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. 2022 Jul;42(7):272-287.
doi: 10.24095/hpcdp.42.7.02.

Experiences, impacts and service needs of injured and ill workers in the WSIB process: evidence from Thunder Bay and District (Ontario, Canada)

[Article in English, French]
Chelsea Noël  1 , Deborah Scharf  1   2 , Joshua Hawkins  1 , Jessie Lund  1 , Jewel Kozik  3 , Anna Péfoyo Koné  2
Affiliations

Experiences, impacts and service needs of injured and ill workers in the WSIB process: evidence from Thunder Bay and District (Ontario, Canada)

[Article in English, French]
Chelsea Noël et al. Health Promot Chronic Dis Prev Can. 2022 Jul.

Abstract
in English, French

Introduction: Individuals experience negative physical, social and psychological ramifications when they are hurt or become ill at work. Ontario's Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) is intended to mitigate these effects, yet the WSIB process can be difficult. Supports for injured workers can be fragmented and scarce, especially in underserved areas. We describe the experiences and mental health needs of injured and ill Northwestern Ontario workers in the WSIB process, in order to promote system improvements.

Methods: Community-recruited injured and ill workers (n = 40) from Thunder Bay and District completed an online survey about their mental health, social service and legal system needs while involved with WSIB. Additional Northwestern Ontario injured and ill workers (n = 16) and community service providers experienced with WSIB processes (n = 8) completed interviews addressing similar themes.

Results: Northwestern Ontario workers described the impacts of workplace injury and illness on their professional, family, financial and social functioning, and on their physical and mental health. Many also reported incremental negative impacts of the WSIB processes themselves, including regional issues such as "small town" privacy concerns and the cost burden of travel required by the WSIB, especially during COVID-19. Workers and service providers suggested streamlining and explicating WSIB processes, increasing WSIB continuity of care, and region-specific actions such as improving access to regional support services through arm's-length navigators.

Conclusion: Northwestern Ontario workers experienced negative effects from workplace injuries and illness and the WSIB process itself. Stakeholders can use these findings to improve processes and outcomes for injured and ill workers, with special considerations for the North.

Introduction: Les accidents du travail et les maladies professionnelles ont des répercussions physiques, sociales et psychologiques négatives sur les personnes qui en sont victimes. Bien que la Commission de la sécurité professionnelle et de l’assurance contre les accidents du travail (WSIB) de l’Ontario ait pour mandat d’atténuer ces effets, son processus de fonctionnement peut conduire à des difficultés. Les soutiens qui sont offerts aux travailleurs blessés peuvent être fragmentés et rares, notamment dans les régions qui sont mal desservies. Nous décrivons les expériences vécues par des travailleurs blessés ou malades du Nord­Ouest de l’Ontario dans le cadre de leurs démarches auprès de la WSIB, de même que les besoins en santé mentale de ces travailleurs, dans le but de promouvoir l’amélioration du système en place.

Méthodologie: Des travailleurs blessés et malades (n = 40) recrutés dans la collectivité de Thunder Bay et son district ont répondu à un sondage en ligne sur leurs besoins en matière de santé mentale, de services sociaux et de services juridiques lors de leurs démarches auprès de la WSIB. Des entrevues portant sur des thèmes similaires ont aussi été réalisées avec 16 autres travailleurs blessés et malades ailleurs dans le Nord-Ouest de l’Ontario ainsi qu’avec 8 fournisseurs de services communautaires connaissant bien le fonctionnement de la WSIB.

Résultats: Les travailleurs du Nord­Ouest de l’Ontario ont décrit les répercussions que leur accident du travail ou leur maladie professionnelle avait eues sur leur situation professionnelle, familiale, financière et sociale, ainsi que sur leur santé physique et mentale. Beaucoup ont aussi souligné les effets négatifs accrus attribuables aux processus mêmes de la WSIB, notamment les problèmes locaux liés à la protection de la vie privée dans les « petites villes » et le fardeau financier associé aux déplacements exigés par la WSIB, en particulier durant la pandémie de COVID­19. Les travailleurs et les fournisseurs de services ont proposé de rationaliser et de clarifier les processus de la WSIB, d’améliorer la continuité des soins offerts par la WSIB et de mettre en place des mesures spécifiques à la région, telles que l’amélioration de l’accès aux services de soutien régionaux par l’intermédiaire d’intervenants­pivots indépendants.

Conclusion: Les travailleurs du Nord­Ouest de l’Ontario subissent des effets négatifs dus à la fois aux blessures ou maladies professionnelles et au fonctionnement de la WSIB. Les intervenants pourront utiliser les constatations de cette recherche afin d’améliorer les démarches et la situation des travailleurs blessés et malades, en tenant compte plus particulièrement de la région du Nord.

Keywords: WSIB; mental health; occupational injuries; occupational stress; rural health services; workers’ compensation.

Plain language summary

Individuals in Northwestern Ontario who were hurt or became ill at work experienced negative effects on their physical, financial, social and psychological well-being, including some related to or worsened by the WSIB process. This is consistent with research conducted elsewhere in the province. Injured and ill workers in Northwestern Ontario may face additional regional barriers to proper care and recovery, including limited employment opportunities, “small town” privacy concerns and the costs and burden of care-related travel, especially during public health crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Suggestions to improve the WSIB process provided by Northwestern Ontario injured workers and service providers included general system improvements (e.g. streamlining and explicating WSIB processes, increasing WSIB continuity of care, designating an arm’s length system navigator), and several suggestions particular to the northern context.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of interest: through her part-time private practice, Dr. Scharf provides psychological services to injured and ill workers whose care is paid for by the WSIB.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Impact of WSIB claims and appeals processes on respondents to injured workers survey, across multiple domains, Thunder Bay City and District (Ontario, Canada), November 2020 to March 2021
Figure 2
Figure 2. Injured and ill workers’ reports of the smooth and challenging components of the WSIB process, Thunder Bay City and District (Ontario, Canada), November 2020 to March 2021
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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