Rhys Cooper, Director of Customer Partnerships and Health Insights, Navigator Group, and Pamela Pace, Operations Manager, DXC
A physical injury rarely affects only the body. For many workers it brings uncertainty, distress and disruption, and the claims process can add to that strain. Many never reach the threshold for a mental injury claim, but without the right support at the right time, delayed recovery can turn into depression, anxiety or adjustment disorders. Around one in ten physical injury claims go on to need mental health care within a year, and the later problems are identified, the more entrenched they become.
In 2023, DXC, WorkSafe Victoria and Navigator Group partnered on a two-year pilot to test a different approach: earlier, human-centred support that addresses psychosocial factors before they turn into secondary harm.
The cohort was complex from the outset. At referral, 81% of workers were unfit for any work, the average Örebro score was 55 (above the high-risk threshold of 50), and two-thirds needed escalated support. DXC’s referral process connected workers with support a median of 7.4 weeks after receiving the claim. That placed them inside the 4–12 week screening window, while risk could still be shifted.
The Navigator Support Program begins with Örebro screening, which identifies psychosocial risk alongside the physical injury. Each worker is then contacted proactively by one consistent Navigator, who provides practical and emotional support in a private, trauma-informed setting and offers fast access to credentialed mental health professionals when needed. The support is independent of the insurer and offered in multiple languages, which helps it reach workers who often avoid help, including many men and culturally diverse workers. It is designed to complement clinical treatment, not replace it.
Progress looked different for different people. For one worker, practical support and communication coaching brought their Örebro score down from 66 to 41, below the high-risk threshold. For another, a complex recovery meant progress was measured in safety, trust and stabilisation rather than an immediate return to work. As one participant put it, “I always felt well supported and heard.”
An independent actuarial evaluation by Finity Consulting found that workers in the program had a back-at-work rate 12.5 percentage points higher at 52 weeks than a matched comparison group. Each completed claim saved an estimated $13,875 in benefits against a program cost of $1,306, a return of more than ten times the investment. The human outcomes were just as meaningful. Among high-risk workers, psychosocial risk fell by a fifth and self-rated depression and anxiety by around a quarter, and 99% of workers said they would recommend Navigator.
The pilot has since moved into everyday practice. A weekly report flags eligible claims so case managers can refer with confidence, and screening, referral and measurement are now built into business-as-usual claims management. None of this happened in a straight line. It came from listening, testing, learning and adapting with frontline teams.
The biggest lesson was about people. The partnership worked because it had a champion on both sides, someone at the claims agent and someone at the provider who believed in it and saw a real chance to change outcomes. Without that, a good pilot stays a pilot.