Far be it for me to be disagreeable, however, as so often is the case, disagree I must. I attended the annual conference for the National Workers’ Compensation Defense Network a week ago in Atlanta. One of the sessions, designed to talk about the transition from claim management to litigation, accidentally meandered on to the…
Nurses are the Unsung Heroes of Medicine
Earlier this week I wrote about a somewhat negative experience I encountered that involved the health care arena. Today I am very pleased to be able to counter that story with a very positive tale, indeed. I recently had an elderly relative who was hospitalized over several days for what turned out to be a relatively…
When Dracula Has a Bad Day at Work
This afternoon I am scheduled for my annual physical. I don’t really know how it happened. I normally only have my annual physical once every 5 to 10 years, yet my last one was just, well, one year ago. My doctor somehow tricked me into scheduling this four years early. I am going to have…
It Is Time to Re-Educate Our Industry Regarding the Grand Bargain
I honestly did not know what to expect, yet I was somewhat shocked by the results. And it is making me rethink much about our current educational strategies. I’ve had the tremendous fortune over the last few years to present at numerous conferences and seminars about various areas of workers’ compensation. Many of those presentations…
Paying for Those Pesky Mommy Issues
Last week, during a presentation at the annual conference of the International Association of Industrial Accident Boards and Commissions (IAIABC), there was some spirited discussion between the panel and attendees. The session, “The Mind is Key”, was designed to help people understand and hear about effective psychological interventions, as well as how they are being…
Bob's Eight Immutable Laws of Air Travel
As many of you know, from time to time I wander from the dusty realm of workers’ compensation topics in order to offer opinions and insight (what I believe to be insight, anyway) on important (at least important to me) topics of the day. This is one such moment. As a so called “road warrior”…
Viewing Your Injured Worker As a Whole, Or Viewing Your Injured Worker As a Hole
I am encouraged that, more and more, I am hearing the impact of bio psychosocial issues on workers’ compensation being discussed at conferences I attend around the nation. My visit to the 103rd Annual Convention of the International Association of Industrial Accident Boards and Commissions (IAIABC) was no exception to this trend. The conference was…
I Suppose I Should Explain the Sign
We had the inaugural episode of The Hot Seat Webinar this last Friday (replay available here). I am not going to say much about it other than it appears to have been a tremendous success. I believe David Langham will be writing about it in short order, and for now I will leave the details…
My Day on "The Hot Seat" Has Arrived
Today we launch our long-planned webinar series, “The Hot Seat”. It will be a new and unique venture for me, but I am very excited to get it off the ground. The Hot Seat will be a quarterly webinar presentation where we will have direct and open discussions on important issues facing our industry. My…
I've Said It Before: A Manure Pit is a Crappy Place to Die
The clarion call went out in 2011. Ok, it wasn’t really a clarion call – it was just a simple blog post – so it was more like a softly whimpering acknowledgment. I wrote about a Mennonite family of four that had been overcome and killed by fumes from their farms manure pit in 2007.…