Your Guide to Work Cover and Physiotherapy Treatment
Have you been injured at work? Navigating Work Cover can be confusing, but this article explains everything you need to know about working with a physiotherapist on your road to recovery.
Work Cover is an important incentive that supports workers to recover from on-the-job accidents. If you were injured at work, workers compensation insurance would pay your wages and medical costs during the time your injury prevented you from being at work. If Work Cover didn’t exist, workplace injuries would not only cause injury and time away from work, they would lead to significant financial stress.
What injuries does Work Cover insure?
Work Cover covers injuries that occur when you are at work, during work hours. If you fell and hurt your ankle at work, this would be covered, but if you fell off your bike on the weekend, you cannot claim workers compensation.
Covered conditions include:
– Physical Injuries. Including fractures, burns, lacerations or industrial deafness.
– Progressive worsening of a pre-existing condition.
– Psychiatric or mental disorders. These psychological conditions include depression and anxiety.
– Diseases. Such as asbestosis.
– Death due to injury or disease.
What is the typical process of a Work Cover claim?
Navigating a Work Cover claim involves several steps. The process should be a collaborative, supportive process between the employee, employer and Work Cover. You should not feel pressured, or less valued at your workplace because you are on Work Cover.
While it is the employee’s role to claim work cover and seek medical treatment, the employer’s involvement is vital. Here is the typical Work Cover process:
- Employee sustains an injury at work.
- Employee visits their Doctor, is issued medical certificate and seeks treatment.
- Employee completes a compensation application.
- Employer lodges report.
- Employer develops a recovery plan.
- Employee lodges claim and receives an answer within 20 working days.
- Employer can liaise with Work Cover for complex claims.
- Insurer and employer work with the employee on return to work plan.
- Claim finalised and the employee can return to work.
Working with your physio on a Work Cover Claim
Visiting a physiotherapist for treatment for your workplace injury is covered by Work Cover insurance. This means you can access your local physio for no out-of-pocket expense. Your physio plays an important role in assessing your injury, prescribing treatment and helping you to comfortably return back to work.
Physiotherapy is an important part of recovering from physical workplace injuries.
Injury treatment and management advice:
- Help to manage and understand your symptoms.
- Guidance to stay well and prevent further injury.
Modifying tasks for work:
- Help to adjust your necessary work movements to actions with less pain and strain.
- Identifying and treating underlying problems.
Exercise and equipment prescription:
- Aid and accelerate recovery.
- Help you to return to work in a stronger state.
Visit your local physio for Work Cover treatment
If you have a Work Cover claim and require physiotherapy, visit NDPE for quality care and support. We can help you to return to work stronger and healthier, and effectively treat your injury for long term recovery. Book your appointment today.
