Injury management consultants
Injury management consultants (IMC) work in the NSW workers compensation scheme. They are facilitators who help overcome complex return to work and injury management barriers in order to achieve the best possible outcome for workers.
Guidelines for the provision of relevant services have been published
SIRA has published the Guidelines for the Provision of Relevant Services (Health and Related Services), which apply to relevant service providers providing services in the NSW workers compensation and CTP (for accidents on or after 1 December 2017) schemes. The following sections of the guidelines apply to injury management consultants providing relevant services in the workers compensation scheme:
- Part 2: Requirements for telehealth services
- Part 5: Billing requirements for the provision of relevant services under the workers compensation legislation (except for 5.1(d))
- Part 6: Invoicing requirements for relevant services under the workers compensation legislation (excluding pharmaceutical services)
This webpage has been updated to include content from the Guidelines and the associated legislation.
The role of an injury management consultant
The role of the injury management consultant (IMC) is different from that of the independent medical examiner.
IMCs are SIRA-approved registered medical practitioners (doctors) experienced in occupational injury and workplace-based rehabilitation. An injury management consultant helps the nominated treating doctor, worker, insurer, employer and other service providers to progress a worker's recovery at/return to work and optimise health and work outcomes.
A referral to an injury management consultant may occur when a worker has been identified at risk of delayed recovery, a specific return to work or injury management issue has been identified or referral has been requested by the worker, employer, nominated treating doctor or other treating practitioner.
The SIRA IMC referral form has been developed to promote appropriate information being provided in the referral.
An IMC assesses the situation, examines the worker (if necessary) and discusses possible solutions with all parties. The IMC negotiates with parties to seek agreement on actions and outcomes. Injury management consultants are not responsible for directing treatment of a worker, though they may comment on treatment in respect to recovery at/return to work.
The functions of an IMC are provided in detail in Part 6 of the Workers Compensation Guidelines.
An IMC functions do not include:
- an opinion on causation or liability
- undertaking a functional capacity evaluation or work capacity assessment for the insurer.
Refer to the Guidelines for the Provision of Relevant Services (Health and Related Services) for the specific provisions that IMCs must comply with.
Find an approved injury management consultant
Becoming an approved injury management consultant
To become an IMC you are required to be a medical practitioner, meet certain eligibility criteria and apply to SIRA for approval.
Before applying to SIRA for approval, please read the following two documents:
- Part 6 of the Workers Compensation Guidelines – provides detail regarding the functions of an IMC to fully inform you about the role.
- The IMC approval and regulatory framework - provides important information about the criteria for approval, application process and conditions of approval for IMCs.
Apply
To apply for initial or renewal of approval as an IMC, use the below forms:
Fees and invoicing
The fees set out the maximum fees for injury management consultants.
All fees you can charge are listed in the relevant fee order below:
Current health-related fees
These are the and rates orders.
- Ambulance service fees order (effective 7 August 2023)
- Public hospital rates order (effective 7 August 2023)
- Surgeon and Orthopaedic Surgeon Fees Order (effective 1 February 2024)
- SIRA telehealth item numbers for medical practitioners (effective 1 February 2024)
- Psychology and counselling fees & practice requirements (effective 1 February 2024)
- Private Hospital Maximum Rates Order (effective 1 February 2024)
- Physiotherapy, chiropractic and osteopathy fees & practice requirements (effective 1 February 2024)
- Medical Practitioner Fees Order (effective 1 February 2024)
- Medical Examinations and Reports Fees Order (effective 1 February 2024)
- Massage Therapy Fees Order (effective 1 March 2024)
- Injury Management Consultant Fees Order (effective 1 February 2024)
- Independent Consultant Fees Order (effective 1 February 2024)
- Hearing Aid fees & practice requirements (effective 1 February 2024)
- General practitioner rates (effective 1 Feb 2024)
- Accredited exercise physiology fees & practice requirements (effective 1 February 2024)
Historical health-related fees
These are the historical health related fees and rates orders.
