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Victim compensation systems seek to indemnify or compensate people who have suffered injury to their person or their property. This includes insurance systems, civil liability and accident compensation funds. Colombia is one of the countries with the highest rates of traffic accidents, and in this area, we find the SOAT, the Fosyga, the general health system, the non-compulsory liability insurance, and the civil liability. These systems seek to compensate the victims, but many times do not operate efficiently. That is why an analysis of the compensation funds created in New Zealand could be a possible solution to compensate victims of traffic accidents in a more timely and efficient manner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To understand the Key National-led government's record of stagnation in accident compensation policy, we need to understand the history of the Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC). We need to recall how the previous Nationalled government in 1998 opened up the workers' compensation portion of ACC to competitive private-sector provision. That legislation was then repealed by the subsequent Labour-led government (1999-2008) and private insurance contracts were terminated after only 12 months in force, thus restoring a state monopoly. The big issue for ACC after the 2008 election was, therefore, National's renewed promise to consider deregulating the Work, Motor Vehicle and Earners' (non-work) Accounts. Extensive policy work was done and competitive provision was recommended to Cabinet in 2010. But nothing happened. It is unclear why National choked but this article offers some explanations and argues that, in this case, stagnation was fortunate. What the National-led government did do was to reverse some relatively minor (but significant to those affected) amendments made by the Labour-led government in 2008 and to put the scheme onto a fully funded basis. The ongoing discrimination experienced within the disability community between those covered by ACC and those covered by socialsecurity and public-health entitlements was highlighted by a case heard originally before the Human Rights Review Tribunal. The courts did not rule that the disparity was in breach of humanrights legislation, however, and the National-led government was not inclined to address the problem. So, although the ACC has remained more or less intact, the relative disadvantage (for those with disability outside of it) is still a major concern. On the positive side, National did seek to improve ACC's performance in regard to privacy of personal information and the processes of review and appeal. Overall, the record is one of stagnation in this portfolio. This shows, however, the resilience of ACC as an internationally unique institution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The aims are to: (1) Determine the cumulative incidence of self-reported subsequent injury (of any anatomical site or injury type) occurring between 3 months and 12 months after a sentinel injury among participants in the Prospective Outcomes of Injury Study in New Zealand and (2) Examine the preinjury and injury-related predictors of subsequent injury. Methods: Prospective Outcomes of Injury Study participants (n=2282) were interviewed 3 months, 5 months and 12 months after a sentinel injury event. Data were collected about a range of preinjury and injury-related factors at the 3-month interview and about subsequent injury at the 5-month and 12-month interviews. Poisson regression modelling was used to determine the preinjury and injury-related predictors of subsequent injury. Results: Between the 3-month and 12 month interviews 28% of the participants reported at least one subsequent injury. Subsequent injury was 34% more likely among participants with a prior injury affecting them at the time of the sentinel injury compared with participants without a prior injury affecting them, and more likely among non-workers (31% more likely) and trade/manual workers (32% more likely) compared with professionals. Participants whose sentinel injury was due to assault were 43% more likely to report a subsequent injury compared with those whose sentinel injury was accidental. A subsequent injury was 23% less likely if the sentinel injury was a lower extremity fracture compared with other injuries, and 21% less likely if the sentinel injury event involved hospitalisation. Conclusions: Among general injury populations it may be possible to identify people at increased risk for subsequent injury. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The impact and costs associated with work-related sprains and strains in New Zealand and globally are substantial and a major occupational and public health burden. In New Zealand around one-third of all sprains and strains workers compensation (ACC) claims (2019) are for back injuries, but shoulder and arm injuries are increasing at a faster rate than other sprain and strain injuries (ACC, 2020). A need exists for a change to current approaches to sprains and strains prevention, to more effectively manage this significant and persistent problem in workplaces. Designing out hazards is one of the most effective means of preventing occupational injuries and illnesses. This paper outlines the study protocol of the surveillance, management and prevention programme and describes the utilisation of prevention through design principles in the prevention of work-related sprains and strains in agriculture/horticulture/food production in the Hawkes Bay region of New Zealand., Methods: This is a prospective mixed methods study incorporating the collection of quantitative data to describe the epidemiology of work related sprains and strains injuries presenting to the regional health centre (Hastings Health Centre) over a period of 24 months and qualitative data from participants presenting at the health centre to identify high risk industry sectors/ occupations/ workplaces and tasks and design, develop and apply prevention through