Exceptional KINNECTers make finalists list for the 2023 ARPA Victoria Workplace Rehabilitation Awards

KINNECT is delighted to announce that Courtney Slatter and Brendon Carter from our Melbourne team are finalists in the 2023 ARPA Victoria Workplace Rehabilitation Awards.

The Australian Rehabilitation Practitioners Association (ARPA) holds the National Excellence in Workplace Rehabilitation awards to celebrate the many outstanding achievements of allied health professionals in the Australian workplace rehabilitation industry and to highlight the importance of their work to the wider community.

Brendon was nominated for the Outstanding Consultant Award – Original Employer, while Courtney was nominated for the Outstanding Student Award.

Brendon’s outstanding achievement

Brendon is a dedicated advocate of the health benefits of good work, consistently going above and beyond to achieve sustainable return to work outcomes that benefit both employers and workers.

Brendon is grateful and humbled by the nomination. “It is a true privilege to be recognised for the work I’ve done in making a positive impact on injured workers and their related stakeholders through working with KINNECT,” he said.

His nomination reflected his exceptional work consulting on a hand injury case where the worker was experiencing several biopsychosocial barriers to returning to work. He diligently and kindly educated the employee, employer and treatment team on the importance of the health benefits of good work and a recovery at work, assessed the barriers, keep abreast of the worker’s recovery by implementing regular review of objective outcome measures, established strong and consistent lines of communication between stakeholders to facilitate the employee’s return to the workplace in a suitable interim role.

After confirming that the worker was ready to begin returning to duties, Brendon worked with stakeholders to implement a 16-week, graded recover at work intervention. The worker was able to successfully return to pre-injury hours within 12 weeks and achieved pre-injury duties by the end of the plan.

Courtney’s outstanding achievement

During her student placement, Courtney displayed remarkable competence and adaptability despite being new to the industry. While shadowing KINNECT’s same employer services consultants, she quickly grasped complex concepts and protocols so that within a matter of weeks, she was actively contributing to the completion of reports, developing collaborative return to work goals, and drafting graded recovery at work plans.

In one particular case, Courtney drew on her clinical expertise, interpersonal skills, and knowledge of the Health Benefits of Good Work to build rapport with a worker, identify the biopsychosocial impacts of their injury on their recovery, and recommend an action plan to address the barriers effectively. As a result, the worker made a partial return to work on productive duties, experienced improved job satisfaction and had a more productive relationship with their employer.

Courtney is thrilled to be on the finalist list for these prestigious awards so early in her career. “I am so grateful to have received the nomination for the Australian Rehabilitation Providers Association award for Outstanding Student. It was such a pleasure to complete a portion of my EP Masters Placement with KINNECT last year in the Melbourne office, receiving support and guidance from every team member,” she said.

After her placement, Courtney joined KINNECT as a Consultant and aims to grow as a practitioner, providing the best support she can for injured workers and their related stakeholders.

Securing their place as finalist in this year’s awards is a testament to Courtney and Brendon’s hard work and the positive impact they make on the lives of the people they assist along their rehabilitation journey. James Buckley, KINNECT’s State Manager for Victoria said:

“Recognising people like Brendon and Courtney for embodying our “why” of helping people and continuously striving for excellence is a core part of the KINNECT culture. As well as our own internal recognition programs, nominating our people for external awards like the ARPA state awards is an important way to show our, and our client’s, appreciation for the work they do in supporting people to get healthy and back to work.”

The winners of the awards will be announced at a dinner in Melbourne on Friday 11 August 2023. Everyone at KINNECT is very proud of Courtney and Brendon’s achievements and wishes them the best of luck.