4.5.20 Household help

Agents can pay the reasonable costs of household help services to provide assistance with basic and routine housework and gardening tasks for a worker as a direct result of the work related injury. The services are provided when a worker cannot perform the tasks independently when they had done so pre injury.

This assistance is typically in place for a short period of time while the worker increases their independence.

If the worker’s injury or illness means they cannot return to completing some of their household tasks in the same manner as pre injury, assistance is available to help the worker maximize their independence such as adaptive equipment or self-management strategies

Agents should periodically review a worker’s entitlement to household help services to ensure the costs of the services are reasonable and the services are necessary and appropriate for the worker’s 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.

Policy

See: Policy for Household Help

The policy provides guidelines for household help services. It includes:

what costs can be paid for
who can provide services
housework tasks
lawn mowing and gardening tasks
information required to pay for services.

Fee schedule

WorkSafe publish a fee schedule for the maximum payment rates for cleaning, lawn mowing and garden maintenance.

See: Fee Schedule for Household Help Services

4.5.20.1 Agent receives request

Agents may receive a request for household services from a worker or from a worker’s THP Treating Health Practitioner.

Once received, the Agent should upload the request onto Novus using the USR: Medical and Like Service Request Process.

Within 10 calendar days of receipt of the request or receipt of further information, Agents must:

assess the necessity and reasonableness of the household help tasks requested.
assess the relationship of the injury or illness to the requested service
determine whether the service is for the worker
determine whether the worker undertook the tasks pre-injury
determine the worker’s ability to undertake the tasks post injury
assess the size of the worker’s home/garden at the time of the injury
assess the worker’s family circumstances
assess the reasonable contribution of family/household members.
discuss with the worker and treaters when independence of these tasks and any assistance that may be required is expected.
determine liability for the household help tasks requested.

If the information on file does not assist with determining short term home services, arrange an ADL. Long term home services requests should undergo an ADL assessment to review service, self-management strategies or adaptive equipment.

Case Managers can also discuss requests for household help with a suitably qualified person.

Requests that should be reviewed more quickly include:

those associated with an acute injury, (e.g. following emergency surgery or discharge from hospital)
where the worker’s circumstances dictate some urgency, (e.g. the worker has a significant incapacity, small dependent children and no family assistance).

Treating health professional request

A request is required from a medical practitioner, 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 or chiropractor, prior to the commencement of any services. The household help services request must specify the:

relationship between the household help requested and the worker’s work-related or illness
household help tasks required
period of time that household help is required and any commencement date (e.g. to recover from surgery)

Where the request is received directly from the worker, the Agent must advise the worker within 10 calendar days:

the request cannot be considered without a written request from a treating health professional
the treating health professional will be asked to provide additional information regarding the worker’s injury or illness and its relationship to the requested services.

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