workers’ compensation C D A J O U R N A L , V O L 4 9 , Nº 2
Workers’ Compensation: Timely Claims Reporting and Reducing Workplace Injuries Taiba Solaiman
abstract Dental practice owners might have complex feelings about workers’ compensation, and they would not be alone. While workers’ compensation coverage is an indispensable part of owning and running a business, it adds cost and impacts time management. But what is the alternative?
AUTHOR Taiba Solaiman has been a TDIC Risk Management analyst since 2007. She speaks nationally representing the company and advises dentists on professional liability risk management.
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orkers’ compensation insurance provides benefits to employees who suffer work-related injuries and illnesses. It helps pay for medical treatment, temporary disability payments, permanent disability benefits, supplemental job displacement vouchers, vocational rehabilitation and death benefits. In California, workers’ compensation came into effect more than a century ago. In January 1918, liability for compensation was imposed on employers “without regard to negligence,” creating what is known as a “no-fault system.” That change provided a specific benefit: Even if an employee caused their own workplace injury, they would still be eligible to
receive workers’ compensation benefits. The change also protected employers from employer-liability civil suits related to workplace injuries or illnesses. Most common workplace injuries are preventable. Repetitive motion or ergonomic-type injuries and slips or falls are common, but by far the most frequent types of injuries in the dental office are cuts, punctures, scrapes and needlesticks. Sharps incidents put the injured employee at risk for exposure to bloodborne pathogens such as hepatitis B, hepatitis C and HIV. According to a recent claims analysis at The Dentists Insurance Company, more than 70% of injuries reported fell into the needlestick category, making it the one of the greatest occupational hazards in the dental office. FEBRUARY 2 0 2 1
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