You need to have your injury assessed by a doctor before you submit a claim to receive financial support to cover income, medical treatment, care and support.

Your doctor must assess your injury to determine what injury you have suffered and to decide what treatment you require. This will include an assessment of your capacity to return to work and any recommendations concerning your return to work such as gradually increasing your hours or light duties. The doctor may recommend a workplace assessment to identify your return to work options.

Your doctor will provide you with a Work Capacity Certificate which you need to submit with your claim.

Whole person impairment assessments

If your injury is likely to be categorised as "serious", you will require a whole person impairment assessment when there is evidence that your injury has stabilised. It is important to note that you are entitled to request a whole person impairment and we can assist you in relation to obtaining that assessment.

Whole person impairment assessments are performed by medical practitioners that are accredited under the Accreditation Scheme established by the Minister for Industrial Relations. Their role is to assess injured workers and prepare assessment reports that are in accordance with the "Impairment assessment guidelines" to determine:

• whether your injury has reached maximum medical improvement;
• whether your injury has resulted in an impairment;
• whether the impairment is permanent;
• the degree of whole person impairment resulting from the work injury.

The degree of whole person impairment determines whether you are entitled to weekly payments after two years incapacity and also your entitlement to ongoing medical and other expenses. It is also significant in determining your access to lump sum payments for economic and non-economic loss.

Downloads

Work Capacity Certificate 

Impairment Assessment Guidelines  

If your injury results in time off work or medical or other expenses, you and your employer can submit a claim to the employer's claims agent.

We can assist you to complete the claim form. It is important to understand prior to lodging the claim form the significance of this document to your case and the significance of the Medical Authority and declarations on that form.

Your employer is required to forward a copy of the claim form and your Work Capacity Certificate to their claims agent within five business days of receiving it from you.

Workers of self-insured employers should provide this information to their employer according to its procedures.

Downloads

• Claim Form

You must notify your employer within 24 hours of your injury occurring or if you can not do so, as soon as possible after your injury.

This can be done verbally or in writing. A representative such as a friend or family member can notify your employer initially if you are unable to do so. We can assist you to provide notice to ensure that all relevant details are provided and you are aware of your obligations and entitlements.

Notifiable Incidents

It is a legal requirement under the Work Health and Safety Act 2012 for a person who conducts a business or undertaking to notify SafeWork SA of the following incidents:

• a work related death;
• a serious injury or illness of a person including immediate treatment for amputation, serious head, eye, burn and laceration injuries, separation of skin from underlying tissue, spinal injury or loss of body function, medical treatment within 48 hours of exposure to substance;
• a dangerous incident that exposes a worker or any other person to a serious risk to a person's health or safety emanating from an immediate or imminent exposure, whether or not an injury has actually occurred.

Serious penalties can arise from failure to notify SafeWork SA of notifiable incidents.

See your doctor

After reporting your injury, you need to see a doctor to assess your injury to decide what injury you have suffered and what treatment you require, The doctor will then issue a Work Capacity Certificate which you will need to provide to your claims agent if you require time off work and decide to make a claim. It is vital that you carefully review the Work Capacity Certificate to ensure that all details completed are accurate.

Downloads

• Work Capacity Certificate