design principles/ solutions/interventions to critical features of the work and work environment and undertake an outcome evaluation during the last 6 months of the project., Discussion: The purpose of this project is to establish an epidemiological surveillance programme to assess the incidence and prevalence of work-related sprains and strains according to age, sex, industry sector and occupation to target efforts to prevent work-related sprains and strains, by applying prevention through design (PtD) principles in selected workplaces in agriculture. The collection of more detailed case, occupational and work history data from a sample of patients presenting at the HHC clinic will identify high risk industry sectors/occupations/workplaces and tasks. Assessment techniques will include comprehensive design, design thinking and human factors/ergonomics methodologies through co-design and participatory ergonomics techniques. The PtD solutions/ interventions implemented will be evaluated using a quasi-experimental design consisting of a pre-test/ post-test with-in subjects design with control groups that do not receive the intervention., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Aim This article explores factors that contribute to clients' chronic pain management from an occupational therapy perspective. Method Nine occupational therapists from Australia and New Zealand who worked in this practice area were interviewed. Qualitative method of narrative inquiry was used to analyse the therapists' practice narratives to determine their view of how clients manage their chronic pain. Results Among many themes, significant agentic (positive management) themes and victimic (negative themes related to non-management) emerged. Agentic themes were related to conceptual categories of being: the importance of maintaining valued roles and having good social support; to knowing: accepting the long-term nature of pain and being ready to change thinking about pain, and to doing. These categories included strategies such as setting realistic goals, pacing activity and using relaxation. Victimic themes were also related to being: losing valued roles, having depression and receiving compensation and to knowing: being fearful, looking for a cure or not knowing what to expect. Victimic doing themes related to: being unable to set goals and being unable to use strategies. These themes and categories form the basis of proposed agentic and victimic conceptual models of factors for occupational therapists to address in pain management programmes. Conclusions As acceptance and readiness for change were consistently mentioned in all narratives, the place of contextual cognitive-behavioural approaches to pain management is also raised as a viable alternative to standard cognitive-behavioural therapy, currently used in most chronic pain practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Workers' compensation systems are among the most generous disability insurance systems in North America, although they are also known to be potentially adversarial and may have iatrogenic effects on claimants. This article examines issues to be considered to ensure fair compensation provided in a way that respects the dignity of workers. Methods An overview of the literature on characteristics and effects of workers' compensation systems is followed by an analysis based on classic legal methods, including those of comparative law, complemented with interview data to examine three models of disability compensation. Results The first part of the article identifies cross cutting issues to be considered in the examination of the equity of compensation systems and the protection of the dignity of claimants. These include three underpinnings of workers' compensation: the links between a 'no-fault' system and the adversarial process, the appropriate use of medical and scientific evidence in the determination of compensability and the application of appropriate measures for promoting return to work. The second part looks at accident compensation in New Zealand, where compensation is available regardless of the cause of the accident, and disability insurance in the Netherlands, where compensation is available regardless of the cause of the disability. It then describes a composite of characteristics favorable to equity drawn from the thirteen workers' compensation systems in Canada. Conclusion Systems that succeed in reducing opportunities for adversarial interactions and that provide substantive protection could better promote the dignity of claimants. Am. J. Ind. Med. 55:519-536, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article considers the non-fault based Accident Compensation Scheme in New Zealand under which, it is submitted, there is a social contract between the government and the people of New Zealand. The operation of the scheme, specifically in cases where a person suffers a back, knee or neck injury and subsequently is discovered to have a degenerative condition in the relevant part of the body, is explored. An analysis of case law suggests that the interpretation of the test under which injuries caused "wholly or substantially by the ageing process" has, in such cases, resulted in unfair and questionable results. An alternative approach for the courts to employ is suggested, drawing on medical knowledge of the contribution that an injury can make to degeneration. A new approach is advocated, which would uphold the social contract between accident victims and the New Zealand government. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author reflects on the significance of paid work and the disappearance of unpaid work from the public ground. An overview of the changing citizenship limits in New Zealand's hegemonic political discourse, pointing on how underpinned policy discussion of the active society is visible in the changing guidelines is offered. It is inferred that today's active citizens are the paid workers and the guideline discourses of market governance hides the social interdependency of paid and unpaid work.

