To have a secondary psychological injury “accepted” by WorkCover Queensland (or your workers’ compensation self-insurer) as a separate injury in your workers’ compensation claim (rather than their mental health issues simply being included under the umbrella of your physical injuries), the following needs to occur:
- Your doctor needs to include a psychological injury, in addition to your physical injuries, in Part B of any future Work Capacity Certificates, in the section where it states “The patient is/was suffering from (List all work-related diagnoses. …). See here:
- Your doctor should also indicate in Part C of the Work Capacity Certificate what treatment you need for your psychological injury and should also consider in part D of the form whether you are incapacitated for work or have restrictions as a result of your psychological injury (in addition to any restrictions caused by your physical injuries).
- You then need to provide a copy of the fully completed Work Capacity Certificate to WorkCover Queensland (or your workers’ compensation self-insurer), point out to them that your doctor has included a psychological injury and ask them to confirm, as soon as possible, that your psychological injury has been accepted as a part of your workers’ compensation claim.
- WorkCover (or your workers’ compensation self-insurer) will then usually arrange for an independent medical examination (IME) and assessment by an independent psychiatrist (not your treating psychologist or psychiatrist) to determine:
- whether you do in fact have a diagnosable psychiatric injury;
- whether that injury arose out of, or in the course of, employment;
- whether your employment was a significant contributing factor to that injury;
- whether your injury arose out of:
- reasonable management action taken in a reasonable way by the employer; and/or
- your expectation or perception of reasonable management action taken by your employer against you; and/or
- action taken by WorkCover Queensland or the Workers’ Compensation Regulator in connection with your application for workers’ compensation.
Depending on how and why the action is taken, reasonable management action may include action taken to transfer, demote, discipline, redeploy, retrench or dismiss a worker or a decision not to award a promotion.
- WorkCover Queensland (or your workers’ compensation self-insurer) may also seek medical records or medical reports from your treating doctor, psychologist or psychiatrist to assist them and the independent psychiatrist with making the relevant determination.
- In cases where the psychological injury is secondary to a physical injury (that is, the psychological injury has been caused or significantly contributed to by the impact the physical injury is having upon you), the elements referred to above will be deemed to have been satisfied and the injury will be formally “accepted” as a further injury in your claim.
Once WorkCover (or your workers’ compensation self-insurer) “accepts” the psychological injury as a work related injury, they will be liable to pay for the following:
- Weekly benefits for any time off work caused by your psychological injury (in addition to any time off required as a result of your physical injuries);
- Any necessary and reasonable medical treatment, allied health treatment, rehabilitation, services, suitable duties programs, host employment, aids and equipment required;
- A lump sum for any permanent psychological impairment suffered (in addition to a lump sum for any permanent physical impairment suffered).
