Early intervention is essential for managing minor injuries, as well as significantly reducing recovery time. CHG’s early intervention programs can provide you or your employee with treatment, exercises and self-management strategies to address a physical injury or discomfort before it escalates into a major problem. Our medical and physiotherapy services can help you or your employee manage an injury or minor complaint, minimising any impacts on physical capacity in the workplace and at home.

CHG’s early intervention program is designed to:

• Promote health and wellbeing
• Provide employees with the opportunity to receive quality medical and physiotherapy advice/treatment soon after injury/pain presents
• Limit the number of workers compensation claims
• Encourage early injury reporting

Once an employer has established a program for their workplace, an employee who has incurred an injury but has not lost time from work due to the injury, may request an early intervention service. The fees will be paid by the employer. Our early intervention service usually includes one medical consultation and up to four physiotherapy treatments at a CHG location. Our programs are not intended to replace the worker’s compensation process, but rather manage minor complaints before they progress to a point where they become compensable.

The return to work process following an injury or incident can be stressful for an employee, their team and the broader workplace. CHG’s team of qualified professionals have extensive experience in assisting employees and employers through all stages of the return to work process. We offer a holistic approach to the process and can adapt our services to the needs of each unique situation.

Our return to work services include:

• Functional capacity assessments
• Return to work job analysis assessments
• Work conditioning and vocational assessments
• Occupational therapist and physiotherapy services, including work hardening through gym and/or hydrotherapy
• Psychology services for post-injury care including post-traumatic stress and pain management

Having access to prompt, safe and reliable medical treatment is essential for maintaining your health. Using CHG as your preferred provider ensures you or your employees can receive treatment from experts in health and wellbeing, both inside and outside the workplace. As well as supporting the employee, CHG’s team specialise in occupational medicine. In the instance of workplace injury, we can aid you or your employee in successful rehabilitation and return to work.

We are committed to offering you the best personal and workplace medical treatment services possible, including:

• Immediate casualty treatment for injuries including soft tissue, minor fractures, lacerations, abrasions, eye injuries and burns
• Integrated approach to injury management through our team of medical practitioners, nursing staff, physiotherapists, psychologists and health promotion consultants
• Established network of medical specialists who can be engaged in the management of injuries or diseases requiring specialist intervention
• Services available at our three locations (Elizabeth Vale, Gillman and Mile End), as well as through our alliance with the Wakefield Emergency Department, onsite at your workplace and in regional locations through our strategic affiliate network
• Treatment 24 hours a day, 7 days a week (Treatment outside normal working hours, Monday – Friday, is via our alliance with the Wakefield Emergency Department)
• Immediate treatment and assessment follow-up to assist with ongoing management and recovery

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A key component of managing an injury is ensuring active involvement in rehabilitation, to improve health and facilitate recovery. CHG ensures that active rehabilitation and work conditioning are core components of our injury management strategies. CHG offers access to a hydrotherapy pool at our Mile End location and gym’s at all locations (Elizabeth Vale, Gillman and Mile End). All services are tailored to your individual/employee needs, under the direction and supervision of our team of experienced physiotherapists and exercise physiologists. We are also able to provide supervised gym and hydrotherapy programs for individuals under the care of external medical and allied health providers.

Gym
Our CHG gyms are equipped with multiple cardiovascular exercise options such as treadmills and bikes to suit individual/employee needs. Pin-loaded weight machines provide a safe way to build muscle strength. A range of Pilates equipment is also available, which can be used to develop stand-alone programs, or can be integrated into more general strengthening programs.

Hydrotherapy
Our pool at the Mile End location involves supervised hydrotherapy exercises in a heated pool. The temperature and buoyancy of the water can help reduce muscle spasms and pain. This enables an individual/employee to perform exercises that improve strength, flexibility and stability, which may be too difficult to perform in weight-bearing exercises outside of the water. These exercises can prove beneficial for a number of issues, including lower back pain, balance issues, and injury management. Other therapeutic benefits include muscle relaxation, core stability and improved circulation. The pool has easy access and graded depths, allowing individuals/employees to work at an intensity level that suits their needs. The pool also features twin swim jets that can be used to increase resistance for higher intensity exercises.

Multi Cervical Rehabilitation Unit
Our Mile End location also features the Multi Cervical Rehabilitation Unit (MCRU); the only one of its kind in South Australia. The MCRU provides diagnostic information for individuals/employees suffering long-term neck complaints (such as whiplash). It is able to measure neck muscle strength and range of movement, and can be used to develop a safe, targeted strengthening program.

