• About the Pilot Programme

    To strengthen rehabilitation services for employees injured at work, the Government introduces a three-year "Pilot Rehabilitation Programme for Employees Injured at Work" (Pilot Programme). At the time of launch, the Pilot Programme targeted injured employees in the construction industry. A case management approach was adopted to provide injured construction employees with speedy private out-patient rehabilitation treatment services, so as to help them recover and return to work as soon as possible.

    Since 9 May 2024, the industry coverage of the Pilot Programme has been widened to include the "Catering and Hotel Industry" and "Transportation and Logistics Industry" alongside the "Construction Industry" to benefit more injured employees.

    Background

    • Most work injuries are musculoskeletal injuries (such as sprains and strains). If injured employees do not receive appropriate rehabilitation treatment services as soon as possible, they can easily develop into chronic conditions.
    • The longer an injured employee is absent from work due to work injury, the lower the chance of return to work.
    • Medical evidence shows that injured employees who receive appropriate rehabilitation treatment services as soon as possible after work injuries can recover early and improve their chances of return to work.
    • At present, the waiting time for rehabilitation treatment services in public hospitals/ public clinics is long, and injured employees may miss the golden opportunity to receive rehabilitation treatment, affecting the efficacy of the treatment.

    Operation mode

    The Government has engaged a service contractor, Actmax Limited (a subsidiary of Human Health Holdings Limited), to provide services under the Pilot Programme. The services include multidisciplinary rehabilitation treatment, case management and return-to-work arrangement of the injured employees. The service contractor has established the Work Injury Rehabilitation Office to provide the services and implement the Pilot Programme in collaboration with its strategic partner CUHK Medical Centre under the supervision of the Labour Department.

    Objectives

    • Provide speedy private out-patient rehabilitation treatment to participating injured employees, grasp the golden recovery period to prevent work injuries from turning into chronic conditions.
    • Adopt a case management approach with a designated person to follow up and co-ordinate rehabilitation treatment and return-to-work arrangement.
    • Facilitate employees to recover, return to work and resume normal life early.

    Scope of services

    Rehabilitation treatment services

    Provide private out-patient rehabilitation treatment, including

    • Medical treatment (provided by General Practitioner, Family Physician, Orthopaedic Doctors or Occupational Physician)
    • Physiotherapy
    • Occupational Therapy
    • Imaging Examination Service and Electrodiagnostic Testing Service

    Case management services and return-to-work facilitation services

    Each injured employee who is admitted to the Pilot Programme will be assigned a Case Manager to follow up on his/her case. Roles of the Case Manager include:

    • Arrange speedy rehabilitation treatment for employees.
    • Coordinate among rehabilitation treatment team professionals.
    • Develop return-to-work plan for the employees.
    • With the agreement of employers and employees, coordinate with employers to arrange work trials, light duties or work modifications to facilitate employees to adapt gradually.
    • Provide necessary psychological and emotional support to employees.

  • About the Work Injury Rehabilitation Office

    The Work Injury Rehabilitation Office (WIRO) is established exclusively for the Pilot Rehabilitation Programme for Employees Injured at Work (Pilot Programme) of the Labour Department. Operated by Actmax Limited (a subsidiary of Human Health Holdings Limited) and in collaboration with its strategic partner CUHK Medical Centre, the key roles of WIRO are as follows:

    • arrange and coordinate the private out-patient rehabilitation treatment services provided under the Pilot Programme to the participants
    • provide case management services and return-to-work facilitation services to participating injured employees
    • monitor and administer the day-to-day operation of the Pilot Programme

    Privacy Policy Statement

    WIRO is committed to protecting the privacy, confidentiality and security of the personal information handled under the Pilot Programme in compliance with the Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance (PD(P)O). We are equally committed to ensuring that all our service providers under the Pilot Programme, including but not limited to clinics/ treatment centres, medical practitioners, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, as well as imaging examination and electrodiagnostic testing service providers use the collected personal data consistent with their services contracted with us as well as this PPS and PD(P)O. For details please refer to our Privacy Policy Statement.