Assistive Technology Gets Port of Sacramento Employee Back on the Job Following Injury

Carpal tunnel syndrome caused a long-term Port of Sacramento employee to miss more than a year of work. But, after two surgeries and rehabilitation, she wanted to return to work—and her employer wanted her to. So, with the help of third-party workers' compensation claims administrator Intercare Insurance Services, the Port of Sacramento set out to find assistive technology that would allow the employee to return to work—they found alternative input technology from Origin Instruments.

When a 25-year Port of Sacramento, California employee was unable to do her computer-oriented accounts payable job due to carpal tunnel syndrome, her manager, Port Controller Drew Houghton was faced with a decision.

In this case, the employee went through two surgeries, a lengthy rehabilitation period, and was off work for more than a year. After a year she was still not able to perform the usual duties of her job which were heavily computer-oriented.

Under California State law that means the Port could have chosen to classify her 'QIW' or a qualified injured worker. Then the Port's responsibility would be to pay up to $16,000 for retraining her for alternative employment—most likely outside of the Port. "But," says Houghton, "this was a long-term employee with a vast amount of experience who was quite dedicated to her job and wanted to return to it—we thought there might be an alternative solution in this case."

Alternative Computer Input Technology Chosen As Solution

Instead of designating her QIW, the Port began looking for assistive technology that would allow the employee to return to her former job. They chose alternative input software from Origin Instruments Corporation. The product they chose is called HeadMouse and it replaces a standard desktop mouse for people who are unable to use their hands. The employee also used a companion product from Origin called Dragger to enter mouse clicks.

Claims Administrator Helped Find Assistive Technology Solution

The HeadMouse was discovered as a solution in this case by Intercare Insurance Services, the Port of Sacramento's third-party workers' compensation claims administrator. The Port is a self-insured, self-administered employer that contracts with Intercare for their services. The Intercare Information Technology department suggested the technology. That department is highly knowledgeable about assistive technologies that can help get employees back to work.

"That's our goal," says Claims Supervisor Kelli Vitale-Carson, about the advantages of getting people back to work. "The longer people sit at home, the worse they feel, the less productive they become. Anything that we can do to return an employee to work—regardless of whether it's using some sophisticated technology or just bringing them back in another position—we try to do," says Vitale-Carson.

Although it may not be readily apparent at claims settlement time, there is often a significant financial advantage for the employer in finding ways to accommodate employees and return them to work in whatever capacity they are able to handle.

"Businesses need to step back and look at the big picture," Vitale-Carson says. "Often they'll realize that the cost of accommodations is a small price to pay when compared to potential costs related to an employee who is unable to work."

"In our experience," she says, "we see that when injured workers sit at home, their focus becomes their injury. Any medical progress they attain is depleted by the affects of sitting at home. A negative domino effect occurs—often their self-esteem suffers, their families suffer, and ultimately their communities suffer."

"The employer often suffers too," she says. "There is the cost of the permanent disability settlement, worker retraining costs, and management costs of handling the change in personnel. There is also an impact on the rest of the workforce. There is a cost to the employer to replace an injured worker, including training to get the replacement up to a level of productivity that was lost. Finally, there is a cost to business as a whole—a cumulative effect of workers not returning to work—the eventual increase in medical insurance costs."

Positive Domino Effect Results When Injured Workers Return to Work

"On the flip side, there is a positive domino effect when you get a person back to work," Vitale-Carson says. "The employee gets to be a contributing member of his work team and his family—his self-respect is enhanced. Morale of coworkers is often improved when they see an injured worker return to work. And, the community is affected positively as well—it's a positive trickle-down affect."

"In this case," says Houghton, "although we did our pencil work, not all of the costs and benefits were completely quantifiable—human factors came into play as well. The value of a long-term, experienced employee was important. What our actions communicated to the rest of the workforce was also important. The cost of the accommodation was relatively small in the scheme of things, and in the end, we were able to retain a valued and productive worker which in the long run benefits our organization."