Vocational rehabilitation support and education support guideline

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View our individual guidelines to focus on the topics that matter to you. These are also available in plain language versions which are easier to understand (called MyGuides).

Vocational rehabilitation support and education support guideline (PDF, 282KB)

MyGuide9: jobs and training supports (PDF, 178KB)

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• Definitions

  Defined terms are shown throughout in bold underlined text when they first appear.

  Health Practitioner Regulation National Law is Queensland’s modified application of Health Practitioner Regulation National Law under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law Act 2009 (Qld).

  MyPlan means a support plan prepared by the NIISQ Agency and approved under the National Injury Insurance Scheme Act (Queensland) Act 2016.

  Vocational rehabilitation support provider and education support provider includes the following persons, of which some are regulated under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law:

  • occupational therapists
  • physiotherapists
  • psychologists
  • speech therapists
  • rehabilitation counsellors
  • school support officers
  • teacher’s assistants.

  Providers must have the relevant qualification, skills and experience and any relevant registration required to practice in their specialty.

• Supporting a participant who needs vocational rehabilitation support and education support

  The NIISQ Agency will identify a participant’s needs (or relating to) for vocational rehabilitation supports and education supports and will fund these supports in accordance with the National Injury Insurance Scheme (Queensland) Act 2016, the National Injury Insurance Scheme (Queensland) Regulation 2016, this guideline, and other relevant guidelines.

  There is a plain language version of this guideline which is shorter and uses simpler words. To access it, view MyGuide 9 – Jobs and training supports.

  This guideline should be read in conjunction with the Necessary and reasonable guideline.

• Approval for vocational rehabilitation support and education support

  For vocational rehabilitation supports and education supports to be funded under the NIISQ, the NIISQ Agency must provide written approval before the vocational rehabilitation supports and education supports are provided to the participant.

• Vocational rehabilitation support and education support must be necessary and reasonable

  The National Injury Insurance Scheme (Queensland) Act 2016 and the National Injury Insurance Scheme (Queensland) Regulation 2016 describe how the NIISQ Agency decides whether a treatment, care and support need is necessary and reasonable, and can be funded.

  The NIISQ Agency has published a guideline which explains how it decides whether a support is a necessary and reasonable, treatment, care and support need (see: Necessary and reasonable guideline).

  When the NIISQ Agency is assessing if vocational rehabilitation supports and education supports are necessary and reasonable, it will give particular attention to the following:

  • whether the vocational rehabilitation support and education support is appropriate, having regard to:
    • whether providing the support aligns with recommended clinical practices, and other industry best practices, for the rehabilitation of persons with similar injuries
    • whether the participant is receiving similar vocational rehabilitation support and education support that is intended to meet their needs
    • whether there is evidence to support the effectiveness of the vocational rehabilitation support and education support
  • whether the vocational rehabilitation support provider and education support provider (vocational rehabilitation and education support provider) has the necessary skills and experience and is appropriately qualified
  • whether the vocational rehabilitation and education support provider is appropriate for the participant
  • whether the vocational rehabilitation support and education support is a cost-effective way to meet the participant’s needs, having regard to the benefits that the vocational rehabilitation support and education support has for the participant.

  Who is a vocational rehabilitation and education support provider?

  A vocational rehabilitation and education support provider supports a participant and works with them to identify and achieve their work and education-related goals and activities.

  A vocational rehabilitation and education support provider has expertise in addressing the physical, psychological and/or workplace or education barriers that may prevent an injured worker or student returning to work.

  The NIISQ Agency will generally not fund a family member to provide vocational rehabilitation support and education support services to the participant.
  

• Assessment of needs for vocational rehabilitation supports and education supports

  In assessing a participant’s needs for vocational rehabilitation support and education support, the NIISQ Agency will ordinarily require information from vocational rehabilitation and education support providers which assists the NIISQ Agency to decide whether the support is necessary and reasonable.

  Where information about a participant’s needs for vocational rehabilitation support and education support is unavailable, the NIISQ Agency may fund an assessment including a written report provided by a vocational rehabilitation and education support provider, or other suitably-qualified provider where the NIISQ Agency considers it appropriate.

  Identifying a participant’s treatment, care and support needs is done in collaboration with the participant, their family and/or other informal supports, and providers.

