Elevate your expertise in rehabilitation and return to work
Attend Safe Work Month and Mental Health Week events to elevate your expertise and improve rehabilitation and return to work outcomes in your workplace.
Best practice
Best practice is that your staff responsible for supporting rehabilitation and return to work (RRTW) have the right skills and abilities to perform their roles.
Attending upcoming Safe Work Month and Mental Health Week events in October is one way you can build capacity and competency to help support workers to return to work early and safely.
Why this is important
Safe Work Month is a nationwide initiative dedicated to promoting safe and healthy workplaces for everyone.
Mental Health Week promotes the importance of mental health and wellbeing and aims to reduce the stigma associated with mental illness.
Safe Work Month and Mental Health Week events in October will feature industry leaders, to help you to build a safe and mentally healthy workplace and improve awareness of psychological health and safety and the value of early intervention.
You will be provided with practical tools and resources to support you to promote mentally healthy work practices, protect workers from psychological harm, and intervene early and support recovery and return to work.
What actions can I take now?
Register for Safe Work Month events.
Work Well Conference
22 October, 7.30am-6.30pm, Royal International Convention Centre, $289 excluding GST
The full-day conference focuses on connection and collaboration and will include an impressive lineup of industry speakers with a networking function to follow at the end of the day.
You will hear from Chris Foley, Managing Director at Strive Occupational Rehabilitation. Chris specialises in organisational development services, focusing on coaching, mediation and team performance to build high performance teams. Chris will offer practical solutions to improve return to work rates for workers with psychological injuries and illustrate how an employer’s approach to workplace culture and the creation of psychologically safe workplaces can positively impact these rates.
Work Well Speaker Series
Online throughout October, free livestreams
Hear from industry leading experts who will be discussing how to consult with workers effectively, mastering four essential mental health conversations and managing airborne contaminants in the workplace. Each session will provide you with practical advice to immediately start improving how you approach health, safety and rehabilitation and return to work in your workplace.
On Friday 11 October, Mechelen D'Souza will cover how to master four essential mental health conversations in the workplace. Mechelen is a seasoned corporate psychologist with a wealth of experience in guiding leaders and executives through career challenges and personal wellbeing and how to have conversations when a worker has taken leave due to mental health issues or has lodged a psychological injury claim. With a focus on positive language that supports a smooth return to work rather than problematic language that can prolong or complicate the situation, Mechelen’s session is one not to be missed.
Work Well Regional breakfast forums
2 October, 7-10.30am (Rockhampton) and 16 October (Cairns), 7-10.30am, $30 excluding GST
This year, we're bringing elements of the Work Well Conference to Rockhampton and Cairns, featuring three conference speakers ready to share their expertise. You’ll walk away with new ideas and practical strategies to implement in your workplace and have an opportunity to ask questions and connect with local inspectors and advisors. You’ll hear from:
Dr Deborah Simmonds
- Dr Deborah Simmons OAM, an anaesthetist and rural generalist at Proserpine Hospital, was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after treating five workers—four of whom were severely burned—in a mine explosion at Moranbah in May 2020. Following her diagnosis, and with the support of her employer, Dr Simmons admitted herself to a private psychiatric clinic in Townsville for treatment. She believes that having the right team of treating professionals around her was key to starting her recovery and planning how she would safely transition back to work. In her personal presentation, Dr. Simmons will share her journey and explore the topic of "Why It Pays to Care”.
Terry Wong
- As the General Manager at Move 4 Life, Terry harnesses his background in medical science and physiotherapy to actively simplify the complexities of the human body. Terry will discuss how to future proof an ageing workforce by improving movement intelligence and physical wellbeing.
Nada Wentzel
- Partner at The Jonah Group, Nada is one of Australia’s most qualified and internationally sought after safety culture and leadership experts. Nada will delve into the dangers of complacency and high-risk workplace hazards. She will explore the thought processes that lead to complacency, how to identify these attitudes and strategies to prevent accidents.
Register for Mental Health Week events
Back to basics: how to conduct a risk assessment for psychosocial hazards in the workplace
8 October, 10-11am, free livestream
This session brings us back to basics regarding psychosocial hazards, providing a step-by-step walkthrough of the risk management process in plain English, as set out in the Managing the risk of psychosocial hazards at work Code of Practice 2022.
Menopause and the workplace: unlocking potential through reasonable adjustments
9 October, 12-1pm, free livestream
Join Janey McGoldrick from Menopause Friendly Australia for an insightful livestream event exploring the importance of reasonable adjustments in supporting employees navigating menopause.
Mental Health Day breakfast
10 October, 7-11.30am, Emporium Hotel South Bank, $80 excluding GST
This in-person event led by Queensland's Mental Health Ambassador, Hayley Lewis, will feature keynote presentations on implementing strategies for promoting positive mental health and proactive management of mental health in the workplace.
Throughout this half-day event, expert presenters will share insights on psychosocial hazards adversely affecting vulnerable workers and how good work design can help organisations to control the risk of psychosocial hazards.
The event will wrap up with a candid discussion about sexual harassment and gendered violence in the workplace.
Your toolkit
Stay up-to-date on Safe Work Month and Mental Health Week by subscribing to our eSAFE newsletters and Rehabilitation and Return to Work e-bulletin and following our Return to Work Queensland Facebook page.
Complete a Rehabilitation and return to work coordinator training course, approved by the Workers’ Compensation Regulator.