4.5.20 Household help

Household help services guidelines

The household help services guidelines provides information about:

what costs WorkSafe will and will not pay for
how much WorkSafe can pay
who can provide household help services
accessing services
service delivery expectations for forensic cleaning providers

See: Household help services guidelines

Fee schedule

See: Fee Schedule for Household Help Services

WorkSafe can fund household help services to assist workers to effectively recover from workplace injuries and safely return to work and life.

Household help services are essential household cleaning and gardening tasks:

provided in the worker's primary residential home
the worker performed pre-injury
the worker can no longer perform because of their work-related An injury/disease is work related if it arose out of or in the course of employment and the scope of employment. illness or injury

WorkSafe expects the type and frequency of household help services provided to a worker will reduce as the worker recovers. All household help service requests should be considered an interim or short term arrangement, unless the worker has long term needs due to the nature of their injury or illness.

For all household help service requests, the agent should consider if the supply of adaptive household equipment will maximise independence and reduce or replace the need for WorkSafe funded household help services.

Initial requests

Household help services can be provided short-term to support a worker during their recovery, with an initial approval period of 6-12 weeks. Additional services of up to 12 weeks may be requested and considered for approval following an initial 12-week period, if it has been identified by the worker’s treating health practitioner (THP Treating Health Practitioner) that further support is necessary.

Agents should initiate an Occupational Therapy Occupational therapy is a client-centred health profession concerned with promoting health and well being through occupation. The primary goal of occupational therapy is to enable people to participate in the activities of everyday life. Occupational therapists achieve this outcome by working with people and communities to enhance their ability to engage in the occupations they want to, need to or are expected to do or by modifying the occupation or the environment to better support their occupational engagement. (OT) Activities of Daily Living (ADL) assessment, including a Functional Capacity Evaluation (FCE) if an additional 12 weeks is requested, to review the need for ongoing services.

See: Occupational therapy Activities of Daily Living ADL Assessment

Subsequent requests beyond 24 weeks

Requests for additional household help services beyond 24 weeks (accumulated) should only be made in exceptional circumstances. For all requests beyond 24 weeks, the agent will consider the need for longer term household help by reviewing appropriate supporting clinical information and rationale for services.

Agents should only consider requests beyond 24 weeks for a period of 12 weeks, per request, to allow time to gather supporting clinical information and the completion of the ADL assessment.

An ADL assessment, including FCE, must be completed for all household help services requests beyond the initial 24 weeks (accumulated).

See: Occupational therapy Activities of Daily Living ADL Assessment

Household help considerations

Agents can pay for Household help services where all of the following apply:

the Request for household help services form has been completed and received from the worker’s THP
the Household help request: Worker declaration form has been completed and received from the worker
the requested services are for tasks the worker performed prior to their work-related injury or illness (not performed by other family members In relation to a work-related: • severe injury for which immediate inpatient treatment in hospital is received • eligible progressive disease • fatal injury a ‘family member’ means a partner, parent, grandparent, sibling or child of the worker or of the worker's partner. Note: this definition is not the same as a close family member. or purchased labour) and can no longer perform as a result of the injury/ illness
the requested services relate to routine and essential tasks only, associated with the worker maintaining themselves in their primary residence
the Agent has granted prior approval for the services before they commence
the Agent considers the services reasonable and appropriate considering the impairment of the worker’s functional capacity and domestic circumstances. Considerations include:
- what the worker’s requirements of living were at the time of the injury/illness
- whether the worker’s family/household members contribute, or can reasonably be expected to contribute, to the requested household tasks.
the cost of the service is reasonable and in line with WorkSafe’s household help fee schedule.

See: Standard Household Help Ready Reckoner | Long Term Household Help Ready Reckoner

4.5.20.1 Agent receives request

Agents may receive a request for household services from a worker or their THP (e.g. physiotherapist Registered physiotherapist means a person registered under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law to practise in the physiotherapy profession (other than as a student)., osteopath, chiropractor, or medical practitioner). It also includes an occupational therapist employed or contracted by a hospital registered with WorkSafe, who makes a recommendation for household help as part of the worker’s discharge from hospital. To satisfy the requirement of a referral for Household help, the Agent must receive the following forms:

Household help request: Worker declaration. The worker completes and signs this form only once during their claim. This form provides additional details about the living situation and requirements of the worker, and can be completed on behalf of the worker if assistance is needed.
Request form for household help services. This form is completed by the worker’s primary THP. An updated request form is required from the primary THP every 12 weeks in order for services to continue (except where longer term services over 6 months are approved).

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