<< Click to Display Table of Contents >> Navigation:  The 3-step system: Triage, assessment and matched intervention > Screening to identify those at elevated risk > Who should be screened?

There is a trade-off between identifying those who are likely to benefit from extra support and the time and resources devoted to screening. Options include:

1. Screening everyone who lodges a claim, including those who have time off work and those claiming for medical costs only. This would maximise the chances of identifying high risk cases before they become a problem.

2. Screening all those who have lost any time from work. This would also be useful, even if less comprehensive than option 1.

3. Screening those who have had a specific time off work, e.g. 1-2 weeks off work.

With increasing automation and integration with claims systems, greater numbers can be screened with minimal extra resources.

Manual processes, e.g. phone interview to complete the screening questionnaire require extra resources and may tip the balance toward screening only those who have lost time from work.