Monthly Archives: April 2014

Is There a Crisis of Confidence in IME Assessments?

Posted on April 27, 2014 by Tasworkdoc

While I personally have had concerns about the ‘quality’ of many IME assessments for some time, I did not realise how widespread the concerns were about the fairness of such assessments until relatively recently. Injured workers representatives are certainly concerned, … Continue reading →

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Beware – Risks from use of Independent Doctors for Disability Pensioners

Posted on April 20, 2014 by Tasworkdoc

ABC News 24 recently reported: “The Federal Government is considering using independent doctors to examine disability pensioners and assess whether they should continue to receive payments.” While this idea sounds attractive, it is important to consider how systems that currently … Continue reading →

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National Pain Conference in Hobart – Implications for Workers Compensation Systems

Posted on April 17, 2014 by Tasworkdoc

I had the pleasure over the last 3 days to attend the national conference of the Australian Pain Society. Luckily for me it was held in Hobart, just a stone’s throw from my practice on the outskirts of the Hobart CBD … Continue reading →

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Is the role of the treating doctor undervalued ?

Posted on April 10, 2014 by Tasworkdoc

While the amount of time a practitioner spends on a case is not always a measure of their value, it is a measurable input that can be compared to the outcomes achieved in the management of people with work-related injury and illness. … Continue reading →

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Workers Compensation – Quality Health Care or target for Cost Reduction?

Posted on April 7, 2014 by Tasworkdoc

Doctors (and workers too) see a Workers Compensation system as a Health Care system, providing for the needs of those unfortunate to be injured or become ill as a result of their work. Workers Compensation however is different to most other types … Continue reading →

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Double Whammy for Insurers from Tasmanian Impairment Guidelines

Posted on April 2, 2014 by Tasworkdoc

The WorkCover Tasmania Guidelines to Impairment Assessment that modify the American AMA  (4th Edition) Guides are used to assess impairment of Tasmanian workers. Without going into some more fundamental issues about the use of impairment assessment systems (such as the … Continue reading →

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