Fees and rates orders 2023
- General practitioner rates effective 1 February 2023
- Telehealth item numbers for medical practitioners effective 1 February 2023
- General practitioner rates effective 9 March 2023
- Telehealth item numbers for medical practitioners effective 9 March 2023
- General practitioner rates effective 6 July 2023
- Telehealth item numbers for medical practitioners effective 6 July 2023
- Accredited exercise physiology fees and practice requirements (effective 1 February 2023)
- General practitioner rates (effective 1 November 2023)
- Hearing aid fees and practice requirements (effective 1 February 2023)
- Independent consultant fees order (effective 1 February 2023)
- Injury management consultant fees order (effective 1 February 2023)
- Massage therapy fees order (effective 1 February 2023)
- Medical examinations and reports fees order (effective 1 February 2023)
- Medical practitioners fees order (effective 1 February 2023)
- Physiotherapy, chiropractic and osteopathy fees and practice requirements (effective 1 February 2023)
- Psychology and counselling fees and practice requirements (effective 1 February 2023)
- Private hospital maximum rates order (effective 7 November 2022)
- Surgeon and orthopaedic surgeon fees order (effective 1 February 2023)
- Telehealth item numbers for medical practitioners (effective 1 November 2023)
Fees and rates orders 2022
- Accredited exercise physiology and practice requirements (effective 1 August 2022)
- General practitioner rates (effective 1 July 2022)
- General practitioner rates (effective 1 November 2022)
- Hearing aid fees and practice requirements (effective 1 January 2022)
- Independent consultant fees order (effective 1 January 2022)
- Injury management consultant fees order (effective 1 January 2022)
- Massage therapy fees order (effective 1 January 2022)
- Medical examinations and reports fees order (effective 1 January 2022)
- Medical practitioners fees order (effective 1 July 2022)
- Physiotherapy, chiropractic and osteopathy fees and practice requirements (effective 1 January 2022)
- Physiotherapy, chiropractic and osteopathy fees and practice requirements (effective 1 August 2022)
- Psychology and counselling fees and practice requirements (effective 1 January 2022)
- Surgeon and orthopaedic surgeon fees order (effective 1 July 2022)
- Telehealth item numbers for medical practitioners (effective 1 July 2022)
- Telehealth item numbers for medical practitioners (effective 1 November 2022)
- Public hospital rates order (effective 22 July 2022)
- Ambulance service fees order (effective 22 July 2022)
Fees and rates orders 2021
- Ambulance service fees order (effective 6 August 2021)
- General practitioner rates (effective 1 December 2021)
- General practitioner rates (effective 1 January 2021)
- Hearing Aid fees and practice requirements (effective 1 January 2021)
- Independent Consultant fees order (effective 1 March 2021)
- Injury Management Consultant fees order (effective 1 March 2021)
- Massage Therapy fees order (effective 1 January 2021)
- Medical Examinations and Reports fees order (effective 1 March 2021)
- Medical Practitioners fees order (effective 1 December 2021)
- Medical Practitioners fees order (effective 1 January 2021)
- Orthopaedic Surgeon fees order (effective 1 December 2021)
- Orthopaedic Surgeon fees order (effective 1 January 2021)
- Physiotherapy, Chiropractic and Osteopathy fees and practice requirements (effective 1 January 2022)
- Physiotherapy, Chiropractic and Osteopathy fees and practice requirements (effective 1 January 2021)
- Psychology and Counselling fees and practice requirements (effective 1 January 2021)
- Public hospital rates order (effective 6 August 2021)
- Surgeon fees order (effective 1 December 2021)
- Surgeon fees order (effective 1 January 2021)
- Telehealth item numbers for medical practitioners (effective 1 December 2021)
- Telehealth item numbers for medical practitioners (effective 1 January 2021)
Fees and rates orders 2020
- Accredited Exercise Physiology
- Accredited Exercise Physiology No 2
