Canadian Health System

Intro

Occupational injury, illness, and fatality are an unfortunate feature of any labour force globally. Both the international Labour Organisation (ILO) and World Health Organisation (WHO) have estimated that 5-7% of all fatalities in developed countries are the result of either work-related illness or occupational injury (1,2). These work-related illnesses and occupational injuries place a burden on health systems and also on economic systems in the form of lost work-time and decreased productivity.

Global burden of lost work time

The economic burden and cost of work injuries and illnesses are carried by three main groups; employers, workers, and the community. Employers face the cost of staff turnover and training of new staff, there

The rest of this essay will review international guidelines and recommendations for achieving return to work outcomes, outline a model used in the Canadian health system, then discuss the similarities and differences of

However, Canada’s Institute for Work & Health, an independent, not-for-profit research organization, has produced evidence based guidelines that outline seven principles for successful return to work. These principles have been endorsed and adopted by the Canadian government. They are outlined below:

Principle One - The workplace has a strong commitment to health and safety, which is demonstrated by the behaviours of the workplace parties.

Research has shown that it is behaviours in the workplace that are associated with good return to work outcomes. These include a commitment to safety across the organisation, investment in safety and coordination of return to work by management, and support of this by the entire workforce.

Principle Two - The employer makes an offer of modified work (also known as work accommodation) to injured/ill workers so they can return early and safely to work activities suitable to their