Chapter 6: Conclusions and Recommendations
6.3 Recommendations
Recommendation 1
1.1 NOHSAC’s recommendations in Surveillance of occupational disease and injury in New Zealand1 should be implemented, in particular, establishing an expert group to advise on the development of an effective system of occupational disease and injury surveillance.
1.2 The roles of the expert group should be to:
a) develop a broad definition of work-related harm for surveillance purposes based on the principles outlined below
b) develop an ongoing surveillance method based on the recommendations in the NOHSAC report Surveillance of Occupational Disease and Injury in New Zealand1
c) make recommendations for adjustments to existing definitions of work-related harm to improve the data collection for surveillance purposes
d) make recommendations to improve the use of operational classification systems for work-related harm in New Zealand, including the development of ICD-11 which is currently underway.
Principles for defining work-related harm for surveillance purposes
Recommendation 2
2. The definition of work-related harm must identify its purpose(s).
Recommendation 3
3.1 The definition of work-related harm should specifically identify:
• workers
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• bystanders and third parties
• students in work-like situations
• volunteers in work-like situations.
3.2 The definition of work-related harm should specifically identify:
• harm in the workplace
• motor vehicle harm
• commuting harm.
3.3 Fatal and non-fatal harm should be separately identified.
Recommendation 4
4.3 The definition of work-related injury should include both acute and chronic injury.
4.4 The definition of work-related disease/illness should include both acute and chronic disease/illness.
Recommendation 5
5.3 Harm should be identified as work-related when “on the balance of probabilities” it is considered work-related, other than in the case of a criminal prosecution.
5.4 Certain specified conditions that have a strong correlation with work exposures should be considered work-related unless proven otherwise, as with the current Schedule 2 of the IPRC Act.
Further work towards a common approach Recommendation 6
6 NOHSAC should commission a major cost/benefit analysis of the implications of a more comprehensive ACC scheme covering all work-related harm as set out in the principles for defining work-work-related harm recommended in this report, factoring in the broader costs to employers, the economy and society of reduced productivity; the burden on public health and other social services; and the gains to be made from increased awareness of the problems, increased rehabilitation and increased prevention activities.
Recommendation 7
7 The definitions of work-related harm in the IPRC Act should be reviewed in light of the multiple purposes of the IPRC Act; the broader definitions of work-related harm employed in Finland, Victoria and New South Wales;
the principles for defining work-related harm outlined above; and the recommended cost/benefit analysis.
Recommendation 8
8 The definition of work-related harm for reporting purposes should be reviewed in light of the purpose of the notification requirement under the
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HSE Act and the principles outlined above. Particular consideration should be given to requiring near-misses with the potential for serious harm to be notified.
Recommendation 9
9.1 The Department of Labour should establish a working group with the Ministry of Health and representatives from each of New Zealand’s medical schools and the Medical Council to look at ways to improve medical training in the recognition and identification of work-related harm, particularly work-related chronic harm.
9.2 The Department of Labour and ACC should continue their efforts to educate employers about work-related harm, particularly work-related disease and the recent additions to Schedule 2 of the IPRC Act.
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