Today we will wander far from the realm of workers’ compensation and general employment risk. We do so because, for one, we can. But more importantly, we in the industry need an occasional reminder that we are not alone. It is sometimes helpful to stop and smell the roses, and realize that stupidity is not…
Psychosocial Disability, or, There is Something Fishy About a Man Named Guppy
It was a bit eerie, actually. My presentation last week at the Washington Self-Insurers Association Annual Conference was followed by Vickie Kennedy and Ryan Guppy of Washington Labor & Industry. Kennedy is the Assistant Director for Insurance Services, and Guppy serves in the role of Chief of Return to Work Partnerships. In my presentation I…
Death by Atomic Wedgie
I’ll be damned. Every time you think you’ve seen it all, someone comes along and breaks yet another barrier, proving that something once thought impossible was actually not. Just like the automobile exceeding 28 miles an hour (the speed at which many once believed was a fatal barrier for man), the sound barrier, the four…
Dillard’s Oklahoma Opt Out; Mother Would Not Approve
My mother had a strong brain for business. A normal housewife with no business experience until she and my father bought a motel, restaurant and lounge in 1971, she quickly adapted and demonstrated acumen for the task. She was smart in her decision making, and taught us the customer was always the sole and ultimate…
Requiem For a Rectal Wrecking
Oh, it is a hideous way to start a Monday morning, I agree. A discussion such as this is best held for later in the week, closer to the weekend but not so close so that it offers anticipated salvation; but still far enough along that burdens abound and life itself almost seems no longer…
Disability Prevention is the Best Type of Impairment Management
Following my session at the Washington Self Insurers Association (WSIA) Annual Conference yesterday, Washington L&I’s Vickie Kennedy and Ryan Guppy took the stage in a session entitled “Avoiding Disability Through Early Return to Work”. They relayed what the state is doing to improve Return to Work here, and made some excellent points about dealing with…
Washington Bound For a Wild and Wacky Time
I am headed to Washington State today to speak at the annual conference of the Washington Self-Insurers Association. The theme for this years event is “WSIA’s Wild World of Workers’ Compensation”, and the fittingly named session I am presenting is “The Wild and Wacky World of Workers’ Compensation”. I enjoy giving this particular presentation, as…
A Twitter Project Worth Tweeting About
When I was growing up in the 1970’s, there was a local talk show on KIUP radio called “Coffee with Johnny”. Johnny was a woman who was a bit of a local celebrity, having been on the air since the 1950’s, and 5 days a week she would interview other locals about what was new…
You Can't Fix Stupid, But You Can Exhibit It At Conferences
Sometimes you only have to be patient to find the golden nugget that proves an hypothesis or theory that you have long maintained. It is something that you have known in your heart is true, yet you have been unable to substantiate it to your own satisfaction. And when you find that useful tidbit of…
Smart Phones and Stupid People
I can’t help but have a nagging feeling that we are losing the war. All around us the advance of technology seems to be surpassing our own human capacity to process. But that isn’t all that is happening. That capacity isn’t just stationary and being surpassed; it seems to be declining. I am afraid we…