The New Workers' Compensation Medical Certificate - A Communication Tool

The workers' compensation medical certificate provides advice to insurers and employers on the diagnosis, period of incapacity, capabilities and parameters for rehabilitation to assist in the determination of initial and ongoing liability and injury management.

Appropriate completion of the certificate will assist in timely processing by the insurer and expedite payment for the medical practitioner. It will also assist in appropriate and timely injury management and rehabilitation for your patient.

The medical certificate is a key communication tool between the medical practitioner, insurer and employer.

While it is a key communication tool, medical practitioners are also encouraged to contact the insurer and/or the employer directly in more complex cases. Such contact is remunerable by the insurer (refer to Medical Table of Costs Supplementary Schedule).

The medical certificate is designed to cater for your approval of various components of the rehabilitation process. As the diagnosis may change with further investigation, so too rehabilitation and suitable duties may also change with time, injury development and management. In these cases the certificate should reflect the changes. If you do not wish to coordinate or direct rehabilitation, you are able to indicate this information to the insurer on the certificate, so that arrangements can be made by the insurer or by a professional that you nominate.

When completing the rehabilitation and return to work plan please ensure that you indicate what your patient is capable of, or needs, in order to begin the return to work process. This will allow the insurer and employer to appropriately tailor the rehabilitation program or suitable duties to your patient's needs. For example, if duties are not available at the workplace, your patient may be temporarily placed with a host employer* while they are recovering.

The workers' compensation medical certificate is a legal document and must only be completed by the medical practitioner or dentist.

* Host employer - an employer who agrees to provide a temporary placement for an injured worker to allow them to undertake a suitable duties program.