Assessment of the Degree of Permanent Impairment guide

1 SAFETY, REHABILITATION AND COMPENSATION ACT 1988 guide TO THE Assessment OF THE Degree OF Permanent Impairment EDITION (CONSOLIDATION 1) This consolidation incorporates the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1988 guide to the Assessment of the Degree of Permanent Impairment Edition ( Edition ) as prepared by Comcare and approved by the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations on 2 November 2011 with effect from 1 December 2011 and as varied by the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1988 guide to the Assessment of the Degree of Permanent Impairment Edition Variation of 2011 ( Variation 1 of 2011 ) as approved by Comcare and approved by the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations on 29 November 2011 with effect from 1 December 2011.

2 NOTES: and Variation 1 of 2011 were each prepared by Comcare under subsection28(1) of the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1988 and approved by theMinister under subsection 28(3) of that was registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments asF2011L02375 and Variation 1 of 2011 was registered as compilation was prepared on 30 November 2011 in accordance with section 34 of theLegislative Instruments Act 2003 substituting paragraph 3 (Application of this guide ) toEdition as in force on 1 December Register of Legislative Instruments F2012C00537 1 guide TO THE Assessment OF THE Degree OF Permanent Impairment Edition Federal Register of Legislative Instruments F2012C00537 2 INTRODUCTION TO EDITION OF THE guide 92.

3 STRUCTURE OF THIS guide .. 10 3. APPLICATION OF THIS 10 4. WHOLE PERSON Impairment (WPI).. 12 5. ENTITLEMENTS UNDER THE SRC ACT .. 12 6. NON-ECONOMIC LOSS .. 12 7. COMPENSATION 12 8. INTERIM AND FINAL 13 9. INCREASE IN Degree OF WHOLE PERSON Impairment .. 13 15 LIST OF TABLES AND 16 LIST OF TABLES AND 16 LIST OF TABLES AND 17 LIST OF TABLES AND 18 LIST OF REFERENCES .. 21 PRINCIPLES OF Assessment .. 22 AND NON-ECONOMIC 23 AND 23 23 CONDITIONS AND AGGRAVATION .. 23 Impairment TABLES .. 24 AND CONDITIONS RESULTING IN MAJOR SYSTEMIC 24 OF Impairment .. 25 ASSESSMENTS UNDER ALTERNATIVE TABLES.

4 25 VALUES .. 25 THE 26 OF ADDITIONAL INVESTIGATIONS .. 26 TO USE OF PART 1 OF THIS guide .. 26 27 DIVISION 29 Assessment OF THE Degree OF AN EMPLOYEE S .. 29 Permanent Impairment RESULTING FROM AN INJURY .. 29 31 CORONARY ARTERY DISEASE .. 31 34 DIASTOLIC HYPERTENSION .. 34 Federal Register of Legislative Instruments F2012C00537 3 SYSTOLIC HYPERTENSION .. 35 ARRHYTHMIAS .. 37 PERIPHERAL VASCULAR DISEASE OF THE LOWER EXTREMITIES.

5 37 PERIPHERAL VASCULAR DISEASE OF THE UPPER EXTREMITIES .. 39 RAYNAUD S DISEASE .. 40 43 ASSESSING Impairment OF RESPIRATORY 43 43 METHODS OF MEASUREMENT .. 44 Impairment RATING .. 45 ASTHMA AND OTHER HYPER-REACTIVE AIRWAYS 46 LUNG CANCER AND MESOTHELIOMA .. 48 BREATHING DISORDERS ASSOCIATED WITH 49 52 THYROID AND PARATHYROID GLANDS .. 52 ADRENAL CORTEX AND 54 PANCREAS (DIABETES MELLITUS) .. 54 GONADS AND MAMMARY GLANDS .. 57 59 SKIN DISORDERS .. 59 FACIAL 62 BODILY DISFIGUREMENT .. 63 65 PSYCHIATRIC CONDITIONS .. 66 ABNORMAL OCULAR MOTILITY AND BINOCULAR 69 70 CENTRAL VISUAL 73 DETERMINING THE LOSS OF CENTRAL VISION IN ONE EYE.

6 74 DETERMINING LOSS OF MONOCULAR VISUAL 75 ABNORMAL OCULAR MOTILITY AND BINOCULAR DIPLOPIA .. 76 OTHER OCULAR 77 OTHER CONDITIONS INVOLVING Permanent DEFORMITIES CAUSING UP TO 10% Impairment OF THE WHOLE 77 CALCULATION OF VISUAL SYSTEM Impairment FOR BOTH 77 FIGURE 6-F: CALCULATION OF VISUAL SYSTEM Impairment FOR BOTH EYES .. 78 82 HEARING 82 82 OLFACTION AND 83 4 Federal Register of Legislative Instruments F2012C00537 SPEECH.

