The Well Workplace

Return to work programs, designed to facilitate speedy returns to productivity for employees after workplace injuries, are quickly becoming the standard in American companies. Physical therapy programs are often an integral part of an employee's return to work plan, services that may be offered on-site as workplace therapy and rehabilitation programs – a practice that is becoming widespread as more companies implement integrated workplace injury management strategies. In light of this trend, employers considering these programs for their own workers need to know just how much impact physical therapy programs can have on employee recovery.

When workplace injuries occur, the vast majority of injured workers are back to work within a week or two according to Liberty Mutual Research Institute For Safety report. However, for about one of every ten employees, getting back to work is a much slower and more difficult process. Researchers from The Institute of Work & Health have identified a number of common obstacles to the return to work (RTW) process that make it more difficult than it needs to be, as well as offering a number of methods for combating them.

Transitioning back into the workplace after a serious on-the-job injury or illness can be a difficult, frustrating, and often stressful process. From false starts, where an injured worker returns too early only to become overwhelmed and leave again, to situations where an injured worker is judged fit for duty but disagrees with the assessment, a number of scenarios can keep injured workers from returning to their posts. The question is, how should employers handle these failed return to work cases?

When the topic of workplace injuries comes up, the discussion typically centers on serious injuries – the ones that really cost employees in terms of pain, missed work time and potential long-term disability, not to mention and employers workers' comp claims, lost productivity and other costs. While those big, serious injuries certainly are attention grabbers, minor on-the-job injuries – those everyday repetitive strains, minor sprains, and minor falls – matter too. If you’re looking to reduce your workers’ compensation premiums and claim expenses (and who isn’t?), no injury is too small to notice. Companies that take a proactive approach encourage reporting of “discomfort” before it becomes a full blown work-related, lost time injury.   Like the guy in the old Fram oil filter commercial said, “You can pay me now or pay me later.”

Transitional duty programs are an important component of effective return to work programs and are designed to help an employee who has suffered injury or illness transition back into the workforce as quickly and safely as possible.These programs have been shown to be beneficial to recovering employees and their employers. Here we'll get into the details of these programs as well as the facts on their benefits.

According to the Coalition Against Insurance Fraud, worker’s compensation costs have not only been rising steadily – and steeply – each year, they’re also riddled with billions of dollars worth of fraud. This makes preventing workers' compensation cases, and the injuries from which they result, a priority. So how can companies prevent the most common workers' compensation frauds? For starters, identify those employees most likely to file a claim – legitimate or not – before they’re hired.