[MCOH-EH] Modified Duty/Return To Work

[Olson, Amy]

Thanks for sharing, Julie.

We are stepping into 2026, with a dedicated Restricted Work cost center. This is certainly not a new idea, and I would imagine that there are many OH colleagues on this list who have established this and are working to implement.

Our deep dive into what was happening was driven by some data that indicated our hospital had less TRIR than other pediatric reporting hospitals BUT had higher DART rate. Because I have been around the block a bit, I knew our injuries were NOT exceptionally more severe. They are ordinary work-related incidents with a few roll your eyes “really?” events in the mix. The data analysis validated this. The conclusion from our nurse care managers was we had managers that would not accommodate restrictions more times than not—most notably our bedside employees. The next step was to have a focus group of nurse managers to help us understand what was happening. This was eye-opening. The department budgets are set up in such a way that it is detrimental financially for areas with staff/patient ratios to accommodate as it impacts their ratios. There “out of count” buckets were budgeted as well for training/education needs. We met with Nursing leadership to determine if it were feasible to either create a cost center for all WC restricted duty work or allow out of budget variances in the “out of count” bucket to include those employees on WC restrictions. It was determined to create the cost center. We are now working to operationalize this.

This cost center will be managed by Occ Health. It will only include those with work-related incidents. I was pleased that there was general recognition on the importance of returning people on restrictions to optimize their recovery as well as recognizing that it is in the best interest of the organization and the employee, to pay their employees to complete work. Perhaps some of this is helpful to you?

My question is would anyone share pearls of wisdom if they have such a cost center? I would love to learn what has worked well, what needed reworked, barriers you might have encountered?
Happy New Year everyone,
AO
Amy Olson COHN-S, MS, RN
Director- Occupational Health

[cid:image002.png at 01DC7BD3.7E82A7C0]
1919 E. Thomas Rd. Phoenix, AZ 85016
aolson3 at phoenixchildrens.com<mailto:aolson3 at phoenixchildrens.com>
(602) 933-5647



From: MCOH-EH <mcoh-eh-bounces at mylist.net> On Behalf Of Eisenhauer, Julie (TCRHCC) via MCOH-EH
Sent: Wednesday, December 31, 2025 8:22 AM
To: MCOH-EH <mcoh-eh at mylist.net>
Cc: Eisenhauer, Julie (TCRHCC) <Julie.Eisenhauer at TCHEALTH.ORG>
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Re: [MCOH-EH] Modified Duty/Return To Work

Thank you for sharing, I have attached our policy which was overviewed by our attorney. Please consider the regulation regarding labor laws is different here on the Navajo Nation as they have their own laws to abide by in conjunction with state

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________________________________
Thank you for sharing,

I have attached our policy which was overviewed by our attorney. Please consider the regulation regarding labor laws is different here on the Navajo Nation as they have their own laws to abide by in conjunction with state and federal laws. Thus, the reason we had our Attorney review it. Also, you may find attached the Fitness For Work Duty form we utilize. This form is not liked by our own providers. We are always looking for a simple, condensed form that gives us all we need to make informed decisions. Before we share the FFWD form with the supervisors, we block out all PHI. Again, due to the strict HIPAA and Privacy Act laws we must follow.

The question our facility encounters is:

  *   How is the time on modified pay codes listed? We have a comprehensive program. However, it does not allow us to "float" the staff member to another department because of the questions. "What department is paying for the modified workers time to be somewhere else?" How is this expense captured?


Best Wishes, Stay Safe, and May you Prosper,



Julie A. Eisenhauer BSN, RN

Employee Health Nurse

Direct Ph#: (928)283-1511

Or, Mitel 45111

[cid:image001.png at 01DC7BD0.F1893F70]





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From: MCOH-EH <mcoh-eh-bounces at mylist.net<mailto:mcoh-eh-bounces at mylist.net>> on behalf of Tracey Roberts via MCOH-EH <mcoh-eh at mylist.net<mailto:mcoh-eh at mylist.net>>
Sent: Wednesday, December 31, 2025 6:10 AM
To: MCOH-EH <mcoh-eh at mylist.net<mailto:mcoh-eh at mylist.net>>
Cc: Tracey Roberts <tracey.roberts at mcleodhealth.org<mailto:tracey.roberts at mcleodhealth.org>>
Subject: Re: [MCOH-EH] Modified Duty/Return To Work

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This is our policy at McLeod.

Thanks,


Tracey Roberts, MSN, RN

Assistant Director of Employee Health - Compliance/EH Clinics

McLeod Occupational Health

843-777-5153 (office)

803-847-2619 (cell)
101 William H Johnson St

Florence, SC 29506

www.mcleodhealth.org<https://urldefense.com/v3/__http:/www.mcleodhealth.org__;!!DCTxO5nwB6A69OQV!xz1hWc1VuJii6ISarbS0-Nem4b6Fgnip23vwAYUANH7mGoHb3nlWrrIQK5JFsSdd1EVJr1bvDh3gXaS5tczGFQx3$>





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From: MCOH-EH <mcoh-eh-bounces+tracey.roberts=mcleodhealth.org at mylist.net<mailto:mcoh-eh-bounces+tracey.roberts=mcleodhealth.org at mylist.net>> on behalf of Skalka, Casey <cskalka at marylanning.org<mailto:cskalka at marylanning.org>>
Sent: Tuesday, December 30, 2025 14:20
To: MCOH-EH <mcoh-eh at mylist.net<mailto:mcoh-eh at mylist.net>>
Subject: [MCOH-EH] Modified Duty/Return To Work

**External Email**

Hello-

Does anyone have a policy on Modified Duty/Return To Work that they would be willing to share?


Casey Skalka, BSN, RN
Employee Health
Mary Lanning Healthcare
715 North St. Joseph Avenue
Hastings, NE 68901
(O): 402.461.5341
(C): 402.984.4649
(F): 402.460.5734
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