7 83 AIR PASSAGE 85 NASAL PASSAGE DEFECTS .. 86 CHEWING AND SWALLOWING .. 86 88 UPPER DIGESTIVE TRACT OESOPHAGUS, STOMACH, DUODENUM, SMALL INTESTINE AND 90 LOWER GASTROINTESTINAL TRACT COLON AND 92 LOWER GASTROINTESTINAL TRACT ANUS .. 95 SURGICALLY CREATED STOMAS .. 96 LIVER CHRONIC HEPATITIS AND PARENCHYMAL LIVER DISEASE .. 97 BILIARY TRACT .. 99 HERNIAS OF THE ABDOMINAL 100 102 PART I INTRODUCTION .. 105 FEET AND TOES .. 107 ANKLES .. 109 KNEES .. 110 113 LOWER EXTREMITY AMPUTATIONS .. 115 SPINAL NERVE ROOT IMPAIRMENTS AND PERIPHERAL NERVE INJURIES AFFECTING THE LOWER EXTREMITIES.

8 117 SPINAL NERVE ROOT Impairment AFFECTING THE LOWER 118 PERIPHERAL NERVE INJURIES AFFECTING THE LOWER 119 140 PART III 157 PART III DEFINITIONS OF CLINICAL FINDINGS FOR DIAGNOSIS-RELATED ESTIMATES IN ASSESSING SPINAL Impairment .. 158 PART III MULTI-LEVEL FRACTURES INVOLVING THE SPINAL CANAL .. 160 CERVICAL SPINE DIAGNOSIS-RELATED 161 THORACIC SPINE DIAGNOSIS-RELATED ESTIMATES .. 163 LUMBAR SPINE DIAGNOSIS-RELATED ESTIMATES .. 165 NOTES TO TABLE .. 166 FRACTURES OF THE 167 169 THE UPPER URINARY TRACT .. 169 175 MALE REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM .. 175 MALE REPRODUCTIVE ORGANS 176 Federal Register of Legislative Instruments F2012C00537 5 MALE REPRODUCTIVE ORGANS SCROTUM.

9 176 MALE REPRODUCTIVE ORGANS TESTES, EPIDIDYMES AND SPERMATIC 177 MALE REPRODUCTIVE ORGANS PROSTATE AND SEMINAL VESICLES .. 178 FEMALE REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM .. 179 FEMALE REPRODUCTIVE ORGANS VULVA AND VAGINA .. 180 FEMALE REPRODUCTIVE ORGANS CERVIX AND 181 FEMALE REPRODUCTIVE ORGANS FALLOPIAN TUBES AND OVARIES .. 182 184 DISTURBANCES OF LEVELS OF CONSCIOUSNESS AND AWARENESS .. 186 Permanent DISTURBANCES OF LEVELS OF CONSCIOUSNESS AND 186 EPILEPSY, SEIZURES AND CONVULSIVE DISORDERS .. 187 SLEEP AND AROUSAL 188 Impairment OF MEMORY, LEARNING, ABSTRACT REASONING AND PROBLEM SOLVING ABILITY .. 189 COMMUNICATION IMPAIRMENTS DYSPHASIA AND APHASIA.

10 193 EMOTIONAL OR BEHAVIOURAL 195 CRANIAL NERVES .. 197 THE OLFACTORY NERVE (I) .. 197 THE OPTIC NERVE, THE OCULOMOTOR AND TROCHLEAR NERVES AND THE ABDUCENS (II, III, IV AND VI) .. 197 THE TRIGEMINAL NERVE (V).. 198 THE FACIAL NERVE (VII).. 199 THE AUDITORY NERVE (VIII).. 200 THE GLOSSOPHARYNGEAL, VAGUS, SPINAL ACCESSORY AND HYPOGLOSSAL NERVES (IX, X, XI AND XII).. 202 NEUROLOGICAL Impairment OF THE RESPIRATORY SYSTEM .. 203 NEUROLOGICAL Impairment OF THE URINARY 203 NEUROLOGICAL Impairment OF THE ANORECTAL 204 NEUROLOGICAL Impairment AFFECTING SEXUAL 205 207 207 LEUKOCYTE ABNORMALITIES OR 208 HAEMORRHAGIC DISORDERS AND PLATELET DISORDERS.