CHG’s highly trained physiotherapists ensure every individual/employee receives the best possible injury management and prevention, tailored to their own specific needs. Our physiotherapists work closely with our wider medical team to ensure an integrated approach to every individual/employee’s management. Physiotherapy services are offered at our three CHG locations in Elizabeth Vale, Gillman and Mile End. Regional contractors can be arranged to suit your location or onsite services can be arranged.

Workplace Physiotherapy
Our physiotherapists will work with you, as an employer, to integrate physiotherapy with your broader occupational health and safety goals. By providing your employees with immediate diagnosis and treatment options onsite, musculoskeletal complaints can be managed before they impact on your employee’s ability to work comfortably and safely. CHG’s onsite physiotherapy can improve productivity and reduce the number of complaints that escalate to the point of workers compensation claims.

CHG physiotherapy programs can be tailored to your specific needs, featuring:

• Flexible service packages, ranging from 3 to 30 hours per week
• Individual services available at our three locations (Elizabeth Vale, Gillman and Mile End), or onsite at your workplace and in regional locations through our strategic affiliate network
• Diagnosis and management of musculoskeletal complaints
• Review and analysis of workplace injury trends
• Development and implementation of injury prevention programs and return to work strategies
• Education and training for employees on injury prevention and safe work procedures
• Risk assessments for manual handling and ergonomic risks
• Onsite job assessment and pre-employment functional capacity evaluations

Exercise physiology involves the prescription of clinical exercise for the treatment and rehabilitation of a broad range of chronic diseases and musculoskeletal injuries. Our exercise physiologists take a holistic approach to disease and injury management, with a focus on achieving each employee’s personal and return to work goals. These services are available across all our locations in Elizabeth Vale, Gillman and Mile End, as well as onsite in your workplace, or at a public gym. CHG’s exercise physiologists are university qualified allied health professionals, accredited by Exercise and Sports Science Australia (ESSA).

Our exercise physiologists can offer treatment in relation to:

• Obesity
• Diabetes
• Asthma
• High blood pressure
• Osteoporosis
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Stroke
• Arthritis
• Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
• Cancer
• Musculoskeletal pain
• Cardiovascular Diseases

The benefits of exercise physiology include:

• Improved strength
• Improved endurance
• Reduced weight
• Pain management
• Improved mood
• Reduced deconditioning

Personal and workplace injuries
Our exercise physiologist can assist individuals/employees with post-injury rehabilitation, once injured tissues can safely handle resistance. These services can be delivered through private health insurance rebates, as well as through Medicare via a chronic disease management plan. Exercise physiology can also be offered as part of a workplace injury claim.

For further information relating to these services, please contact us via phone or email.

Hand therapy assists individuals/employees with the rehabilitation of upper limb injuries, from shoulder to hand. With thorough evaluation and diagnostic testing, CHG’s specialised management programs are tailored to each individual/employee. Our hand therapy services operate across all three CHG locations in Elizabeth Vale, Gillman and Mile End.

Hand therapy may benefit individuals/employees with:

• Work-related injuries
• High trauma injuries
• Repetitive strain injuries
• Sporting injuries
• Degenerative changes
• Nerve injuries
• Post-operative rehabilitation

Hand therapy can help through:

• Custom splint fabrication
• Exercise prescription
• Sensory re-education
• Pain management
• Upper limb functional assessments
• Return to work programs

When it comes to looking after your health, it’s easy to forget about your feet. But given you could walk about 120,000 km in your lifetime on a structure containing 26 individual bones, healthy feet are an important part of your overall wellbeing. Foot problems can have a huge impact on your quality of life. If they occur, podiatrists can help.Podiatrists are experts in foot, ankle and lower limb health. They can help to prevent, diagnose and treat a wide range of conditions including:

CHG Podiatrists can treat:

Utilising best evidence based practice, your CHG podiatrist may implement the following treatment techniques to assist with the management of lower limb injuries:

• taping;
• fabrication of orthotic devices for footwear;
• footwear recommendations;
• gait education and biomechanical correction;
• targeted strength and conditioning exercises; and
• podiatric surgery.

The CHG Podiatry team accepts:

• Private health fund patients (BUPA preferred practice)
• Medicare referrals
• Work injury clients
• Motor Vehicle Accident clients

CHG’s Podiatry services utilise evidence based management strategies to facilitate the timely and efficient management of injuries and conditions.

Craig Douglass

Craig Douglass leads CHG’s podiatry services. With nearly 30 years’ experience,
Craig has extensive experience in all facets of podiatric care: from foot-injured
workers through to professional athletes. Craig is available to treat injuries,
conduct assessments and provide specialised advice Monday to Friday.