SAFETY, REHABILITATION AND COMPENSATION ACT 1988 – GUIDE TO THE ASSESSMENT OF THE DEGREE OF PERMANENT IMPAIRMENT EDITION 2.1 (CONSOLIDATION 1) This consolidation incorporates the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1988 – Guide to the Assessment of the Degree of Permanent Impairment Edition 2.1 (‘Edition 2.1’) 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 2.1 – Variation No.1 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. NOTES: 1. Edition 2.1 and Variation 1 of 2011 were each prepared by Comcare under subsection 28(1) of the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1988 and approved by the Minister under subsection 28(3) of that Act. 2. Edition 2.1 was registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments as F2011L02375 and Variation 1 of 2011 was registered as F2011L02519. 3. This compilation was prepared on 30 November 2011 in accordance with section 34 of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003 substituting paragraph 3 (Application of this Guide) to Edition 2.1 as in force on 1 December 2011. 1 Federal Register of Legislative Instruments F2012C00537 GUIDE TO THE ASSESSMENT OF THE DEGREE OF PERMANENT IMPAIRMENT Edition 2.1 2 Federal Register of Legislative Instruments F2012C00537 INTRODUCTION TO EDITION 2.1 OF THE GUIDE 1. AUTHORITY ........................................................................................................ 9 2. STRUCTURE OF THIS GUIDE ............................................................................. 10 3. APPLICATION OF THIS GUIDE .......................................................................... 10 4. WHOLE PERSON IMPAIRMENT (WPI) ............................................................... 12 5. ENTITLEMENTS UNDER THE SRC ACT ............................................................... 12 6. NON-ECONOMIC LOSS ...................................................................................... 12 7. COMPENSATION PAYABLE ................................................................................ 12 8. INTERIM AND FINAL ASSESSMENTS ................................................................. 13 9. INCREASE IN DEGREE OF WHOLE PERSON IMPAIRMENT ................................. 13 CONTENTS ............................................................................................................ 15 LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES ............................................................................. 16 LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES ............................................................................. 16 LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES ............................................................................. 17 LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES ............................................................................. 18 LIST OF REFERENCES ........................................................................................... 21 PRINCIPLES OF ASSESSMENT .............................................................................. 22 1. IMPAIRMENT AND NON-ECONOMIC LOSS ...................................................... 23 2. EMPLOYABILITY AND INCAPACITY ................................................................ 23 3. PERMANENT IMPAIRMENT ............................................................................. 23 4. PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS AND AGGRAVATION ......................................... 23 5. THE IMPAIRMENT TABLES ............................................................................. 24 6. MALIGNANCIES AND CONDITIONS RESULTING IN MAJOR SYSTEMIC FAILURE . ...................................................................................................................... 24 7. PERCENTAGES OF IMPAIRMENT .................................................................... 25 8. COMPARING ASSESSMENTS UNDER ALTERNATIVE TABLES ........................... 25 9. COMBINED VALUES ....................................................................................... 25 10. CALCULATING THE ASSESSMENT................................................................ 26 11. ORDERING OF ADDITIONAL INVESTIGATIONS .......................................... 26 12. EXCEPTIONS TO USE OF PART 1 OF THIS GUIDE ........................................ 26 GLOSSARY ............................................................................................................ 27 DIVISION 1 .......................................................................................................... 29 ASSESSMENT OF THE DEGREE OF AN EMPLOYEE’S ............................................... 29 PERMANENT IMPAIRMENT RESULTING FROM AN INJURY .................................... 29 1.0 INTRODUCTION.............................................................................................. 31 1.1 CORONARY ARTERY DISEASE ......................................................................... 31 1.2 HYPERTENSION .............................................................................................. 34 1.2.1 DIASTOLIC HYPERTENSION ........................................................................ 34 3 Federal Register of Legislative Instruments F2012C00537 1.2.2 SYSTOLIC HYPERTENSION .......................................................................... 35 1.3 ARRHYTHMIAS ............................................................................................... 37 1.4 PERIPHERAL VASCULAR DISEASE OF THE LOWER EXTREMITIES ................... 37 1.5 PERIPHERAL VASCULAR DISEASE OF THE UPPER EXTREMITIES .................... 39 1.6 RAYNAUD’S DISEASE ..................................................................................... 40 2.0 INTRODUCTION.............................................................................................. 43 2.1 ASSESSING IMPAIRMENT OF RESPIRATORY FUNCTION ................................. 43 2.1.1 MEASUREMENTS .......................................................................................... 43 2.1.2 METHODS OF MEASUREMENT ...................................................................... 44 2.1.3 IMPAIRMENT RATING ................................................................................. 45 2.2 ASTHMA AND OTHER HYPER-REACTIVE AIRWAYS DISEASES ......................... 46 2.3 LUNG CANCER AND MESOTHELIOMA .............................................................. 48 2.4 BREATHING DISORDERS ASSOCIATED WITH SLEEP ....................................... 49 3.0 INTRODUCTION.............................................................................................. 52 3.1 THYROID AND PARATHYROID GLANDS .......................................................... 52 3.2 ADRENAL CORTEX AND MEDULLA ................................................................... 54 3.3 PANCREAS (DIABETES MELLITUS) ................................................................. 54 3.4 GONADS AND MAMMARY GLANDS .................................................................. 57 4.0 INTRODUCTION.............................................................................................. 59 4.1 SKIN DISORDERS ........................................................................................... 59 4.2 FACIAL DISFIGUREMENT ................................................................................ 62 4.3 BODILY DISFIGUREMENT ............................................................................... 63 5.0 INTRODUCTION.............................................................................................. 65 5.1 PSYCHIATRIC CONDITIONS ........................................................................... 66 6.3 ABNORMAL OCULAR MOTILITY AND BINOCULAR DIPLOPIA ......................... 69 6.0 INTRODUCTION.............................................................................................. 70 6.1 CENTRAL VISUAL ACUITY ............................................................................... 73 6.1.1 DETERMINING THE LOSS OF CENTRAL VISION IN ONE EYE ........................ 74 6.2 DETERMINING LOSS OF MONOCULAR VISUAL FIELDS .................................... 75 6.3 ABNORMAL OCULAR MOTILITY AND BINOCULAR DIPLOPIA .......................... 76 6.4 OTHER OCULAR ABNORMALITIES ................................................................... 77 6.5 OTHER CONDITIONS INVOLVING PERMANENT DEFORMITIES CAUSING UP TO 10% IMPAIRMENT OF THE WHOLE PERSON ......................................................... 77 6.6 CALCULATION OF VISUAL SYSTEM IMPAIRMENT FOR BOTH EYES .................. 77 FIGURE 6-F: CALCULATION OF VISUAL SYSTEM IMPAIRMENT FOR BOTH EYES ... 78 7.0 INTRODUCTION.............................................................................................. 82 7.1 HEARING LOSS ............................................................................................... 82 7.2 TINNITUS ....................................................................................................... 82 7.3 OLFACTION AND TASTE .................................................................................. 83 4 Federal Register of Legislative Instruments F2012C00537 7.4 SPEECH .........................................................................................................