1. 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.
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2. 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.

3. 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
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4. Why do it? The four reasons we should have the whole team involved
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5. 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.

6. 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.

7. 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

8. 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.

9. 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.

10. Our cases, claims and costs
Our current situation
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11. 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

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

13. Lost time injuries per annum Number of new claims per annum

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

15. WorkCover Premium paid per annum

16. Payroll, Premium, and Premium as a percent payroll

17. Senior management input
What we need from you and how you can make a difference
Senior management input
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18. 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

19. 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

20. 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

21. 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):

22. 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

23. 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

24. 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

25. 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

26. 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