Aim: Work-disability following musculoskeletal injury causes a significant burden for individuals and healthcare systems. Research into work-disability prevention has investigated the ability of psychosocial factors to predict return-to-work in workers with musculoskeletal injuries. Recent research indicates that both return-to-work expectations and workplace supports influence return-to-work outcome. However, how these mechanisms operate to influence outcome is still largely unknown., Methods: We undertook a qualitative study involving semi-structured interviews with workers from diverse backgrounds who were undergoing vocational rehabilitation in New Zealand following a musculoskeletal injury. Interviews investigated the injured workers' experiences of workplace supports and asked in-depth about what contributed to their expectations of returning to work. Thematic analysis was used to analyse and interpret the data., Findings: Analysis identified four key themes. We found that what workplace supports were offered and how they were taken up was related to systemic factors , and trust . We also identified a link between the offer of support from the workplace and return-to-work expectations . Finally, the actions of workers' compensation and healthcare providers during workers' recovery were reported to influence supports, expectations and the confidence injured workers experienced in their return-to-work outcome in both overt and subtle ways., Conclusion: This study indicated that actions of the workplace, healthcare providers and workers' compensation parties can all influence workplace supports, return-to-work expectations and return-to-work outcome. These findings therefore implicate the actions of these stakeholders in work-disability prevention efforts.IMPLICATIONS FOR REHABILITATIONPositive return-to-work expectations are increasingly shown by research to be related to positive return-to-work outcomes for injured workers.Trust between the worker and the company can underpin the provision of supports for return-to-work, which in turn can influence worker confidence and expectations of return-to-work.Consideration of workplace culture and relationships when healthcare providers interact with employers can be crucial in fostering trust and enabling appropriate workplace supports.The ways in which workers compensation processes are executed can also affect workplace relationships, and therefore influence the provision of appropriate return-to-work supports.

