Program > Friday > 10:30 > Session symposium. Symposium: Research into action: Addressing the stigma experienced by injured workers

Paper: From research to action: A policy-maker's perspective
Author(s) and Affiliation(s):
Judy Geary, Vice President, Work Reintegration, Workplace Safety & Insurance Board
John Mutch, Assistant Director, Case Management Development, Workplace Safety & Insurance Board
Session : symposium. Symposium: Research into action: Addressing the stigma experienced by injured workers
Day/Time: Friday at 10:30
Room: Giovanni Room, 2nd Floor
Objectives:

To describe: the awakening of awareness within the WSIB of the ways in which injured workers are stigmatized; our perspectives on the WSIB/RAACWI collaboration; and the action WSIB is taking to eliminate injured worker stigma within the WSIB.

Methods:

Participants will follow the development of RAACWI's first "Blue Sky Discussion" with WSIB management staff. We will explore:
• some research results describing the effects of stigma on injured workers;
• the importance of building trust and common ground in initial stages and some of the tools used to facilitate that process;
• the role of research and researchers;
• the dynamics of evolving relationships;
• the importance of having differing view points involved in the process; and
• how this initiative has changed the individuals involved.

Results:

Some of the results achieved (In partnership with the Research Action Alliance on the Consequences of Work Injury (RAACWI), the Ontario Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) set out to define injured worker stigma, recognize it in language, behaviour and attitudes, and find ways to eliminate it. Using staff training opportunities, partnering with other internal outreach initiatives, examining the values we look for when hiring new staff, and beginning a dialogue with senior management and frontline staff, the WSIB is working to reveal the “inconvenient truth” about injured worker stigma.)

Conclusions:

We have experienced a collaborative and action oriented process of knowledge transfer that operates in two directions: researcher to practitioner/policy-maker and policy-maker/practitioner to researcher. The perspective of each of these parties was crucial to addressing the issue. While it is premature to evaluate the effectiveness of the actions taken, we have gained a deeper understanding of the issue of stigma and of the complexity and possibilities of eliminating it. We've been heartened by the finding of common cause, and gained confidence in our ability to interact with researchers and advocates to create change.