Psychological Injury and the Role of Emotional Resilience

Kristin TinkerNational Rehabilitation Manager

AGENDA

1. What is emotional resilience?2. Understanding psychological injury

• Statistics & prevalence• Causes of psychological injury

3. Claims Management implications• Best practice injury management of psychological injury claims• Early v Tail interventions• Why psychological injury claims get stuck

4. Summary

PART 1

What is emotional resilience?

THEORY OF EMOTIONAL RESILIENCE

Think of emotional well-being as being on a continuum…

0 +5-5

Problem solving skills

Self Worth

Social Competence

Optimism

Good support network

Planning Skills

Openness to change

Task vs emotion centred

Internal locus of control

Purposefulness

Sense of humour

Looks after themselves

PART 2

Understanding Psychological Injury

UNDERSTANDING PSYCHOLOGICAL INJURY IN NORTHERN TERRITORY

Claim Trends 2008 – 2012 • Increasing steadily • Increased incidence in workers up to the age of 54 years old• Representation:

- Government: 12-15% of claims (>35% claims cost)- Private: 3-5% of claims (>10% total claims cost)

• Average cost per psychological injury claim:- $44,242 (government)

- $38,740 (private)

• Total cost of mental stress claims: - $2,123,625 (government)

- $3,021,691 (private)Adapted from Trends in Northern Territory Workers’ Compensation Claims, Sept 2013

PSYCHOLOGICAL INJURY RESEARCH

79%

11%

5%5%

Adjustment Disorder Major Depressive Episode PTSDPanic Disorder/Phobia

Source: Centre for Corporate Health, Analysis of Claims 1999-2009

WHAT CAUSES PSYCH CLAIMS?

Exposure to operational

stressors

Emotional response /

psychological injury

Workers’ Compensation

Claim

THE IMPACT OF OPERATIONAL STRESSORS

The correlation between exposure to specific operational stressors and (a) individual employee stress response and (b) submission of workers compensation claims

is negligible.

Source: Peter Cotton (2011)

KEY DRIVERS FOR PSYCH CLAIMSKey predictors for why people put in claims:

1. Individual morale

2. Supportive leadership

3. Work team climate

4. Individual psychological susceptibility

Addressing these is the first steps in preventing psychological claims in the workplace

PERSONALITY FACTORSSOURCE: CENTRE FOR CORPORATE HEALTH, ANALYSIS OF PSYCHOLOGICAL INJURY CLAIMS 1999-2009

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PART 3.

Implications for Claims Management

BEST PRACTICE INJURY MANAGEMENT OF PSYCH INJURY CLAIMS

RTW

Assessment

Treatment

Rehab

… 3 essential ingredients

THE RESILIENCE BOX™ …WHAT’S IN THE BOX?

The program consists of practical and effective strategies to build resilience and enhance personal

wellbeing

BEST PRACTICE REHABILITATIONIs…- Consultative- Holistic- Biopsychosocial- Tailored (ie: physical v psychological strategies)- Conducted by industry specialists - Positive!

Is not…- Adversarial- Isolated- Standardised- Authoritative

IN SUMMARY

• The majority of people recover from a psychological injury• Prevention strategies aimed at improving emotional resilience can

reduce claim numbers • All psychological injury claims need best practice:

• Assessment• Treatment• Psychological Rehabilitation• Intense Injury Management

• Emotional resilience can be taught, and staff can learn new skills to improve their emotional resilience, and prevent their psychological susceptibility to developing mental illness

FURTHER INFORMATION

www.resilia.com.au

Please contact:

Kristin Tinker National Rehabilitation ManagerPh. 1300 4 RESILIA (1300 47 37 45) ktinker@resilia.com.au