Improving work injury and return to work outcomes Informing the senior managers in our organisation about the management of work injuries and return to work. INSERT YOUR LOGO

Return to work programs work best when senior management is involved. This presentation is designed for coordinators / HR to engage senior managers in return to work management. The presentation is designed for generic use. Feel free to insert your company logo, and modify the slides to suit your organisation. Information specific to your organisation needs to be inserted where there are red fonts, and in slides of graphs displaying WorkCover results. The graphs can be your own internal reports, from information and reports from WorkCover Agents or insurers, or prepared using the download “Graphs of work disability cost data.” Return To Work Matters is a professional networking and resource site serving return to work professionals, facilitating injured or ill employees to recover their health and get back to their jobs. This material has been developed for RTWMatters subscribers. If you are a subscriber to RTWMatters.org please feel free to use this presentation. If you are not a subscriber you are not able to use the material until joining.

Managing work disability – outline of presentation Why do it Our current situation Input needed from the senior management team Program overview People involved Key elements Expected outcomes Monitoring and assessment of program INSERT YOUR LOGO

Why do it? The four reasons we should have the whole team involved INSERT YOUR LOGO

1. The business case Benefits Costs An effective injury management system will: Reduce costs Improve staff morale Free-up supervisors to concentrate on productivity Improve customer service through better staff engagement Research shows that best practice injury management systems save money and result in better organisational outcomes Costs The costs of work disability comprise: Direct costs such as the WorkCover premium, wages not covered by the premium, health and safety fines Indirect costs such as staff replacement, supervisor time, and administrative time. The indirect costs of work disability are estimated to be four times greater than the direct costs.

Economic costs Compensation from work disability costs our organisation x% of payroll or $xxx. We are below / at / above the industry average. A reasonable estimate of indirect costs is four times the direct costs, or $xxx in our organisation.

2. The ethical case Care minimises costs The ethical case states that organisations have an obligation to support staff with an injury. Ties in with the notion of corporate responsibility: a responsible organisation cares for its workers in times of increased need. The ethical case also has business implications. Care minimises costs

3. The corporate image case Corporate image matters. Failure of the injury management system can have a major impact on internal and external perceptions of an organisation. Preventing injury whenever possible, and managing injury well (including compensation) when it does occur, will improve an organisation’s standing with both employees and the wider community.

4. The legal case Employers are subject to a general duty of care for their staff. Under current legislation, employers are expected to offer injured workers a return to work. Regulators assess employer performance, and prosecutions for not offering return to work programs are on the rise.

Our cases, claims and costs Our current situation INSERT YOUR LOGO

Current situation Lost time injuries Average claim costs The following slides demonstrate our organisation’s performance over the last three years Lost time injuries Average claim costs Total claim costs Direct premium costs Estimate of indirect costs from work injuries

The graphs on the following slides have been taken from the downloadable Excel file – Graphs of work disability cost data.xls

Lost time injuries per annum Number of new claims per annum

Average claim cost, Number of new claims per annum Number of total claims affecting premium

WorkCover Premium paid per annum

Payroll, Premium, and Premium as a percent payroll

Senior management input What we need from you and how you can make a difference Senior management input INSERT YOUR LOGO

Senior leadership input Major studies have shown that senior management leadership plays a key role in improving outcomes Staff become more interested and engaged Managers pay attention and deal with issues Results are improved Claim numbers are reduced

Senior managers can assist by : Ensure our policies and procedures are used by our team Ensure all our managers are clear about their roles and what you expect of them Include discussion about return to work at management meetings Contact with staff who have had an injury Call and ask how they are Ensure people with injuries are being cared for – flowers to hospital, calls from supervisors Understand the financial costs and how improvements can be achieved

People involved in our program Internal External Senior managers and financial management team Supervisors, line managers, department managers Human Resources and internal claims staff Health & Safety team Unions / employee representatives Treating practitioners Insurer / WorkCover agent Rehabilitation providers Compensation regulator Dispute resolution system

Key elements of an effective program Developing and maintaining constructive relationships with all stakeholders Scientific research and common sense both show “Good will and trust are overarching conditions central to successful return-to-work arrangements.” Good evidence indicates return to work relates more to workplace relationships than the severity of the medical condition MacEachen E, Clarke J, Franche R-L, Irvin E, Systematic review of the qualitative literature on return to work after injury. Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health 2006;32(4):257-69.

Key elements cont’d All players on the ‘same page’ Prevention Early action on problems Better to pay small amounts ($100 to $2,000) for a number of cases than large amounts ($200,000+) for a few Positive workplace culture for return to work

Expected outcomes Substantial reduction in WorkCover premiums (estimate premium savings if possible) Substantial reduction in indirect costs Improved well being of staff Increased satisfaction for supervisors Improved productivity

The difference we can make – what typically happens in other workplaces Joe stumbled over a pellet 3 months ago., his knee was immediately painful and swollen. Joe’s supervisor helped him write the incident in the book, and told him he should go to the doctor. Joe drove home in pain, and attended his doctor the next day. Physiotherapy was recommended. After three weeks of physio the knee wasn’t improving. The physio recommended he go back to his doctor and ask to see an orthopedic surgeon. The first available appointment with an orthopedic surgeon was three weeks later. The orthopedic surgeon recommended an MRI and arthroscopy. A liability request for these was sent to the insurer, who suggested an independent medical review. The independent doctor’s report was received five weeks later, and agreed the MRI and arthroscopy were needed and the condition was work related. Joe had his arthroscopy at two months post injury. He was then off work for another month recouperating. Joe was frustrated at how long it took for the procedure to be approved, and at the end said he had felt ‘like a number’. Cost $30,000

What we do (as an example) Joe stumbled over a pellet 3 months ago., his knee was immediately painful and swollen. Joe’s supervisor recognised Joe was in a bad way and drove him to the doctor. Because we have set up a good relationship with the local clinic Joe was seen quickly. They know we want the best care for our employees, and arranged an urgent MRI and appointment with an orthopedic surgeon who looks after local football players. The scan showed Joe had a cartilage tear, and an arthroscopy was done two days later. We sent him a basket of fruit for when he got home. Joe was chuffed at being looked after so well. He came back to work a week later. Cost $5,000

Monitoring and evaluation of the program Annual review recommendedd Reviewing costs and financial benefits Satisfaction survey useful WorkCover premium impact takes 3-5 years to reach maximum improvement Informal or formal audit can be undertaken as an evaluation or monitoring tool