ACC is committed to helping you recover and get back to work as soon as possible. We call this vocational rehabilitation. If you have a job, we will help you to return to it. If you can’t return to your old job because of your injury we will help you to prepare for finding a new one.
What help can I get?
- purchasing or modifying equipment for your workplace
- short-term transport assistance to help you get to and from work
- developing a rehabilitation plan to gradually increase your hours or tasks at work, and providing a support person to monitor your progress
- preparing for job seeking and re-entering the employment market
- a work-ready programme to help you regain your ability to work and build your confidence through work experience
- training to build on your existing skills and prepare you to enter a new occupation.
What do I need to do to get help?
Your ACC client services contact will get in touch with you, or you can contact them, to arrange a time to meet to develop your rehabilitation plan. Your vocational rehabilitation is a part of your overall rehabilitation plan. It is a good idea to talk through your needs for your rehabilitation plan with a support person beforehand and bring them with you when you meet with your ACC client services contact.
You will discuss the following options with your ACC client services contact to decide which one best meets your needs:
- maintaining your employment by continuing with the same job, or doing a different job with the same employer
- obtaining new employment by searching for the same type of job with a different employer
- getting assistance, such as training, to help you use the skills you had before your injury to find new employment.
How am I eligible?
ACC can provide vocational rehabilitation to you if your injury has been approved for cover and you are either:
- entitled to weekly compensation
- likely to be entitled to weekly compensation if ACC does not provide vocational assistance or
- on parental leave.
Important:
Your actual entitlement depends on your individual circumstances. Please contact us to confirm if you are eligible, or to identify other ways in which we can help. See Contact ACC claims for our contact information.
How long might ACC take to determine if I am eligible?
ACC regards 21 days as a reasonable timeframe for the majority of decisions about what assistance you may be entitled to; however, you may be contacted by ACC or a provider within the first week to discuss appropriate services.
Please contact us if you have not heard from us within a reasonable period of time. See Contact ACC claims for our contact information.
What happens next?
If you have not been referred to a service by your GP already, your ACC client services contact will be in touch with you to discuss your needs. If you are returning to your current work:
- a professional assessor (not an ACC staff member) will conduct a workplace assessment. This will determine how much of your old job you can still do.
- the assessor will report back to your ACC client services contact, and will help them to determine the assistance you will need to reach your goals.
If it is likely that you will be unable to return to your current work, your ACC client services contact will organise:
- an occupational assessment. This will help you and ACC to identify your skills and suitable work options.
- a medical assessment to find out which work options are medically suitable for you. These assessments will help determine the assistance you need to reach your goal.
Your ACC client services contact will discuss your needs with you, and if appropriate, your employer and General Practitioner. Together everyone will work out the types of assistance which best meet the needs identified by your assessments.
Once you and your ACC client services contact agree, the rehabilitation plan is updated to include the assistance you can expect from us, the date it will begin and the date your rehabilitation is expected to be complete.
If you complete a rehabilitation plan and still feel you need to continue receiving weekly compensation payments, you may need to take part in a vocational independence assessment to measure your ability to return to work.
Note:
If you are unhappy with the decision, you can ask for it to be reviewed. See What if I have problems with a claim?
Last update: 30 June 2009