In supporting occupational accident workers, the Ministry of Labor funded the establishment of COAPRE, which was inaugurated on April 29 last year and is now celebrating its first anniversary. The center’s establishment marks a new milestone in Taiwan's occupational accident prevention and rehabilitation efforts. Over the past year, it has not only expanded its capacity to serve occupational accident workers but also provided more diverse and meaningful services in occupational injury and disease treatment and diagnosis and rehabilitation, accompanying occupational accident workers through tough times and helping them return to work in good health.
 

COAPRE consists of 6 divisions including the Occupational Accident Worker Rehabilitation Division, Occupational Injury and Disease Services Division, Occupational Health Service Division, Occupational Accident Preventive Technology Division, Machinery and Equipment Technology Division, and Administrative Management Division. Through these divisions working in unison, the center assists occupational accident workers and vigorously helps businesses implement occupational accident prevention management.
 

Considerably shortening the timeframe of occupational disease identification

As far as occupational accident workers are concerned, the main problem following an occupational accident is medical treatment and subsequent care. Over the past year, the Occupational Injury and Disease Service Division has been instrumental in advancing integrated occupational injury and disease treatment and diagnosis services. It has focused on enhancing the quality of occupational injury and disease treatment and diagnosis and conducting professional investigations and evaluations for occupational disease identification cases. As a result of the intervention of the Occupational Injury and Disease Service Division, the timeframes for occupational disease identification cases have been reduced noticeably, thereby decreasing the wait time for workers.
 

Regarding occupational accident diagnosis, treatment, and care for workers, there are over 100 occupational injury and disease-related medical institutions throughout Taiwan. On weekdays, there are approximately 300 occupational injury and disease outpatient visits a week, averaging 60 visits per day. Since the center was established last year until the end of March this year, over 11 months, an average of 470 workers received diagnosis and treatment each week, accumulating to 22,560 visits. Through occupational injury and disease outpatient clinics, occupational physicians and case managers have diagnosed, treated, and reported 1,568 cases of occupational diseases and 3,878 cases of occupational injuries. The center also provides on-site occupational accident assistance-related information, tangible support, and care to the workers.
 

The latest statistics also reveal that the time required for occupational disease identification cases has significantly decreased thanks to the Occupational Injury and Disease Services Division, which has invited professional occupational medicine investigation teams to conduct evaluations. In particular, the time for occupational disease identification cases has been shortened by 65 days, and cases of occupationally induced cerebrovascular and cardiovascular diseases (due to overwork) have been decreased by 12 days. The efficiency of professional investigation and evaluation has increased by an average of 24%, effectively lowering the waiting time for workers.
 

Planning of one-stop service stations to accompany occupational accident workers to return to work

To enhance the efficiency of returning to work for occupational accident workers, the Rehabilitation Division not only coordinates resources for occupational rehabilitation, social rehabilitation, and vocational rehabilitation but also actively assists rehabilitation institutions in obtaining approval from the Ministry of Labor. Additionally, it audits the quality of rehabilitation services, establishes review systems, and trains professional rehabilitation personnel to ensure that occupational accident workers do not face their rehabilitation journey alone.
 

To support occupational accident workers in their journey to recovery and make sure they receive appropriate services, the Rehabilitation Division proactively formulates case management processes for the rehabilitation services of occupational accident workers. Since the launch of the professional occupational rehabilitation institutions on January 1, 2023, the division has focused on helping these occupational rehabilitation institutions develop integrated service processes. Furthermore, it has reached out to experts from various fields to conduct 31 guidance visits, assisting institutions in resolving implementation challenges, and aiming to establish a comprehensive network of occupational rehabilitation services.
 

Also, the Rehabilitation Division receives an average of 60-80 consultation calls per month from the public, inquiring about their rights after an occupational accident and how to apply for occupational accident benefits. The staff assists workers in resolving these issues individually, and they also help employers understand how to support workers after an occupational accident. In addition, the division has conducted rehabilitation service awareness campaigns in 6 counties and cities across the country to raise public and employer awareness of the resources available for the rehabilitation of occupational accident workers.
 

