmes should be forwarded to key parties* immediately.

*see FAQ "Who needs a copy of the return to work plan" for key parties (below).

The following key parties need a copy of the return to work plan:

• the injured employee,
• manager supervising the return to work,
• treating medical practitioner, and
• RiskCover.

Copies should be forwarded to all parties immediately.

Regular monitoring of progress on a return to work program is essential in achieving a positive and timely return to work outcome.

Responsibility for ongoing return to work monitoring should be decided within each agency. RiskCover recommends that the employee’s direct line manager monitors the programme on a daily basis, with reviews at regular intervals by the case team.

It is important for the employer to work together with the injured employee and the treating medical practitioner, to ensure an early and safe return to work following an injury.

Early contact with the treating medical practitioner provides the employer with an opportunity to communicate the agency’s injury management commitment, and the range of return to work options. This contact should occur at the time of the first medical appointment or as soon as possible after this.

Ongoing communication with the treating medical practitioner should occur on an “as needs” basis. For example, when the medical certificate does not provide sufficient information to develop a return to work programme or where the return to work programme is not progressing as anticipated. Communication may be in the form of visits, phone, email, fax or written correspondence.

Tips an employer may consider in addressing these difficulties include:

• ensure good communication with the employee,
• provide the medical practitioner with information on the agency's injury management programme and return to work options as a letter, fax or email to the medical practitioner,
• consider other methods of communication which may be preferable to the medical practitioner (discuss first), including fax, email etc,
• arrange to meet with the medical practitioner and the injured employee.

Medical practitioners are entitled to be remunerated for participation in such meetings however the relevant RiskCover Injury Services Coordinator/Officer must be contacted prior to making the appointment.

Some of the services Approved Vocational Rehabilitation Providers offer include:

• case management,
• worksite assessment,
• vocational assessment and job placement,
• functional capacity evaluation.

If the services of an Approved Vocational Rehabilitation Provider is required the employee has the right to choose the provider. For a list of Approved Vocational Rehabilitation Providers, please see the WorkCover website.

To ensure the workers’ compensation process provides appropriate support for return to work activities, the employer must maintain regular contact with their RiskCover Injury Services Coordinator/Officer. Any change in medical status (such as partially fit to totally unfit) and other significant events should be communicated immediately.

The Injury Management process ceases when:

• the injured employee has returned to a permanent job role (either pre-injury, modified or new),
• has received a final medical certificate,
• has settled their workers’ compensation claim, or
• injury management is no longer appropriate.