“Can I, the employer, ask a worker to participate in an assessment of their capacity?”  The answer is YES. Employers should be aware they can request their workers to participate in assessments of their capacity. Furthermore, workers are legally obligated to participate in assessments as part of the return to work process even if they are certified unfit for all duties at the time of the assessment.

Section 202 of the recently updated Victorian Accident Compensation Act states ‘ A worker who has an incapacity for work must, when requested to do so by the employer … , actively participate and co-operate in any assessment of:
a) capacity for work
b) rehabilitation progress
c) future employment prospects’

All too often a worker’s treating doctor will exert too much control within the return to work process. P2 Group Occupational Therapists can assess a worker’s physical, cognitive and psychological health with a strong focus on capacity and what a worker can do as opposed to identifying incapacity. This documented capacity can then be discussed with a worker’s treating doctor to assist in facilitating a return to work. Keeping in mind P2 Group Occupational Therapist’s are specifically trained to obtain knowledge of the employer’s worksites and their operational requirements, which are incorporated with the worker’s needs to reach positive outcomes that are good for the employer and the worker.

All P2 Group clients arrange assessments of capacity as the first step in assisting their workers return to work. This is critical to employers controlling the return to work process, the results of which feed into P2 Group’s unique strategic case management process and assist our clients to achieve the following results:

• Gain control of all WorkCover cases:
How? The employers request the services of P2 Group Occupational Therapists to meet with their workers and conduct functional capacity evaluations. The P2 Group Occupational Therapists will identify capacity and work with managers and line managers to develop a pathway for the worker to return to work in a timely manner as part of the active recovery process.

• Reduce claims costs and achieve significant savings in WorkCover premiums:
How? The employers move quickly to engage P2 Group Occupational Therapists directly and fund the services through their early intervention programs. Less costs, better outcome and improved workforce culture.

• Move fast:
How? The employers and the workers do not lose time waiting for approvals from their WorkCover insurance agents. The employers move fast and stay in control from the start. This results in most WorkCover claims being lodged as minor claims that do not impact WorkCover premiums.

• Reduce WorkCover claims and improve workplace culture:
How? Over time as employers continue to assess workers with injuries and early signs of conditions, the line of communication opens between managers and their workers, which generates a positive workforce culture. As workers learn that they will be supported with their health and well-being through early intervention programs, they inform their managers of aches and pains early instead of automatically lodging WorkCover claims.

In addition to the above, employers also have increased return to work obligations. Section 195 of the recently updated Victorian Accident Compensation Act states -
‘An employer must, to the extent that is reasonable to do so, plan the return to work of a worker from the date on which the employer knows or ought reasonably to have known of the workers incapacity for work.’

What is important to note here is this incapacity may be identified prior to the lodgement of a WorkCover claim. So what do employers do then? Simple, arrange a functional capacity evaluation with a P2 Group Occupational Therapist and proceed down an early intervention path. Want to know more about early intervention? Contact an Occupational Therapist at P2 Group on (03) 9818 8914 for more information.