1. stay in touch with the injured employee. Let injured employees know th they have not been forgotten and that they are not isolated. Answer a their questions and try to maintain their loyalty to the organization
2. Have a return-to-work program a use it. The sooner an injured employee returns to work. even with a reduced workload, the lower workers' com pensation costs will be. Reduced costs can. in turn, lower the organiza tion's insurance premium. When using the return-to-work strategy, be cautious. Communicate with the employee and his or her medical treat- ment team. Have a clear understanding of the tasks that can be done and those that should be avoided, such as how much weight the employee can safely lift
Colledge and Johnson recommend using the "SPICE" model for improving the effectiveness of return-to-work programs. It consists of the following components Simplicity
Proximity
Immediacy
Centrality
Expectancy 32
Simplicity means that the medical professionals who treat injured employees should work closely with safety professionals to prevent "system induced complications. Such complications occur when employees become convinced their injuries are more serious than they really are because of ominous-sounding diagnostic terminology and complicated tests and treat ments. Medical professionals and safety personnel should work together to keep the terminology simple and to explain tests and treatments in easily understood lay terms
Proximity means keeping the injured employee as close to the job as possi ble. Employees who are physically separated from their place of employment fellow employees also become mentally separated. Within a short and their time, what used to be "us" can become "them." Giving as much injury care as possible at the work site, providing light-duty assignments. and communicating regularly with employees whose injuries preclude on-site assignments or treatment will keep employees connected and maintain the advantages of proximity
Immediacy means that the faster an employee's issues injury claims can be handled, the less likely he or she will be to develop psychosocial complicate the recovery process. The longer it takes to process a claim, con duct a diagnosis. and begin treatments the likely the employee is going to more worry about the injury and to become accustomed to being off work. Immediate diagnosis. processing, and treatment can decrease the amount of time that elapses before the employee can begin a return-to-work program.
Centrality means getting the employee, his or her family, the medical pro- the employer to agree fessionals handling the case, insurance personnel, and on a common vision for successfully returning the injured party to work as soon as possible. It is important for injured employees and their families to know that everyone involved has the same goal and that everyone is working in good faith to achieve that goal.
Expectancy means creating the expectation that getting the employee well and back to work is the goal of all parties involved. It is achieved by communicating this message clearly to all parties and reinforcing it by establishing short-term goals and timelines for actually being back on the job. Achievement of each respective short-term goal should move the employee one step closer to recovery and return to work
3. Determine the cause of the accident. The key to preventing future accidents and incidents is determining the cause of the accident in question and the key to holding down workers' compensation costs is preventing accidents. Eliminating the root cause of every accident is fundamental to any cost-containment effort