Thank you to all the members who provided feedback in the lead-up to AAPi’s quarterly meeting with WorkSafe Vic.
Themes AAPi specifically discussed (not an exhaustive list):
- Reported lag in response times from case managers & non-response to emails
- Clinical decisions made by case managers and coercion to specific treatments
- Use of threat over the loss of payments
- The need for more agent education & upskilling
WorkSafe is investigating some of the concerns raised and will come back to AAPi around pathways for follow-up & escalation. In the meantime, if you have general concerns you can raise these by contacting the provider inbox.
WorkSafe has updated its website for providers so information and resources should be easier to locate now, including the Essentials for Healthcare Providers resource.
Supports were discussed for those who had been out of work for 130+ weeks. The CaRS (claim and recovery support) Model and the Support Coordination program were discussed specifically. For those members that had queries about the CaRS Model, WorkSafe advised that the team had now expanded to support 1500 injured workers for person-centred planning and an early internal evaluation showed that the results were very promising, showing increases in independence and community participation, high satisfaction levels and reduced reliance on drugs of dependence. Clinicians are not able to refer to this program, participants are automatically selected by insurers and clients will be advised directly.
The Support Coordination Program is running as a 2-year pilot and aims to support those who have been out of work for 130+ weeks and who also have a clinical or social complexity. A GP is required to sign the referral into this program. For clients who do not meet these criteria and need more assistance, there are supports available through individual agencies.
If you are ever uncertain and would like to know what additional support your client can access, please contact the clinical hotline (03) 4243 6950 or email [email protected] for clinical advice and brainstorming about the treatment and services available to injured workers.
Currently, there are low levels of treatment plans and reviews being completed by psychologists, likely due to information about this not being disseminated clearly to providers. Treatment plans (PS604) should ideally be completed and invoiced before 5 sessions have been completed and Review forms (PS109) can be completed and invoiced when requested or within 6 months of a case conference being completed. These forms can be found in the provider toolkit.