Lived Experience Forum

[Daz]

Hi, I acquired PTSD in the workplace about 15 months ago. My experience with the Worker's Compensation (WC) process is that it seems to best cater for physical injuries and not so much psychological issues. I will always remember the WC application document that asked me for "what part of your body is affected" by the injury. From then on it was pretty much treated as a physical injury. This led me to be re-traumatised when I was sent back to work way too early. There was no mental health recovery plan and no mental health recovery principles anywhere to be seen. These things do exist in the mental health sector, but dont seem to be embraced by Workcover. I am interested to find out if anyone else has experienced this issue. I would like to do something about this one-size-fits-all approach. What also "gets on my goat" is the fact that WA police officers have no access to workers compensation at all. My background is in emergency services, but I know that anyone can be subject to psychological injury while at work not just first responders.

[CherryBomb]

Hi @Daz

It's saddens me to here that there are not provsions made for mental health recovery plans. It seems like a system that make it hard for people to stay well. Thanks for starting this conversation. 

@Former-Member recently posted here about having experienced PTSD due to work. I'm sure if they claimed this through work cover though, but they might be able to talk about how they got support. 

We also have another member @Loopy he served in the police force and has been diagnosed with PTSD. I've not seen Loopy for a while, but he drops in on here every so often. I wonder if he might drop in to give some advice here. 

CherryBomb

[Former-Member]

Hi Daz,

Really sorry to hear about your battles - both with the illness and the bureaucracy. I can totally empathise, having been through a similar thing myself. I found the independent assessment to be a horrible experience, where I was forced into a situation where I had to describe my traumatic experiences (which I'd barely been able to face mentally let alone verbalise at that point) or, as was explained, I wouldn't receive any assistance. In terms of compensation, once it had been accepted, you're so right about the inadequacy of measuring the lifestyle impairment in relation to physical conditions. As my treating psychiatrist explained to me, you'd need to be in the absolute worst few percent of sufferers (ie hospitalised due to inability for any self care) to meet the criteria for much above 10% impairment. By contrast, if I'd had a shoulder injury requiring someone to come over and hang my clothes on the line or reach a top shelf, the impairmewnt would be regarded as considerably more significant. On the positive side,things would have been SO much worse in years gone by, when there was no acknowledgement at all around psychological injuries, nor safe environment to even raise it with anyone.

I was sent back to work way too early, as well. That became a downward spiralling disaster, especially when I convinced myself that "they" must know better than me and I should just toughen up and get on with things. So true about the lack of appropriate return to work support in the majority of workplaces.

That's a shocker about WA police??

Hope you're in good hands with your treatment and moving in the right direction.

ChaiMaker

[utopia]

Hi @Daz. I'm another WorkCover recipient (such a misleading word). Acute stress, depression and anxiety and PTSD from workplace. Oh god, the forms. I had to write a letter as well detailing everything that happened - 18 pages I wrote - of facts alone. Thank god I told my mum as it was happening - as I wouldn't have remembered a lot of the details that got my claim accepted. Tomorrow I go for my 6th WorkCover Psychiatric Review. No they don't provide this in the country - it entails trips to Melbourne - but never the city - has to be the suburbs - so it's harder to get there. You must sign a waver before you go in to see their psychiatrist. If you don't - you loose your payments.
Their psychiatrists have always said I'm 'sick' & one of them slammed my old workplace for not protecting me. Yes I went back too early. Many times I tried their 'back to work' programs. Every time I failed. And it just made my 'injury' worse.
WorkCover insurance is not there to help the worker - they are there to make a profit.
Constant phone calls from them & my old workplace and my back to work rehabilitation worker & Centrelink just make me worse. Even when their psychiatrists tell them to back off - they don't. Then they were pissed off at me because I needed hospitalisation due to Suicidal thoughts. They like to put the problems right back on you.
Compensation - forget it. I had my lawyer look into my super insurance. I could get a payout of around $8 to $10,000 - but then WorkCover wouldn't pay my income until it was used. So what's the point.
On the 14th of this month - this Sunday - it would be two years since my claim was accepted. They really want me off it now. It stops anyway in another 6 months.
Their policy seems to be to get the worker back in the workplace asap. That might be ok with a broken leg or arm - but not a broken mind.
I could go on and on. Anyway, wish me luck for tomorrow's psych review.

[utopia]

@Daz. By the way - I worked in the mental health sector. Not only didn't they protect me in the workplace (I was Admin) - but they did whatever they could to hinder my claim.

[Daz]

Hi utopia, thanks for your insight on this subject. I hope your psych review went OK today. Cheers Daz.

[Former-Member]

Hi utopia,

Likewise, I hope all went well today. You certainly deserve a break in the weather after all you've been through. It's such an awful state of affairs when the very people who are rolling up their sleeves to try to make a difference for others in the community are the ones being badly impacted. In saying that, it occurs to me that perhaps the WorkCover people are the most broken of all?! Have to wonder whether some have gone down with the ship and are suffering in silence themselves (or on this forum??). I guess the upshot is that you can't always pick those who are doing it tough and often soldiering on at their own expense. 

Take care,

ChaiMaker

[utopia]

@Former-Member. I agree with you. I got a new WorkCover case Manager & he went on sick leave & hasn't been back in over 4 months. I don't blame the staff, it's the owners who demand higher profits & don't care about any of us.
My appointment went well. He knows my psychiatrist & is glad I'm seeing him. He said he is going to over ride my gp's back to work. He will request a further 3 months of working with my psychiatrist and doing CBT with my psychologist before attempting any work.
Got home exhausted. Picked up son from school & told him I just needed 1 or 2 hours sleep. That was at 3.30pm. My son woke me at 8.30 this morning. Bugger. Obviously needed the sleep.

[Former-Member]

Oh wow, that poor case manager. Must be a job with a Use By date surely.

Hey, that's a great outcome about your extension of sick leave. And also avoid care plan from your respective shrinks. How awesome that you've found a good psychiatrist in particular, as they seem to be quite hit and miss from what I hear. 

That's quite a sleep you had! Go you! I so know what those days are like. I went along to a class the other day and it was all I could do to keep my eyes open and focused every time the presenter looked on my general direction. Shocker!

[utopia]

@Former-Member. When I went to The Melbourne Clinic earlier this year - this psychiatrist picked up my referral & said he would look after me & he did. The other psychiatrists didn't want to touch me - being on Work Cover & all. But mine just kept ringing and emailing them to get me extended time in hospital. His wife (office manager) was also great giving advice to my mum on how to get the hospital to admit ne quickly. Heard some patients at the clinic waited 3 or more months to get in.
He's my first psychiatrist. I got lucky. But I still say most of the work is done with my psychologist.
Amazed I slept so long - parenting guilt reared it's ugly head again this morning. But I couldn't help it. So I shut that negative voice down.
Ues it's very hard to concentrate when you don't have enough sleep.
Hope this weekend you manage to get a bit extra.