Examines the need for employers in New Zealand to choose a new insurer to handle their workers' compensation programs on or before July 1, 1999. Names of seven insurers from which the employers will choose; Description of services offered by the insurers; Factors in selecting insurers; Need for firms to think about the extent to which they want to fund their own risk. INSETS: What's new in workers' compensation?;How to keep the premium down;A pain in the pocket.

The article discusses the New Zealand and Australia which have no provisions in their Patents Acts to provide remuneration to an employee for any commercial benefit that an employer receives from the success of an invention, but contract and common law rules can be applied. It states that employer has no obligation to remunerate an employee in New Zealand or Australia with respect to the success of a patented invention.

Objective: The study aims to quantify the impact of injury on the financial well-being of older workers. The hypothesis was that injured older workers have substantially reduced income from work following injury, but that New Zealand's (NZ) universal injury compensation scheme mitigates the difference for total income., Design, Setting and Participants: An e-cohort of 617 722 workers aged 45-64 years old was created using de-identified linked administrative data in NZ's Integrated Data Infrastructure. Person-level data from numerous government agencies were used to compare 21 639 with an injury-related entitlement claim in 2009 with the remaining 596 133. Event date was the date of injury, or for the comparison group, a randomly selected date in 2009., Primary and Secondary Outcome Measures: Geometric mean ratios (GMRs) were used to compare income from work and total income from all taxable sources between those injured and the comparison group. Adjusted GMRs estimated income differences up to 36 months following the event date., Results: Differences in total income increased over time. In the third year, those injured received 6.7% less (adjusted GMR 0.933 (95% CI 0.925 to 0.941)) than the comparison group, equivalent to an average loss of $NZ2628. Restricting to income from work, those injured received 29.2% less than the comparison group at 3 years (adjusted GMR 0.708 (95% CI 0.686 to 0.730)). For both men and women, those injured at 45-49 years consistently had the greatest relative income loss compared with those aged 50-54, 55-59 or 60-64 years., Conclusions: Although the substantial impacts of injury on income were mainly mitigated by public income transfers, relative losses in income in those aged 45-64 years increased in the 3 years following injury. Policies focused on adequate compensation and reducing the time away from employment could reduce these financial impacts in older workers., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.)

Background: Workers' compensation (WC) data traditionally provides information to stakeholders on work-related disabling injuries. It is important to complement this with information on serious threat to life (TTL) injury, which is the focus of this paper., Methods: In this cross-sectional descriptive epidemiological study, based on New Zealand's WC data linked to hospital discharge data, TTL was measured using the ICD10-based Injury Severity Score (ICISS); ICISS ≤ 0.941 was used to define serious TTL injury., Results: During 2002-2004, there was an average of 368 serious TTL work-related injury cases annually. The distribution of these injuries was very different from those traditionally found using WC data to describe disabling injury. For example, for serious TTL injury the main injury types included traumatic brain injury, whereas for disabling injury it was sprains and dislocations., Conclusions: The method presented provides the opportunity for government agencies to produce a national description of the epidemiology of serious TTL work-related injuries., (© 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Background: There is limited evidence that farm safety-related interventions based solely on an educational element have an effect on injury rates. Our aim was to evaluate a New Zealand national educational program, FarmSafe™ Awareness, for its effect on injury rates., Methods: We used a before-after design followed by a historical cohort study of sheep, beef, and dairy farmers/workers. The outcomes were work-related injuries, identified from workers compensation data. Cox regressions were used to compare intervention with matched control group rates., Results: FarmSafe™ Awareness was associated with significantly higher rates of work-related injury, than matched controls., Conclusions: It is difficult to see how FarmSafe™ Awareness could be causing an increased rate of work-related injury. We detected no reporting bias, and selection bias is likely to act in the opposite direction to the observed results. We conclude that there is no evidence that FarmSafe™ Awareness prevents farm injury., (© 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Study Design: Longitudinal cohort study., Objectives: To estimate socioeconomic and work outcomes over 2 and a half years following spinal cord injury (SCI), and to compare those in receipt of compensation (Accident Compensation Corporation, ACC) and those not., Setting: People admitted to the two spinal units in 2007-2009 in New Zealand, where there is a unique no-fault compensation scheme for injury., Methods: Interviews were conducted at ∼6, 18 and 30 months after SCI and data collected on pre-SCI and post-SCI health and socioeconomic characteristics. Poisson regression, quantile regression and a linear mixed model regression were used to compare differences in outcomes., Results: Of the 162 eligible people, 118 (73%) participated and 91(77%) were followed to 30 months; 79% received ACC. Median personal income, self-reported standard of living and household income adequacy all fell slightly to 18 months and then stabilized at 30 months. At that time, 49% had returned to paid work. Among those not eligible for ACC, income fell to less than half the ACC group (P<0.006 after adjustment), and return to work was lower (29% versus 54%)., Conclusion: The findings that most people retained their economic status and that return to work was relatively high appear to be due to the proportion entitled to the ACC no-fault compensation scheme for injury; with earnings-related compensation, a focus on rehabilitation to work and non-means-tested support services. This situation should mitigate against the downward spiral into poverty and further ill-health.

