KITIMAT DRAFT Report

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More and more employers were being taught that the easiest way to control these insurance costs was to get workers off benefits as quickly as possible. There were a number of options available in this strategy including: • intimidate/threaten a worker so they would not put in a claim • dispute any entitlement with insurance or workers’ compensation providers • delay sending in proper forms for prompt payment of claims • create a workplace attitude that penalizes and isolates injured workers • pay a worker to simply sit in the lunch room or change-house • hire investigators, medical and claim consultants to dispute genuineness of claims • use safety award programs to create co-worker animosity • offer modified work that is designed to embarrass or ostracize the worker • offer modified work for a short period, and then arbitrarily communicate an ultimatum to resume their normal job or go off on benefits • offer modified work until the worker can resume normal activities As can be seen, almost none of the options seem to approach the problem of rehabilitation or the removal of barriers that cause disability. Rather than focus on the provision of therapeutic modified work that promoted full recovery and sustainability, employers chose to popularize the sudden explosion of a new cottage industry of claim management consultants. These consultants focused on disputing claim entitlement and obtaining any claims cost relief that was available. This new brand of advocacy did little in regards to the advancement of good re-employment practices and resulted in bogging down the adjudication and appeal structures and allowed employers to be financially rewarded for engaging in dubious practices. Quite simply, Return to Work was NOT working; for employers, workers, unions, insurance providers and health care providers. Research was undertaken in the field of disability management/accommodation practices with the intent of developing leading or best practices. One area that was identified consistently was the need to realize where a workplace with respect to their return-to-work practices, what performance targets they had, where the gaps in their program were and how effective was the evaluation of their overall program. In other words, the research confirmed that in order to facilitate positive changes that increased successful outcomes, the starting point is determining what the current situation is. This is called Awareness”.DRAFT “Situational 2 Situational Assessment District of Kitimat
Situational Awareness Situational awareness is the perception of environmental elements within a volume of time and space, the comprehension of their meaning and the projection of their status in the near future. Situational awareness DRAFT involves being aware of what is happening around you to understand how information, events and your own actions will impact your goals and objectives, both now and in the near future. Situational awareness means that a human appropriately responds to important informational cues. This definition contains four key elements: (1) humans, (2) important informational cues, (3) behavioural cues, and (4) appropriateness of the responses. Important informational cues refer to environmental stimuli that are mentally processed by the human. The appropriateness of the responses implies the comparison of the response with an expected response or a number of possible expected responses. Expected responses form the basis for a performance measure of situational awareness. While situational awareness can be defined as a state of knowledge, a situational assessment can be described as a process used to achieve that state. It refers to the process of achieving, acquiring or maintaining situational awareness. Therefore, situational awareness is viewed as “a state of knowledge” and a situational assessment as “the processes” used to achieve that knowledge. The following “Situational Assessment Survey” will be used to evaluate the effectiveness of the workplace’s return-to-work practices and recommend effectual actions to improve outcomes. There are 12 areas (attributes) that are explored by the “Situational Assessment Survey”. They are: 1. Commitment Policy/RTW Policy 7. Linking Primary and Secondary Prevention 2. Injury/Absence Reporting Procedures 8. Utilization of Disability Prevention Principles 3. Early Contact & Intervention 9. Compliance with Human Rights 4. Cooperative RTW Responsibilities 10. Mobilization of RTW Leadership 5. Elimination of Attitudinal Barriers 11. Internal Dispute Resolution Mechanism 6. Transfer of Medical Information 12. RTW Program Evaluation This first phase of review relies on subjective data gathered by survey questions that are intended to reflect the perceptions and experiences of the current RTW practices. The attributes, survey questions and data analysis are consistent with the most current return-to-work, evidence-based practices and research. The last area of review relies on objective data that will assist to determine the workplace’s retrospective performance indicators. Situational assessment District of Kitimat 3
Page 1: DISTRICT OF KITIMAT SITUATIONAL ASS
Page 4 and 5: This program is a non profit initia
Page 8 and 9: Figure 1 Key Research: The Situatio
Page 10 and 11: Figure 2 Strong Commitment/RTW Poli
Page 12 and 13: Figure 3 RTW/AccommodATion Policy (
Page 14 and 15: 3) An overwhelming majority of resp
Page 16 and 17: Summary: In keeping with the leadin
Page 18 and 19: Figure 4 Injury Reporting Procedure
Page 20 and 21: Observations: 1) 96% of respondents
Page 22 and 23: Summary: The responses indicate tha
Page 24 and 25: 3. Early Contact / Intervention An
Page 26 and 27: 3) Over 50% of the respondents did
Page 28 and 29: Figure 6 Cooperative RTW Responsibi
Page 30 and 31: 1) Almost 50% of the respondents ar
Page 32 and 33: Summary: In this attribute, the unk
Page 34 and 35: 5. Attitudinal Barriers The negativ
Page 36 and 37: 3) 73% of respondents believe that
Page 38 and 39: Summary: It appears that many of th
Page 40 and 41: O 1 2 C 6. Transfer of Medical Info
Page 42 and 43: Summary: There is a good understand
Page 44 and 45: 7. Linking Primary and Secondary Pr
Page 46 and 47: 3) 75% of respondents do not know w
Page 48 and 49: 8. Utilization of Disability Preven
Page 50 and 51: 3) This may be a perception that ca
Page 52 and 53: 7) Although 67% (chart 42) agreed t
Page 54 and 55: Figure 11 Compliance with Human Rig
Page 56 and 57:
1) Almost three quarters of the res
Page 58 and 59:
Figure 12 Mobilization of RTW Leade
Page 60 and 61:
1) It would be expected that the em
Page 62 and 63:
Figure 13 Internal Dispute Resoluti
Page 64 and 65:
Figure 14 RTW Evaluation Attribute
Page 66 and 67:
1) The majority of respondents did
Page 68 and 69:
OVERALL SUMMARY The situational ass
Page 70 and 71:
OVERALL RECOMMENDATIONS 1. Educate
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KITIMAT DRAFT Report

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