Academic cites challenges of addiction after Monash University finds many injured workers receiving 'high-risk' prescriptions
A new study shows thousands of injured Victorian employees are receiving high-risk opioid prescriptions to manage their pain – something that could pose wider consequences to the workplace, according to the head of the Healthy Working Lives research group at Monash University, Professor Alex Collie.
“More than two-thirds of injured workers were given a high-risk pattern of prescription within the first three months of their injury. A quarter of those were continuing to use opioids for a year post-injury.”
This can have a significant impact on people’s health, he said.
“In Australia, for example, more people die from prescription opioid medicines than from illicit opioids like heroin. It’s also responsible for more hospitalisations. This all means people tend to stay out of work for longer which has an impact on things like productivity.”
The study raised concerns about the prescribing patterns of opioids, showing that one in five injured workers (20.5%) were given an opioid prescription in the first three months of their compensation claim.
Among those that were given opioids, two in three (67.1%) had early high-risk prescriptions.
“What is concerning is how common these high-risk patterns of prescribing are. It affects businesses and HR directly because these people are more likely to be away from work for a longer period of time,” Collie told HRD.
“Having them out of work is obviously a challenge for employers, and it probably indicates that they're not getting what we would consider to be best practice rehabilitation for injury and illness. Prescribing opioids definitely isn’t a front-line treatment for workplace injury and disease.”
It is generally recommended to avoid opioids if possible and use other pain relief methods first, the report states. If opioids are prescribed, they should be used for a short time and in low doses.
With drug and alcohol abuse costing employers in the US around $81 billion every year people managers and HR leaders can help not only reintegrate workers back into the workplace but also support their recovery.
America’s opioid crisis is one of the most significant public health catastrophes of our time, and Australia has made concerted efforts to avoid this level of detrimental damage, another report from Monash University states, with a decline in opioid-related deaths being recorded in 2023 from 2022, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
HR leaders and businesses have a key role in helping rehabilitate an injured employee to reduce the risk of addiction and further long-term health complications, Collie explained.
“There’s a lot of guidelines and evidence around the most effective approach [to rehabilitation] – it includes staying at work as much as possible, exercising, moving more. As much as possible, we want to be accommodating workers with modified duties or alternative arrangements. That’s the cornerstone of best practice.”
“Add in things like a phased return to work and constant communication – along with relaxation techniques like massages and short-term pain relief — these kind of injuries [back, neck and shoulder] can recover within a period of months or even weeks. People managers have a big part to play in that,” he noted.
Addiction has an impact on many, so is there a way workplaces can support a worker through their struggle?
It’s not an easy issue to address, according to Collie.
“Addiction’s a pretty tricky topic. A lot of employees may not want to disclose addictions that they have, so the workplaces may not even be aware of them. Then, there's a real question about what the workplaces role is in intervening. A lot of people who take opioids following an injury can become dependent. That's something we want to avoid.”
A survey conducted by South Pacific Private highlighted the dramatic improvements seen in employees’ work during the transition to recovery from either an addiction or mental health issue when recovery plans are in place.
The key is communication and resilience, Collie said.
“Give your employees a sense of wellbeing in the workplace. Speak with your employees, help engage them in active rehabilitation. When workers are not just healthier – but happier, too – they recover more quickly. It also means they’re more likely to be engaged to work and be more productive. That's going to benefit the employer.”
