Injured workers want to recover and return to their regular jobs and lives as soon as it is safe to do so. But research shows that the longer a worker is off the job because of an injury, the more likely it becomes that they will never return.

Delays in medical treatment can sometimes impact the recovery of an injured worker. To help injured workers get speedier access to the surgical care they need, the Workers’ Compensation Board is partnering with Nova Scotia Health Authority (NSHA) to take advantage of unused capacity to provide timely surgery services. This partnership is called the Centralized Surgical Services Program (CSSP).

If you are an injured worker and your family doctor determines that you need a surgical consultation, you may be referred to the Centralized Surgical Services Program. Any necessary travel costs for consultations or treatment will be covered by the WCB.

This program will have no impact on the public healthcare system. It uses existing operating room time and surgeon capacity not funded by the public system to provide surgical care to injured workers.

The Centralized Surgical Services Program supports safe and timely return to work for injured workers. The program is a partnership between WCB NS and Nova Scotia Health Authority (NSHA), and takes advantage of unused capacity to provide timely surgery services for workers who are losing time from work due to workplace injury.

Employers play an important role in the return to work process. You can support an injured worker’s recovery by:

• Being supportive
• Helping the worker stay connected to the workplace during recovery
• Where possible and appropriate, offering transitional duties as part of the recovery and return to work process