The pathway to workplace injury healing and recovery

Large warehouses serve as a daily business backdrop for many workers across the country. Activities buzz inside these spacious facilities as forklifts zip down aisle ways, pallets of materials reach toward high ceilings, and employees accept deliveries and fulfill orders throughout the day.

While these actions are innocuous, life-altering accidents can occur in just seconds. A fall from a ladder can result in a severe head injury. A liquid spill can create a slippery floor causing a fall and serious knee injury. An unbalanced pallet of goods can topple creating a painful back sprain.

Head, knee, and back injuries are not limited to warehouse activities. They occur in construction, transportation, and manufacturing environments every day. When these incidents do arise, a comprehensive care plan focused on injured employee recovery and well-being is prescribed.

Three essential components of an effective care and recovery plan are quality medical care, immediate treatment, and employee focus. Critical to its success is the ability to marshal resources and tailor a plan to differing needs and a variety of situations.

Related: Workplace wearables and the opportunity for insurance agents

Quality medical care

Anyone who has ever been sick or injured wants to have confidence in the treating physician and receive treatment that will achieve the fastest and most effective recovery possible. Injured workers feel the same way.

Provider benchmarking is a tool employers can use to identify high-quality medical providers. Using this approach, treating physicians are assessed and rated based on a number of quantifiable factors such as occupational injury experience, return to work effectiveness, re-injury rate, prescribing practices, and price competitiveness.

Treating physicians are rated on a scale from 1 to 5. Those receiving 4- and 5-star ratings are high-quality physicians who have been shown to consistently achieve successful outcomes. These physicians facilitate faster return to work, shorter claim durations, less claim litigation and lower costs.

While cost cannot be overlooked as an integral part of the workers’ compensation equation, few people want to secure medical services for family members or themselves based solely on discounted pricing models. What employers have discovered is the value of paying proven medical professionals for their expertise to achieve maximum medical recovery and the best results possible. This can become particularly evident in some of the more serious and severe injuries such as a crushed foot, a traumatic brain injury or severe burn.

Employers can also take steps to ensure treating physicians are knowledgeable of their unique operations and attuned to their return to work philosophy. This can be accomplished by periodic physician visits to respective work facilities and the opportunity to view various jobs and positions. Accurate and up to date job descriptions are essential to helping treating physicians understand physical demands and job components.

An overview of an employer’s return to work program and desire to bring injured workers back in some productive capacity is also very useful. In some cases, employers have partnered with a charitable organization as a source of alternative work during the recovery phase and this program should also be introduced and described to the treating physician.

Related: Advances in safety credited for long-term decline in overall claim frequency

Immediate treatment

Securing immediate medical treatment can also be critical to effective healing and recovery. Before an accident ever occurs, there are a number of steps employers can take to ensure treatment priority.

Some employers hire or contract for a physician or nurse to provide medical services onsite. Not only does this ensure geographic proximity to operations and immediate medical attention, but it can also be an excellent means to establish a foundation of trust and rapport with the workforce. Shared organizational values and everyday camaraderie can lend a higher degree of credibility to medical diagnoses and confidence in suggested treatment plans.

Moreover, onsite medical professionals can quickly triage injuries and determine if a condition is best suited for treatment onsite, at an urgent care facility or in a hospital emergency room. Medical consultations and onsite follow up can also offer added convenience.

Moreover, many employers are finding onsite clinicians promote higher visibility of overall health and wellness strategies. These professionals can stress the importance of healthy lifestyle habits, oversee biometric screenings, and provide specialist referrals.

Technology advancements are also facilitating immediate and convenient care alternatives. Telemedicine is gaining momentum and increasing in popularity as a treatment option. These virtual medical visits can save time and travel for many work-related injuries and conditions. Moreover, some employers are extending telemedicine to include virtual physical therapy services also.

Related: Virtual hearings now an option for injured workers in New York

Employee focus

Workers’ compensation programs with a strong employee focus are paying dividends, and employee advocacy programs are continuing to increase in popularity. Employee advocacy programs put employee needs center stage and tailor services to an individual’s unique circumstances. For some, this means increasing communication and explaining how the claims process works and what other benefits program might apply.

Communications can also be structured to achieve higher levels of medical literacy by explaining medical diagnoses and treatment options. For others, it can entail providing transportation services to medical facilities for appointments, follow-up visits, prescription pick-ups, or ongoing therapy. Where allowable, direct bank deposits of benefit payments can offer added convenience.

Employee well-being is also important. To prevent unintended opioid addictions, employers are beginning to explore alternatives to pain management. Educating the employee about the role that pain plays as a part of the healing process or what type of pain to expect following surgery is being introduced as part of the pre-habilitation process. If a physician determines an opioid prescription is needed to mitigate acute pain in the short-term, prescriptions are limited, opioid contracts may be utilized, and alternative over the counter medicines may be suggested. Meditation, mindfulness, and movement may also be incorporated into the overall recovery plan.

Extending genuine compassion and care to an individual whose life has been suddenly and unexpectedly disruptive due to a workplace injury or illness is also necessary. Employees need to know they are missed and that their return is anticipated and welcomed. Personal outreach through cards, communications, and kind gestures to the injured individuals and their families can be priceless.

Related: Workers’ comp and pain management experts discuss alternatives to opioids

The road to healing

Workers’ compensation professionals who are compassionate, innovative and attuned to an injured worker’s personal needs will continue to lead the industry and usher in new and creative means of care. In addition to capitalizing on workplace safety programs, workers’ compensation leaders must be prepared to act swiftly when unexpected accidents occur. While never replacing the human touch, technology is expected to offer improved means of medical treatment, increase decision-making effectiveness, and create added convenience for all involved in the claims and recovery process.

Finding new ways to provide injured workers access to quality medical care on an immediate basis and addressing individual needs will remain among the industry’s priorities and continue to be the most important steps to follow on the road to healing and recovery.

Related: People, places and things: The future of workers’ compensation