Caring for the Caregivers In Workers’ Compensation

The families and friends of injured workers are invaluable partners during the care and treatment following a workers compensation injury. They provide transportation to and from medical appointments, set calendars/reminders to take medications, assist with home physical therapies, provide communication and translation help, and provide vital emotional support and encouragement to the injured individual -- and most do it for free.

With November being National Caregivers Month and Thanksgiving being just days away, we wanted to take this opportunity to remind everyone involved in the workers’ compensation process (care & treatment providers, case managers, adjusters and examiners, insurers, attorneys)  of the caregivers’ important role during the recovery process, and to thank them for their invaluable contributions.

Supporting the Injured Worker

Injured workers (IW) can experience a wide range of difficulties in the managing and performing important post-injury activities as well as activities of daily living. For these reasons, the role of the caregiver is of paramount importance in supporting the employee’s simple and complex activities during this process, working without recognition, even when their own lives are disrupted or altered

Although they are often family members without formal training, they assist in the activities of daily care, offering emotional support to the IW, monitoring the care pathway, managing the symptoms and taking on the family responsibilities previously managed by the IW. Many become caretakers by default.

Increased Mental and Physical Strain

The caregivers’ workload is often associated with a decrease in the quality of life of the caregiver and an increase in stressors. In fact, 47% of caregivers experience anxiety and 42% experience depression. The caregiver can also present physical problems due to the effort involved in helping the IW to move or perform daily activities.

Nurses who have been asked to assist families in workers compensation injuries are often a tool used by employers or carriers to assist in decreasing the demands on the family during the course of a work-related injury. As nurses are the hub of communication and coordinators of care, they engage appropriate medical treatment so that the family member can focus on simply being family- not the caretaker.

Nurse case managers can explore the full range of caregiving and support options for the injured employee. They work with all members of the treatment team in the case management and recovery process addressing the unique caregiving issues that injured workers and their families face. 

Contact us for help with caregiver solutions and support.