Articles

This page lists all practical and feature articles available on RTWMatters. From top ten tips, how to guides and case studies, through to webinar recordings and video interviews with industry experts.

Click the ‘Topics’ button below to drill down into all articles and research updates on your topic of interest.

Click the ‘Quick Guides’ button for practical bit sized guides that give you a sound basic knowledge base.

WEBINAR - Using surveys to understand your workplace and prevent claims

contributorDr Peter Cotton

Dr Peter Cotton explains how understanding workplace morale and quality of management allows...

The forest for the trees

contributorMary Harris

Identify the variables of chronic pain to achieve holistic return to work

Decision-making justice: Part three

contributorDr Mary Wyatt

What works and what does not work in the decision making process. A must read for claims / case...

Garnering consensus on the importance of work to health

contributorGabrielle Lis and Dr Mary Wyatt

Occupational Physicians have brought together a broad group to join forces on changing beliefs...

Australian Consensus Statement on the Health Benefits of Work

contributorAustralasian Faculty of Occupational and Environmental Medicine

Occupational Physicians garner stakeholder support to influence policy initiatives and...

Mental health at work, Steps to get there

contributorIngrid Ozols

An interview with Ingid Ozols, director of mh@work, exploring how mental health can be improved...

Decision-making justice: Part two

contributorDr Mary Wyatt

Another must read for claims / case managers: how you cannot afford to get it wrong, and how you...

Decision-making justice Part 1.

contributorDr Mary Wyatt

A good decision making process is worth its weight in platinum, making this a key read for...

Why train supervisors and line managers in return to work?

contributorDr Mary Wyatt

A Powerpoint presentation on the whys and wherefores of supervisor training in RTW management.

Rotator cuff troubles - video presentation

contributorDr Mary Wyatt

Shoulder problems are the second most common work-related musculoskeletal problem. Here's an...

The Balancing Act

contributorTom Barton

We speak to rehab provider Donna Valiant about managing everybody's needs, expectations and...

Case study: Tact and trust

contributorGabrielle Lis

Are your innovative ideas constantly met with suspicion? This case study from cotton-milling...

Returning to hard work

contributorMary Harris

Genius, they say, is 1% inspiration, and 99% perspiration. This case study looks at how four...

Impatient with patients on modified duties

contributorMary Harris

After foot surgery, rehab professional Mary Harris gains first hand insight into how co-workers...

Emotional resilience: 2

contributorTom Barton

This second of a two-part series investigates identifying pessimistic thinking in employees, and...

Emotional resilience: 1

contributorTom Barton

This first of a two-part series investigates the negative health and work effects of pessimism,...

Backing away from compensation

contributorGabrielle Lis

A prominent South Australian back surgeon has called for workers' comp for back pain to be...

Costs of 'job strain' related depression

contributorGabrielle Lis

What is job strain? How is it linked to depression? And what are the associated costs? New...

Price for patients of no-cost compensation

contributorDr Mary Wyatt

Should workers' comp recipients share treatment costs with their employers?

The opiate trap

contributorDr Mary Wyatt

The use of opiates in chronic pain cases should be carefully monitored. Patients need a high...

The OT way

contributorGabrielle Lis

What do gardening, work and dancing have in common? According to Occupational Therapist Sven...

Patient advocacy and workers' comp

contributorGabrielle Lis

Workers' comp cases present GPs and other health professionals with opportunities for meaningful...

Moving backwards on backs

contributorDr Mary Wyatt

The messages of a $6 million public health campaign about back pain are being lost thanks to...

Suicide and work injury

contributorTom Barton

New Australian research shows that workers with psychological injuries are not the only ones who...

HR and RTW

contributorMary Harris

HR and RTW are together as often as peas and carrots. Is it a match made in heaven or an...

Driving change

contributorTom Barton

How one car manufacturer steered their ageing workforce towards higher productivity

What's the go with Rehab in the US?

contributorDr Mary Wyatt

Our first ever multimedia feature! An interview with Mary Harris, US disability management...

Stress and emotional resilience

contributorGabrielle Lis and Tom Barton

Ever wondered what RTW and sabre-toothed tigers have in common? Or why some people bounce back...

A challenge to policy makers

contributorDr Mary Wyatt

How much do we know about how different workers' comp systems influence health outcomes? And...

Takeover opportunity

contributorShannon McLaughlin

What RTW and OHS challenges and opportunities can you expect when your company takes over...

Toxic Doctors

contributorDr Mary Wyatt

What do you do with a toxic doctor?

How trustworthy is trust?

contributorRTWMatters team

Trust is a key predictor of organisational success, says the Great Places to Work Institute....

Who's the boss?

contributorGabrielle Lis

The health and wellbeing of people with chronic illness improves when they become...

Jokes, bullying and RTW

contributorLara Forth

Lara felt bullied by her case manager and colleagues when she returned to work - even when they...

Missing the signs

contributorGabrielle Lis

Organisations who offer "good work" have fewer stress and musculoskeletal claims. Managerial...

What you can't see...

contributorLara Forth

...CAN hurt you. Having an internal injury that nobody sees can make rehabilitation far more...

Philosopher King

contributorGabrielle Lis

An Italian entrepreneur has turned the Umbrian village of Solomeo into both a fashion factory,...

Learning from the Vet

contributorDr Mary Wyatt

Getting in touch with connectedness

The broad reach of suicide

contributorTom Barton

The burden of suicide in Australia is comparable with other major, better understood chronic...

Preventing further harm to the harmed

contributorGabrielle Lis and Dr Mary Wyatt

Etymology - the archaeology of words - sometimes uncovers a contemporary resonance in ancient digs.