  Information required by the NIISQ Agency to assess needs

  The information required by the NIISQ Agency generally includes matters which relate to:

  • whether the need for the vocational rehabilitation support and education support is directly related to the participant’s accepted injury (and if only partially, the extent to which the participant’s needs are related to their accepted injury)
  • the participant’s pre-accident life roles, career and intended study plans
  • the participant’s engagement
  • the participant’s capacity to engage in vocational rehabilitation support and education support
  • existing rehabilitation services or training that can be accessed through alternative pathways
  • alternatives to training
  • previous vocational rehabilitation and education expenses funded under the NIISQ
  • the cost and duration of any requested vocational rehabilitation supports and education supports.

• Vocational rehabilitation support and education support must be provided by an appropriate provider

  Vocational rehabilitation support and education support must be provided by a vocational rehabilitation and education support provider.

  Vocational rehabilitation and education support providers do not need to be a registered provider under the National Injury Insurance Scheme (Queensland) Act 2016, nor the National Injury Insurance Scheme (Queensland) Regulation 2016.

  However, all vocational rehabilitation and education support providers that are required to be registered under the national regulation, which is administered by the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency, or through self-regulation by a professional association that is responsible for certifying qualifications, must comply with these registration requirements.

  Where applicable, the NIISQ Agency expects the vocational rehabilitation and education support provider to comply with their legal and professional obligations under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law including (but not limited to):

  • maintaining appropriate professional indemnity insurance
  • complying with the shared Code of conduct published on the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency’s website, or
  • where the profession is self-regulated, complying with the code of conduct published on the Rehabilitation Counselling Association of Australasia website

• Types of vocational rehabilitation supports and education supports funded by NIISQ Agency

  There are a broad range of vocational rehabilitation supports and education supports which may be funded for participants in the NIISQ.

  Vocational rehabilitation support

  Vocational rehabilitation support is support for a participant to overcome barriers in returning to or commencing work. Vocational rehabilitation support is sometimes referred to as ‘occupational rehabilitation’ and may include:

  • vocational rehabilitation counselling
  • vocational assessment
  • labour market analysis and research
  • resume writing
  • interview preparation
  • functional capacity evaluations
  • suitable duties programs
  • host indemnity insurance.

  It is goal directed and has a core objective of restoring capacity for work and participation in work activities including volunteer or paid employment. It can include training such as instructional and hands on programs or courses that focus on skill building and development and is directly related to a MyPlan goal.
  

  Education support

  Education support is support for a participant to overcome any accepted injury-related barriers in returning to or commencing education and may include:

  • social support – support accessible to an individual through social ties to other individual groups and the larger community
  • tutorial support – support accessible to an individual following the exhaustion of any available community resources. It is focused to help the student reach specific educational goals
  • additional support with life transitions such as starting school or tertiary studies.

• Limitations on support for vocational rehabilitation support and education support

  Vocational rehabilitation supports and education supports funded under the NIISQ are intended to complement, not replace, related supports provided by other services or programs operated by other Australian and Queensland Government entities available to a participant.

  The NIISQ Agency does not fund:

  • government-funded primary, secondary and tertiary education supports
  • services or supports accessible under other Australian Government or state legislation, such as FEE-HELP
  • government funded vocational job finding supports such as Disability Employment Services
  • support provided by Services Australia.

  The NIISQ does not replace existing obligations for individuals and organisations to comply with their obligations under the Disability Discrimination Act 1992.

• Vocational rehabilitation supports and education supports that are generally not funded by NIISQ Agency

  The NIISQ Agency will generally not fund the following:

  • general education-related costs including school fees, fees for excursions or school camps, stationery and uniforms which are unrelated to the participant’s accepted injury
  • activities which fall under the ordinary responsibilities of a parent or guardian, including supervising homework and assisting school projects
  • activities related to the operation of a business, such as paying staff to do a participant’s job
  • uniforms, licensing or equipment that are to be provided by the employer
  • standard furniture and other items associated with the participant’s place of employment or work health safety requirements
  • training courses that the participant had enrolled in or commenced prior to the event that caused their accepted injury
  • training that is:
    • related to maintaining an existing qualification, licence, registration or accreditation once the participant obtains the qualification, licence, registration or accreditation
    • part of induction, ongoing skill maintenance or development that is the responsibility of the participant or their employer
    • associated with voluntary career changes or personal development (which is not caused by, or initiated as a result of a participant’s accepted injury)
  • ongoing training costs where the training or educational institution determines that the participant is guilty of serious academic misconduct or has failed to maintain satisfactory academic progress
  • supports (including modifications to a workplace or education setting) that an employer or other person is required to make under a statutory obligation (for example, a law relating to reasonable adjustments).