- Accredited Exercise Physiology fees order No 3 (effective 17 April 2020)
- Ambulance service fees order (effective 11 September 2020)
- General Practitioners rates (effective 17 April 2020)
- Hearing Aid fees order (effective 1 January 2020)
- Hearing Aid fees order No 2 (effective 17 April 2020)
- Independent Consultant fees order
- Independent Consultant fees order No 2
- Independent Consultant fees order No 3 (effective 17 April 2020)
- Injury Management Consultant fees order
- Injury Management Consultant fees order No 2 (effective 17 April 2020)
- Massage Therapy fees order
- Medical Examinations and Reports fees order
- Medical Examinations and Reports fees order No 2 (effective 17 April 2020)
- Medical Practitioners fees order
- Medical Practitioners fees order No 2
- Medical Practitioners fees order No 3 (effective 17 April 2020)
- Orthopaedic Surgeon fees order
- Orthopaedic Surgeon fees order No 2 (effective 17 April 2020)
- Physiotherapy, Chiropractic and Osteopathy
- Physiotherapy, Chiropractic and Osteopathy No 2
- Physiotherapy, Chiropractic and Osteopathy No 3 (effective 17 April 2020)
- Psychology and Counselling fees order
- Psychology and Counselling fees order No 2
- Psychology and Counselling fees order No 3 (effective 17 April 2020)
- Private Hospital Maximum rates order (effective 17 March 2020)
- Public Hospital fees schedule (effective 1 July 2020)
- Public Hospital rates order (effective 1 July 2020)
- Surgeon fees order
- Surgeon fees order No 2 (effective 17 April 2020)
Fees and rates orders 2019
- Accredited Exercise Physiology
- General practitioners rates
- Hearing Aid fees order
- Independent Consultant
- Injury Management Consultant
- Massage Therapy fees order
- Medical Examinations and Reports
- Medical Examinations and Reports No 2
- Medical Practitioners fees order
- Orthopaedic Surgeon fees order
- Physiotherapy, Chiropractic and Osteopathy
- Private Hospital fee schedule
- Private Hospital rates order
- Psychology and Counselling
- Public Hospital fee schedule
- Public Hospital rates order
- Surgeon fees order
Fees and rates orders 2018
- Ambulance fees schedule
- Ambulance services fee order
- Accredited exercise physiology
- General practitioner rates
- Hearing aid fees order
- Independent consultants
- Injury management consultants
- Massage Therapy fees order
- Medical examinations and reports
- Medical practitioner fees order
- Orthopaedic Surgeon fees order
- Physiotherapy, Chiropractic and Osteopathy fees order
- Psychology and counselling
- Private Hospital fees schedule
- Private Hospital rates order
- Public Hospital fees schedule
- Public hospital rates order
- Surgeon fees order
Fees and rates orders 2017
- Ambulance services fees order
- Ambulance services fees order no2
- Accredited exercise physiology
- General practitioner rates
- Hearing aid fees order
- Independent consultants
- Injury management consultants
- Massage Therapy fees order
- Medical examinations and reports
- Medical practitioner fees order
- Orthopaedic Surgeon fees order
- Physiotherapy, chiropractic and osteopathy fees order
- Private Hospital rates order fees order
- Psychology and counselling
- Public Hospital rates order
- Public Hospital rates order no2
- Surgeon fees order
What your invoices will need to include
Invoices for relevant services rendered must include:
- the injured worker’s first and last name, and claim number
- payee name, address, telephone number and email address
- payee Australian Business Number (ABN)
- name of the relevant service provider who delivered the relevant service
- in the case of medical practitioner services, the provider’s:
- Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) number, and
- Medicare provider number (unless not registered with Medicare).
- relevant SIRA payment classification code
- service cost for each SIRA payment classification code
- date of service
- date of invoice (must be on the day of or after last date of service listed on the invoice).
Invoices must be submitted within 30 calendar days of the service being provided.