Therapy | Occupational rehabilitation services: who, what, when, why & how to use

By Colin Hawes, Head of Group Income Protection Claims and Medical Underwriting at Generali Employee Benefits UK

Insurers, health professionals, employers and the government all seem united – to varying degrees – in one goal: prevention, wherever possible, is better than cure. Against this backdrop, there’s a big and ever-growing role for the expertise of occupational rehabilitation professionals in the workplace.

But when is it appropriate to call on such expertise? How do you access it if you don’t have the dedicated expertise in-house? And who’s best placed to help – Occupational Health (OH) or Vocational Rehabilitation (VR)? Plus, where does Occupational Therapy (OT) fit into the mix? In this article, we aim to clear up the confusion.

The Health Secretary Matt Hancock recently laid down a challenge to employers to help improve the health of their staff and the nation. During a keynote speech in London, where he announced that a greater proportion of annual NHS spend would go towards preventing illness and disease, he added that employers need to play a bigger role.