ACH - Leaders WHS & IM Handbook

Claim Management Process

Incident Investigation

Incident investigation is a systematic approach to analysing events that lead to accidents, near misses, or failures. At ACH Group incidents are investigated by leaders in consultation with the injured party and assistance from the WHS Team. Its primary goal is to understand the causes of these incidents and prevent their recurrence. Effective investigations by leaders provide several benefits, including identifying root causes, enhancing workplace safety, improving operational processes, ensuring regulatory compliance, fostering a culture of accountability and promoting continuous improvement. By utilising tools like the 5 Whys technique, leaders at ACH Group can uncover underlying issues and implement solutions that enhance overall safety and efficiency. 5 Whys Overview Leaders use the 5 whys questioning technique to uncover the underlying causes of a specific problem. The main objective is to identify the root cause of an issue by repeatedly asking “Why?” Each answer leads to the next question and while the method suggests five repetitions, not all problems have a single root cause, requiring further exploration with different question sequences.

Once a claim is submitted, the Head of Injury Management and Audit reviews and determines the claim status. A decision is made as soon as possible. If the claim cannot be processed within 10 business days, interim benefits will be provided. Head of Injury Management and Audit Responsibilities in Claim Management: • Conduct necessary investigations regarding the claim. • Facilitate a safe and early return to work. • Approve payments for entitlements where applicable. • Maintain communication with employees, supervisors, medical providers and rehabilitation consultants to track recovery and ensure ongoing support. Personal Health Procedure ACH Group recognises that employees may require time off due to non-work-related health concerns. To support their return to work, we have a Personal Health Procedure, which outlines best practices for managing absences related to personal health conditions. A personal health condition is any physical or mental health illness or injury that arises outside of the work environment, outside a normal cold or minor illness, which impacts on your ability to undertake your role.

Example

Problem

Staff member injures their back.

Because they did not use correct manual handling technique.

1st Why?

Refer to the Personal Health Procedure in the ACH Group Library .

2nd Why?

Because they were unsure of the proper procedure for that type of transfer.

Because they had not received recent refresher training in manual handling.

3rd Why?

Key Contacts

As a leader in injury management and recovery at ACH Group, your focus is ensuring that all employees receive the necessary support, guidance and resources to recover and reintegrate into the workforce as safely and efficiently as possible.

Because they had not been booked into the mandatory 2-year manual handling refresher course.

For injury management and return-to-work support, employees and managers should contact:

4th Why?

Supervisor/Manager Head of Injury Management and Audit Ph: 08 8159 3608 Executive Manager - Legal and Risk Ph: 08 8159 3665 Randstad (Early Intervention Support) Ph: 08 8468 8090

Because the designated staff member had not scheduled the required refresher training.

5th Why?

While five repetitions often suffice, you can continue probing further. The key is to trace the causality directly, avoiding assumptions and identifying processes that need improvement. The last answer should highlight a broken process, emphasising that effective root cause analysis focuses on processes, not individual failures.

Leaders WHS & IM Handbook

Leaders WHS & IM Handbook

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