4.5.29 Occupational therapy
4.5.29.1 Hand Therapy | 4.5.29.2 Mental Health Occupational Therapy | 4.5.29.3 Framework occupational therapy | 4.5.29.4 Arrange an ADL assessment
WorkSafe can pay the reasonable costs of referred occupational therapy treatment or assessment to assist workers in the rehabilitation of a work-related An injury/disease is work related if it arose out of or in the course of employment and the scope of employment. injury or illness.
WorkSafe will only pay for occupational therapy by providers who are:
- registered by WorkSafe to provide occupational therapy services
- registered to practice as an occupational therapist with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA).
Occupational therapists provide workers with treatment designed to maximise their independence and facilitate their participation in activities of everyday life. Treatment is initiated by a medical practitioner and directed by the occupational therapist under approval by the Agent.
Treatment may involve:
- provision of exercises to promote recovery (e.g. hand therapy)
- prescription of adaptive and/or alternative techniques to enable a worker to perform an activity (e.g. breaking heavy tasks into smaller more manageable tasks)
- prescription of equipment to enable a worker to perform an activity
- modification of an environment to facilitate independence and participation (e.g. installing a rail in a bathroom)
- assessment to establish the level of support that a worker may require as a result of their injuries (as in household help)
- provision of focused psychological strategies to assist management of mild to moderate mental health conditions (as in mental health occupational therapy). WorkSafe can pay for the reasonable costs of a medical and like expense where a worker is entitled to provisional payments on a claimed mental injury. See: Provisional payments for a mental injury.
Treating occupational therapists must submit an Allied Health Recovery Management Plan (AHRMP) to the managing Agent by the fifth consultation.
Occupational therapists can also conduct assessments to assist Agents to make decisions about the type of help and support a worker may need as a result of their work-related injury or illness.
See: Personal and Household Services | Household Help | Arrange an ADL assessment | Framework Occupational Therapy
Policy
Refer to the Occupational Therapy Services Policy for information about:
- occupational therapy treatment and assessment
- what can be paid for
- who can provide services
- expectations for service delivery under the Clinical Framework
- referral requirements.
Fee Schedule
WorkSafe publish a fee schedule for the maximum amounts it will pay for a range of occupational therapy services.
See: Occupational Therapy Services Fee Schedule | Cost of Services