SIH presents symposium on workers' compensation
Nearly 200 regional human resources directors and personnel, industrial and retail managers, mine managers and operators, and municipal leaders attended the 2018 Workers' Compensation Symposium sponsored by SIH last Thursday in the Diamond Club at Rend One Park.
Shawn Berry, an Illinois workers' compensation defense attorney, law professor and mediator, gave the keynote "state of the state" address, including an overview of several relevant recent cases and legislative updates.
The symposium also included a mock workers' compensation trial and sessions on investigations and how to handle arbitration. Verlinda Henshaw, executive director of rehabilitation services at SIH, discussed the history of workers' compensation care at SIH and expansion plans for SIH WORKcare.ready.well programs. After lunch and the keynote speech, a panel of SIH providers answered participants' questions.
"We went last year, this is our second symposium," said Ted Gutierrez, managing director of Jackson County Mass Transit District. "SIH has helped me to understand the workman's compensation process. The symposium helps us become more efficient to more effectively serve our community."
WORKcare.ready.well is designed to combine the occupational health, rehabilitation and wellness programs that serve regional companies and their employees into a central store for those services.
They include injury prevention and other preventative programs, health and wellness programs, ergonomic analyses, injury navigation management, and treatment and rehabilitation of injured workers.
"This is the third year for this symposium," said Dena Kirk, administrative director of SIH occupational medicine and rehabilitation services."This year we wanted to update employers on the latest and best practices in workman's compensation, of course, but these symposiums also offer a great opportunity for networking, sharing stories and comparing procedures and practices.
"The symposium also aligns with our mission of helping improve the health and wellness of all of the people in the communities we serve."
Some of the businesses in attendance were Aisin, the city of Benton, Jackson County Mass Transit, Night Hawk Coal of Perry County and Wildcat Hills Peabody mines in Saline County.