Talking with the nearly 300 RTW coordinator delegates at the SA WorkCover Conference provided a clearer picture of what the rehabilitation providers and professionals expect from WorkCover SA and Employers Mutual, the insurer of injured workers in the state.

One delegate said that injured workers remained fearful of talking about injuries and the matters associated with their rehabilitation. Rosemary McKenzie-Ferguson, co-founder of Work Injured Resource Connection, said that many injured workers do not know their place in the system. Not only are they injured and in pain but their families are similarly confused. Ms McKenzie-Ferguson believed that this was a weakness in the system that could allow for poor RTW decisions.

Many RTW Coordinators have this role in a part-time capacity and are often the “juggler” in the workplace, to use a WorkSafe Victoria term. This is a great opportunity if the person is also the safety manager as it allows for a whole-of-process perspective, but to work effectively the RTW role should be more than an add-on to existing duties.

A representative of WorkCover SA acknowledged that the introduction of RTW Coordinators was to “catch-up” to other States but was proud that, although South Australia is late to the concept, the introduction has been speedy, with strong government commitment.

The interactive workshops in the conference were important opportunities for feedback to WorkCover and the insurer, but also illustrated the level of frustration felt by RTW Coordinators. Ms McKenzie-Ferguson explained that the WorkCover system is not self-repairing and that government needs regular prods from the stakeholders when there are systemic deficiencies. In this circumstance WorkCover may have learnt as much from the conference as the delegates did.

WorkCover, the unions and the insurers provide a great deal of positive information but it is fragmented and not always readily available to injured workers. It is almost as if all workers (perhaps even the pre-work teenagers and parents) require “a beginner’s guide to being injured at work” which includes the legal traps, avenues for negotiation, the role of the next of kin in a workplace incident, and “independent” government resources such as the Workplace Advocates.

This important information provided early in one’s career could go a long way to reducing the feeling of helplessness that injured workers and their families experience.