GLOBAL BENCHMARK: The new worker’s compensation service model
This year, I am celebrating my 30th anniversary of working in the insurance industry. Most people do not just happen into insurance. Most of us who work in this market do so because it is in our DNA. We are in insurance to give something back, something beyond ourselves, to contribute to the greater good.
Yet, in a centuries-old industry, it can be very difficult to influence true change and provide a positive, long-term impact on the communities we serve.
At Hyland, we have had the great opportunity to be working alongside icare, a social insurer in Australia, to develop a fully integrated data platform hosted in the cloud that leverages the combined power of OnBase integrated to the Guidewire Insurance Suite. This platform will enable the organization to focus on what really matters in worker’s compensation, the injured worker. The massive digital transformation project that this insurer has undertaken is designed so the technology can be the enabler to deliver a service model built around empowerment, person centricity, and empathy.
Setting the standard
When I think about the potential this model has to become the global benchmark, I’m both proud and excited. This is exactly how I felt when John Nagle, CEO and managing director of icare, presented his organization’s digital transformation journey on the main stage at the recent Guidewire Connections Conference in Las Vegas.
In his keynote speech, Nagle discussed icare’s customer-centric aspirations, the role that technology plays in enabling its success, and its vision to become a true social insurer that puts people first. Nagle described the deliverables of icare’s transformation:
- A common insurance and care backbone: stable and reliable, but adaptable and agile
- Reduced complexity and duplication, simplifying the technology landscape
- Enhanced data, analytics, and security to support the service model
- A people-first approach to innovation
Nagle also noted that early indications of the new service model and integrated platform in its initial releases have already shown significant improvements. Some of the results include:
- Improved lifetime care decisions – 87 percent are now made in one day, 95 percent are made in three days
- Decreased waiting times for the Medical Support Panel from six weeks to five days
- Decreased average processing times for Dust Disease Care claims from 135 days to 42 days!
A more complex world demands uncomplicated solutions
As the world changes and becomes even more complex, as jobs evolve and change, so do the hazards and exposures that increase the risk of injury. In fact, there are 270 million accidents and 160 million work-related diseases reported annually, with more than two million lives lost from workplace accidents, according to estimates by the International Labour Organization. Meanwhile, the expense of accident and workplace injury and death exceeds $1.25 trillion USD per year worldwide, according to the ILO.
That’s why speed and accuracy is so important. If you can return injured workers to the workplace earlier – by even just one day – you can reduce costs and improve outcomes.
At Hyland, we’re proud of the positive impact we have on the insurance industry and those it serves. We do that by providing solutions that deliver:
- Faster processing of claims
- Timely and efficient reporting
- The ability to leverage predictive analytics to provide proven treatment plans and preventative measures
I’m proud of how OnBase and Guidewire are setting the global benchmark. We’re revolutionizing the insurance industry with solutions that will ensure future success, provide the ability to reduce and manage costs, and most importantly, improve business and life outcomes. For 30 years, that’s what I’ve been working toward, and even though we’ve come a long way, I’m not stopping now.