Provides information on the Accident Insurance Bill that will replace the existing Accident Rehabilitation and Compensation Act of 1992 in New Zealand. Areas not covered; Provisions; Issues for employers.

Background: Sickness certification poses challenges and problems for the GP. Patient factors may influence the sick leave period., Objective: To explore how sickness certification occurred based on patients' reports of medical consultations for a new episode of low back pain., Methods: A qualitative study using semi-structured interviews with 16 employees who were currently or had recently been off work with an episode of low back pain., Results: We present a preliminary typology of sickness certification responses by medical practitioners comprising four response types: 'process', 'cued', 'consultative' and 'laissez-faire'. All but the process response allows the patient some influence in the sickness certification decision. It is possible that certain types of response may occur at specific stages of recovery., Conclusions: Doctors may allow patients input into the sickness certification process for a number of reasons. As yet, we do not know if this helps or hinders the return to work process.

The fatal and non-fatal injuries related to work in commercial fishermen operating out of New Zealand ports is described. Three data sources were used to provide information on the nature of the injuries sustained, as well as their circumstances. High rates of fatal and non-fatal injury were found, with most deaths attributed to drowning, and concerning a vessel operating in rough seas or poor weather. A higher fatal injury rate was found for the west coast of New Zealand when compared with the rest of the country. This is likely to be due to a combination of factors, including rougher sea conditions, a lower density of fishing vessels operating in the area, and the siting of many west coast fishing ports at dangerous river and harbour bars. Injuries to hands and fingers related to the use of winches, machinery and knives were common, as were back strains associated with lifting, and a variety of injuries resulting from falls. There is need for a comprehensive injury information source, such as an industry based register specific for fishing, so that effective preventative strategies and their evaluation can be developed.

Previous asthma research has had a medical focus, and only one study has investigated the relationship between asthma and employment. This study describes the employment experience in relation to occupational choice and career advancement in 93 sequentially selected adult asthmatics attending a hospital based asthma clinic serving a socially disadvantaged urban population. Repeated hospital admissions and frequent asthma related sick leave from work were identified as contributing factors to employer discrimination, job dismissal, and lack of career advancement. Seventy-seven percent had not informed their employers of their asthma and 32% of those currently employed stated that getting time off work was a problem in relation to Asthma Clinic attendance. Of those not employed, 22.9% were receiving sickness or invalid benefits and 8.3% had lost their jobs because of asthma. This study illustrates how the stigma attached to the diagnosis of asthma in this community may not only impact negatively on employment opportunity, but also on asthma care.

Of 129 chronic back pain patients treated consecutively at the Palmerston North hospital rehabilitation unit in 1982-3, 102 responded to a questionnaire in 1987. The 27 nonresponders had had pain for a shorter time and were considered to have a better prognosis. Of the 102 responders, 31 no longer had back pain; 51 (six women) were employed full or part time and 17 (two women) were looking for work. Two men had reversed roles and 17 had retired. Women who no longer had a job outside the home classed themselves as housewives rather than as retired or unemployed. This study provides data for future planning but without controls, confident conclusions cannot be drawn on the efficacy of the rehabilitation programme. There is a need for further controlled studies.

Back injury is one of the commonest claims for accident compensation. A survey carried out over three months in 1984 identified 420 claimants having details of their accidents. Labourers, freezing workers, coal miners and railway workers were at high risk. Over half (54.7%) developed back pain whilst lifting and for almost two-thirds (63.6%) there was a sudden strain. Half had a previous history of back pain and the incidence rose to 70% for those aged 40-59 years. Eighty-two percent returned to work within four weeks. Most were treated by a general practitioner and physiotherapy was increasingly used as the period of disability lengthened. Rest and pain killers were assessed as the most popular forms of treatment. There was a need for education of the workforce in the ergonomics of lifting.