Summary
Date: 20 December 2018
Safe Work Australia invited the RACGP to comment on their discussion paper regarding the development of a National Return to Work Strategy to drive and leverage national effort to improve return to work outcomes. The strategy intends to provide a framework to pull together current activity at the national and jurisdictional levels and guide future work. It is also intended to facilitate the sharing of outcomes and learnings, reducing siloed activity and duplication in effort between jurisdictions.
The RACGP response outlined member feedback on the discussion paper, particularly in regards to:
- the need for greater recognition of the GP role in the strategy
- barriers faced by GPs and their patients in return to work planning that can be addressed by the strategy, including:
- the lack of appropriate supports and funding
- the need to mitigate unnecessary or inappropriate processes, causing delays in a patient's return to work (for example, insurers requesting full medical records, and lengthy administrative paperwork)
- employer rejection of a GP's return to work recommendations
- the need for greater collaboration between stakeholders involved in return to work.