The Role of Medical Assessments in the Workplace
Written on May 1, 2012 at 7:07 am, by Mary Crunkleton – Director of Employer Services
Disability Management Services assist employers and employees as they work to reduce the impact to the employee and the business when an employee experiences a disability. Accurate medical adjudication of claims and return to work intervention are the first crucial steps in returning an employee to work from disability.
Psychological Assessments of Individuals who are Involved in MVAs: Why Do They Take So Long to Perform?
Written on April 25, 2012 at 2:19 pm, by Dr. Jeremy B. Frank
Clinical psychological evaluation has been demonstrated to be a scientifically sound and effective undertaking for the identification of psychological impairments for treatment planning purposes and for the identification of psychological disability. Meta-analytic research on assessment validity reveals that many psychological tests detect psychopathology as accurately and effectively as do medical tests.
Return to Work Programs – Safe and Early Return to Work
Written on April 1, 2012 at 8:56 am, by Mary Crunkleton – Director of Employer Services
Employers regardless of size of organization should have a Return to Work (RTW) Program in place to assist disabled employees in their return/graduated return to the workplace. A RTW Program does not need to be identical for each organization, but the basics of the plan must align with any and all legislative requirements, and should meet the needs of each disabled employee in terms of returning this person to their pre-disability position within the organization. Read more
Absence Policies and Procedures – Essential Employer Tools
Written on March 1, 2012 at 7:45 am, by Mary Crunkleton – Director of Employer Services
How does casual absence affect your organization’s bottom line? Many employers today are not aware of how the total cost of absence affects their company.
Ineffective or dated Absence Management policies are often the culprit where excessive casual absence is concerned. If employees are either not aware of the policies or the policies are out of date and not effective an organization’s bottom line suffers. Some employers will also not have formal policies in place, for a variety of reasons. This will also negatively affect their bottom line.
CATASTROPHIC IMPAIRMENT UPDATE (SABS)
Written on February 14, 2012 at 4:10 pm, by Webmaster
Dennis Polygenis B.Sc.PT.,MCPA
Registered Physiotherapist
Certified Impairment Rater (AMA Guides, 4th Edition)
On December 23, 2011, the Ontario Court of Appeal overturned the trial judge’s decision in Kusnierz v. The Economical Mutual Insurance Co. that psychological impairments should be combined with physical impairments to determine whether a motor vehicle accident victim has sustained a catastrophic impairment. This decision will likely impact the current definition of “catastrophic” impairment under the SABS and could lead to potential modifications to the definition.
Surveying Employees – The Key to Organizational Management
Written on February 6, 2012 at 4:17 pm, by Mary Crunkleton – Director of Employer Services
An organization’s best source of competitive advantage is its people. Strategies, business models, products, and services can all be copied by competitors. Talented people, by contrast, cannot be duplicated and will always set your organization apart. Achieving a competitive advantage through people requires that organizations succeed in attracting and retaining talent. This means engaging the hearts and minds of employees at all levels.
Shoulder Impingement
Written on January 20, 2012 at 3:06 pm, by Dr. Jason Swain
Shoulder pain is a very common physical complaint. The ‘shoulder’ consists of various joints, muscles, tendons and ligaments. The shoulder sacrifices overall static stability in order to allow for greater ranges of movement. The rotator cuff is a group of 4 shoulder muscles that provide dynamic stability to the actual shoulder joint. The rotator cuff muscles originate on the shoulder blade and extend to the humerus (arm bone).
Protecting Employees’ Mental Health in the Workplace
Written on January 1, 2012 at 7:49 am, by Mary Crunkleton – Director of Employer Services
Employers and employees alike would agree that there are certain points in the year where they are busier than others. During any peak or busy period in the workplace staff and management experience stressors that have the ability to affect performance and productivity.
There is an elusive connection between an individual experiencing workplace stress and the occurrence of anxiety related illnesses including depression.
Health and Wellbeing in and Away From the Workplace
Written on December 1, 2011 at 8:00 am, by Mary Crunkleton – Director of Employer Services
All employers desire the healthiest work environment for their employees. A positive and nurturing culture, the most appropriate ergonomics, the most current policies and procedures are crucial to an effectively run workplace.
What some employers neglect to take into consideration is the home or “away from work” life of their employees. While a healthy work environment is a good first step to ensuring optimal productivity and balance for employees, a healthy home life is just as important.
Self-Insured Short-Term Disability – The Right Choice?
Written on October 14, 2011 at 7:31 pm, by Mary Crunkleton – Director of Employer Services
Employers are constantly searching for ways to reduce their group benefit premiums, and short-term disability is often one of the first places they look for these savings, given the high premium costs associated with this benefit.