Many employed firefighters suffer from some form of injury. Specific injuries can keep us out, and we usually need a “return to work form” to return to the fire department. Below, you’ll find a typical form you would hand to your doctor to fill out before you return to work. Many of you may think this is common sense, but how does this form get filled out if you suffer from a mental health injury?
As we dive deeper into this form, the top portion has the individual’s name and whether it’s a work-related injury. When it’s work related, it’s most likely workman’s compensation and the department helping you get back to work through light duty. You are not always on duty if you get hurt in a situation that’s not work related.
To Be Completed BY Attending Physician: The following section discusses a diagnosis of your injury and whether you got your department’s job description. Fire departments give job descriptions to doctors to ensure they can fulfill all requirements. Our profession is unique because you must be 100% fit for duty. Like most other jobs, the physical demand isn’t required of an employee, and you can continue your regular work duties with an injury.
Check Only as Relates to Above Conditions. The middle of this form discusses what kind of work can be done with your physical injury. This ranges from light to heavy lifting restrictions. The other side talks about the limits of walking with hands, feet, or any movements. Let’s say you broke your arm while off duty. You would present this form to the doctor, and they will fill out what forms of work you can do with restrictions. As the patient, you can see, feel, and touch where the injury is. The doctor has a range of tests that can be done to make sure what exact stage you are at in the healing process. Based on the evaluation, you get placed in a specific category with cleared to work or restrictions as you do light or modified duty.
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The subsequent two sections discuss the employee’s restrictions, if any. If the employee needs a re-evaluation at the doctor’s office, they will produce a date. The following section discusses concerns about medications that will limit one person’s ability to perform these duties. This is precautionary, and we don’t want anyone to get hurt.
The final section is the signatures of both doctor and patient, which authorize the form to be valid. The form is then brought to the employer for review, outlining what you can do as you move forward through your healing process.
My Incident
As some of you know, I suffered from a mental health injury which put me out for eight months! I went from a normal person to hearing audio and visual hallucinations. With high anxiety and an inability to form complete sentences, I was committed to a treatment center. Getting out, I had ups and downs and the fear of never returning to work. After the most arduous journey, I was at the last step of coming to work. The only thing that needed to be done was for the psychiatrist to complete the return-to-work form. Once the form was filled out, I could return to work.
Meeting the Doctor
Minutes before meeting with my doctor, I reviewed this form in my hand and thought it would be easy—just a simple signature. I was wrong. Let me set the scene: my doctor and I were in his office, talking about how I have been doing and reminiscing on the past. I told him, “I have a return-to-work form for you to sign so I can return to work.” The doctor said, “Sure, let me look at it.” I could see the doctor reviewing the form and just staring at it. He handed the form back to me and said, “I’m unable to fill this form out because it only talks about physical injury, not mental health injury.” I took the form from him, looked at it dumbfounded, and passed it back to him. I said, “This is just a form the department needs to fill out, and you should know how to do it.” He said, “I have no idea how to fill this form out because your injury was a mental health injury, not a physical form of injury like a bone or a joint, and the two don’t equal one or another.” He and I must have passed the form to each other 10 times, like a tennis match. At the end of the form conclusion, I asked, “Am I going to get fired?” to my doctor. The frustration and confusion were palpable in the room.
Concerns
The doctor was concerned because the restrictions only addressed a physical injury, not a mental health injury. I was physically capable of running EMS and fire calls. No parameters on the form would capture any cognitive limitations I may be suffering. This was why there was resistance to filling out the form. We started brainstorming how this form could be filled out so I could return to work. We identified this as something unorthodox and new.
Anyone who has come to a physical injury knows what I’m talking about; you can feel it, and you know where you are at. A mental health injury is a little different because it involves your brain and can affect some behaviors. It cannot be easy to express what parameters to employ and how they relate to your job. My brain felt like it had a massive laceration down the middle, and it was throbbing as it was repaired. We need a better understanding of mental health injuries, and we need it now.
Is Anyone to Blame Here?
NO. As a society, we have focused on physical health for so long that we have become efficient in getting injured members back to work through the proper channeling process. Mental health is starting to see the spotlight in society and the fire service. As we come across these issues, I know there will be new ways for members to get evaluated and return to work after a mental health injury. Both employer and employee will have a better process. If you want to know what I did, you must wait for Part 2. But one thing is for sure, change is necessary and it’s coming.
Disclaimer: Thank you to the municipality and elected officials authorizing me to use this form. With your contribution and authorization, this article reached fire service members and will grow organizations. Everyone involved views this as a learning experience, and we can improve forms like these to ensure we can provide the correct services to someone involved with any form of injury. My mental injury was caused by myself and my lack of asking for help.
Glynn Novak is a captain with the South Area Fire and Emergency Response District in central Wisconsin and the president of IAFF Local 5452. He received his undergraduate degree in fire and emergency response management from the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh and enrolled in Columbia Southern University’s master’s program for fire executive leadership.
