I heard from a friend last week in response to my last column, and the conversation was some version of the following: “Fine, Bob. Great article. We tell them the noble story, they show up excited, and then what?” It is a fair question, and it is asked in a tone I have come to recognize. It is the tone of someone who has actually hired a young person into a…
In this episode of "Straight Outta Workers' Comp," hosts Bob Wilson and Mark Pew sit down with Maryland Workers' Compensation Commission Chairperson Asha Jefferson and Commissioner Stephane Romano to explore the personal and professional transition from representing one side of workers' comp cases to serving as impartial decision-makers. The commissioners candidly discuss the challenges of leaving behind advocacy roles, managing emotional cases involving vulnerable injured workers and struggling small businesses,…
In this episode of "Straight Outta Workers' Comp," hosts Bob Wilson and Mark Pew sit down with Maryland Workers' Compensation Commission Chairperson Asha Jefferson and Commissioner Stephane Romano to explore the personal and professional transition from representing one side of workers' comp cases to serving as impartial decision-makers. The commissioners candidly discuss the challenges of leaving behind advocacy roles, managing emotional cases involving vulnerable injured workers and struggling small businesses,…
A claim file audit guide should do more than confirm whether diary entries are current and statutory forms are present. In workers’ compensation, a meaningful audit tests whether the claim is moving toward recovery, timely return to work, appropriate medical care, and a defensible financial outcome. It reveals whether the assigned professional understands the facts, has set credible expectations, and is actively managing barriers before they turn into litigation, delay,…
An injured employee can receive clinically appropriate care and still experience a poor claim. Treatment may be authorized on time, diagnostics may be completed, and work restrictions may be documented, yet the employee remains uncertain, disengaged, or represented by counsel. That is why medical management outcomes cannot be measured by medical activity alone. In workers’ compensation, the quality of the clinical plan and the quality of the human experience are…
A claims operation can meet its financial target while still creating the conditions for worse outcomes next quarter. That is why the top workers compensation metrics cannot stop at paid loss and closure volume. Leaders need measures that show whether injured employees are recovering, whether claims professionals are setting clear expectations, and whether operational decisions are reducing friction before it becomes delay, attorney involvement, or prolonged disability. The right dashboard…
There is a moment at every social gathering that those of us in this industry have learned to dread. Someone asks what you do. Now, regarding that question I normally provide the answer that is my stock in trade: As little as possible. But then you have to get serious. You have to say it. And you watch yourself do the thing. You start with “insurance,” which is already a…
A meaningful adjuster course review begins where many course comparisons stop: not with the number of credit hours, the convenience of the platform, or the promise of a completion certificate, but with the quality of decisions an adjuster can make after training. In workers’ compensation, those decisions affect medical access, wage replacement, return-to-work planning, litigation exposure, employer confidence, and an injured worker’s trust in the process. A course can satisfy…
A claim can be technically compliant and still be poorly managed. A compensability decision may be correct, reserves may be documented, and required letters may be issued on time, yet the injured worker may not understand the process, the employer may lack a return-to-work plan, and an avoidable attorney referral may already be taking shape. This claims quality assurance guide addresses that gap: how to assess claim handling in a…
An injured employee who hears nothing after reporting a claim will fill the silence with assumptions: that the claim is being denied, that medical care will be delayed, or that returning to work means being pushed beyond safe restrictions. A strong claims resolution communication guide prevents that uncertainty from becoming a claim-management problem. It gives adjusters, nurse case managers, employers, and provider partners a repeatable way to explain what is…
