May Resources from Sedgwick - OABA Member Service Partner

OABA is pleased to partner with Sedgwick to offer members quality service and stability through the complex workers’ compensation environment. Check out this update from Sedgwick regarding Sedgwick Safety Services and Workers’ Compensation & Managed Care.

Sedgwick Safety Services

Did you know the Sedgwick Safety and Loss Prevention Department has safety consultants who can assist you and your company with developing and maintaining an effective safety and risk management program.  Our goal is to provide professional safety consulting services and the resources necessary for employers to minimize risk, prevent injuries and implement an effective, on-going safety program.  The key to a safe workplace starts with a strong and effective safety program.

As a Sedgwick customer, you have access to a wide variety of safety services, including the following:

OSHA and PERRP Recordkeeping Assistance – Understanding OSHA and PERRP guidelines are sometimes confusing and can be challenging.  We are here to assist you and help you gain a better understanding of the recordkeeping requirements, what injuries are recordable and how to complete the forms.  Many employers, including all public employers, are required to submit their injury and illness information online.  Our experts can provide guidance on this as well.

High Level Site Inspections – A great way to identify hazards in your workplace is to perform a site inspection.  Sometimes a second set of eyes will help uncover hazards you may have overlooked.  The Sedgwick Safety Department can visit your facility and perform an evaluation to identify opportunities for improvement as well as positive observations.  Upon completion, a detailed report with pictures is provided, along with guidance on implementing corrective actions, if requested.

Safety Program Reviews – Based on your industry type and a discussion of your operations, we can help identify what safety policies and programs are applicable.  For those with existing safety programs, we can conduct a high-level review and offer suggestions for improvement.  The Sedgwick Safety Team can also assist with development of these programs and provide templates.

OSHA/PERRP Citation Management - Dealing with OSHA and PERRP inspections and citations can be stressful to any organization, however, proper management is key.  An explanation of the citation process, review of citations and general recommendations can help relieve the stress and provide you with a comfort level to successfully navigate the process.

Safety Help Desk - Sedgwick customers can contact the safety and loss prevention department by phone or email any time with safety questions, or to request services and materials.  Our Safety Resources website has forms, materials, guidance documents, tool box talks and even pre-recorded webinars available for customer use: https://www.sedgwick.com/ohiotpa/resources.

Safety Training - Written Safety Programs help identify the company’s procedures on how the program effects their organization but training is key for employees to understand these policies.  The safety department can offer high level training materials or content and/or review existing training materials. Web-based and on-site training is available for a fee.

Injury Trend Reports - One of the most effective ways to determine hazards in your workplace is to evaluate injury trends.  A Risk Analysis report prepared by the Safety Department can help your organization determine your most frequently occurring injury causes and the most costly.  The findings in this report can help you most effectively allocate your safety resources.

Follow-Up – We like to stay in touch with our customers and follow up on reports, emails and recommendations that may require further action.  Our goal is to be your partner and help you throughout the process, and not just to provide a report and move on.

These are just some of the services that the Sedgwick Safety and Loss Prevention Department offers to our customers.  These high-level services are provided at no additional cost to TPA customers, however there are fee-based services available as well, such as:

• Industrial Hygiene Monitoring
• Noise Monitoring
• Company Specific Safety Policy Development
• Job Hazard Analysis
• Personal Protection Equipment Evaluation
• Employees Safety Training (in-person or virtual)

A cost estimate will be provided for any fee-based services requested.

If you would like to know more about Sedgwick’s safety services or would like to schedule a confidential consultation, please contact Andy Sawan, Risk Services Specialist at Sedgwick at andrew.sawan@sedgwick.com or 330-819-4728.

Workers’ Compensation and Managed Care

Best Practices for Recordkeeping, Documentation and Injury Reporting

Open Enrollment for MCO selection lasts through Friday, May 23.  It is an opportunity for Ohio employers that have state-funded workers’ compensation coverage to select an important resource to organize and resolve workplace injuries.   Sedgwick Managed Care Ohio is a key partner for our workers’ compensation program and happens to be Ohio’s largest MCO – by far – in both claims managed and employers served.¹ 

Recordkeeping and documentation
One of the roles of an MCO is to collect the essential data elements of a workplace injury to initiate a workers’ compensation claim.  Depending on the approach to collecting and arranging this information, the MCO can be an excellent warehousing partner for injury-related data.

Sedgwick MCO provides clients a series of value-added reports designed to facilitate record keeping obligations of OSHA and PERRP.  Many report options include an ongoing tally of lost workdays associated with each claim, as well as the number of modified duty workdays.  Access to this information on a monthly, quarterly and especially an annual basis (early January) can help employers complete their OSHA 300 and PERRP posting that is due each February.

MCOs should also be able to account for additional datapoints to help determine whether a workers’ compensation claim is OSHA-recordable.  For example, if medications are prescribed in the treatment of a workplace injury, it may be OSHA recordable despite having incurred no lost or modified workdays.  Similarly, if treatment for an injury includes services that exceed what is considered first-aid in nature, the injury may also be recordable despite involving no lost time.  An example of this would be a laceration that involves stitches, but the employee returns to work immediately.  Referencing medical billing codes to identify specific covered treatments can be a simple way to gather information that simplifies the OSHA and PERRP reporting process. 

Injury reporting
The claim filing process depends on information from multiple parties, including the injured employee and the treating physician.  But Sedgwick MCO encourages employers to take action as quickly as possible after a workplace incident to control this vital early stage of the process.  Establishing post-injury protocols that include thorough documentation of the incident, as well as compiling information required by BWC, can accelerate a sound claim allowance decision.  Early clarity on the nature of incident and injury can help frame the scope of the claim and define the medical conditions that are included for treatment. 

The First Report of Injury (FROI) is the standard BWC form that accommodates the required information and typically initiates a new claim.  Many employers keep the FROI on-hand to serve as an incident report.  Sedgwick Managed Care Ohio will provide clients with an Injury Reporting Packet, which can include the FROI and other forms and information to help guide both the employer and the injured employee through the claim process. 

Many employers have developed an incident report that collects much of the information required for the workers’ compensation claim.  Consider modifications to your incident report that may facilitate a more efficient claim filing process.  One of the best steps an employer can take to promote speed and accuracy in claim filing is to have an incident report completed quickly and sent directly to the managed care organization.  

Contact Sedgwick Managed Care Ohio
We encourage you to review objective data on the MCO Report Card to evaluate MCO performance metrics.  You will find that Sedgwick excels in areas that make a difference for Ohio employers, and brings a great deal of value, simplicity, and efficiency to the claim process.  If you feel there is room for improvement with your organization’s injury management program, or if you can use assistance organizing data for OSHA recording, Sedgwick MCO can help.  Every work environment is different, and Sedgwick can talk through your circumstances to build a process that works for you and your employees.  Visit Sedgwick MCO online to explore performance metrics and service features, or reach out directly at ClientServices@Sedgwickmco.com.

Learn more about Sedgwick!

Did you know that many alternative discounts are available to help reduce your annual Ohio workers’ compensation costs? Through the OABA workers’ compensation program, your organization can significantly reduce your workers’ compensation costs through a variety of alternative rating programs. Our program, administered by Sedgwick, offers you quality service and stability through the complex workers’ compensation environment.

For over 50 years, Sedgwick has been helping employers navigate Ohio’s workers’ compensation system, providing services to help them control claim-related costs and reduce premiums. Our team includes experienced colleagues from CompManagement and CareWorks Comp.

Learn more about how Sedgwick can help your company save significantly on your workers’ compensation premium by clicking here.