9Insurance Business ReviewAPRIL 2024'WC lingo' such as compensability, NCM, medical terminology, etc., at a minimum. By doing so, you give the clearest possible explanation of the beginning of the WC process. Consider an intro letter that explains what will happen once a claim is submitted and provides notification regarding additional expected phone calls from your partners. Early on, perhaps in the first 1-2 months following injury, check back with the injured worker every week to reiterate your role and help answer questions, even if there are no relevant changes in their claim.Being Transparent: Like the step above, educating injured workers on the roles and names of parties assigned to the claim file is important. Explain why they will be assigned and how they will benefit the injured worker. Keep the injured worker abreast of relevant changes to their claim, both good and bad.Showing Care and Compassion: Care and compassion are at the root of claim advocacy. Always consider your employee a `whole person.' Putting yourself in the shoes of the injured is important. Understand that this is most likely the first time a team member is going through something like this, so alleviate any worries from the start. From frontline supervisors to safety and HR, all parties in your organization are encouraged to speak with care and compassion. The same mindset should be instilled in your external partners-- basically anyone and everyone who will be in direct contact with the injured worker.Having Empathetic Patient Engagement: This is important to push to your medical partners. Having a strong medical partner who is willing to understand the root cause of the injury and willing to listen is important in providing the best patient care. A strong medical partner understands the incident details that come from you as the employer, and the mechanism of injury reads incident statements and appropriately assesses causation. Simplifying as Much as Possible: Creating seamless processes from the start, such as having the team member complete all necessary workers' compensation documents in one sweep, will alleviate the `formalities.' Going back to communication, it is important to speak clearly and take the time to explain things. Always being there as the contact for the team members and the central knowledge base will keep things simple. Explain the different people assigned to their claim and how these parties will benefit the team members and engage them to provide the best outcome.
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