Moving forward, the division plans to establish a comprehensive one-stop demonstration service station that combines services such as occupational medicine, social rehabilitation, occupational rehabilitation, and vocational rehabilitation. This will offer personalized professional assistance to occupational accident workers. The goal of the service station is to integrate advanced rehabilitation technologies and facilities from developed countries, as well as to develop functional assessment tools tailored to the domestic job market. In doing so, occupational accident workers can recover with confidence and engage in timely rehabilitation. With the support of vocational rehabilitation professionals, workers will be able to return to work as soon as possible.
 

Reinforce accident reduction promotion in the construction industry - Achieving 90% satisfaction

The Occupational Accident Preventive Technology Division specializes in accident prevention guidance for high-risk industries and small to medium-sized construction projects, as well as the development of occupational safety and health technologies and talent cultivation. In assisting businesses with occupational accident prevention, it has hosted 6 seminars on promoting construction modernization. The seminars saw the participation of 327 people, achieving a satisfaction rate of 90%. At the same time, the division offers professional guidance for high-risk, construction, and temporary SMEs, assisting 660 temporary construction sites and 3,361 cases. In addition, the division carried out 3 prevention and education courses on traffic accidents involving delivery personnel to bolster risk awareness among businesses and workers.
 

Concerning future priorities, besides strengthening the development of Taiwan's overall occupational safety and health management system and safety culture, and reinforcing occupational accident prevention promotion among disadvantaged groups, new accident reduction technologies will also be introduced. These include the application of VR, AR, drones, IoT, and image recognition technology to assist businesses in preventing occupational accidents.
 

Help to ascertain occupational accident risk factors to strengthen workers’ health protection

Occupational safety and health are fundamental rights of every worker and important responsibilities that every business entity must uphold. OHSD is dedicated to occupational accident prevention. By integrating occupational health resources and conducting on-the-job training for professionals, the aim is to reinforce labor health protection.
 

According to statistics from the Bureau of Labor Insurance, the most common occupational diseases in occupational accident benefits from 2020 to 2021 were musculoskeletal disorders. To enhance worker health management, OHSD conducted new KIM practical training sessions. These sessions are designed to remind workers to be mindful of their physical weight-bearing limitations, determine potential high-risk factors for musculoskeletal hazards in the workplace, and improve self-protection capabilities. Moreover, the division organized 13 specialized training sessions on the prevention of hazards related to specific chemicals and indium operation for 559 participants, achieving an average satisfaction rate of 93.1%. The average growth in pre- and post-training assessments was 28.0%.
 

Dedicated to promoting machinery and equipment hazard prevention

Based on the data concerning the relationship between occupational accident types and media, about 40% of occupational accidents are machinery and equipment-related. The main types of injuries in these accidents include pinching, crushing, piercing, cutting, and abrasion, which account for a significant proportion of occupational accidents. Focusing on inherent safety, source management, and technical service, the Machinery and Equipment Technology Division is committed to promoting the prevention of hazards associated with machinery and equipment to ensure workers’ occupational safety and health.
 

The Machinery and Equipment Technology Division held 25 “Machinery and Equipment Safety Protection Technology and Source Management Promotion” activities in 2022 for 1,354 businesses, reflecting enthusiastic engagement and significant positive outcomes. After the event, many participants expressed that they gained a deeper understanding of the operation and maintenance of machinery and equipment, as well as increased their emphasis on their safety. This year, relevant promotional and guidance activities will continue to be held. The goal is to increase the number of activities to 45 and guide more than 50 machinery maintenance shops, thereby improving their maintenance and repair capabilities and evaluation operations. The existing hazardous machinery inspection mechanism is under analysis for potential improvements in the future. Currently, there are over 100,000 hazardous machinery installations countrywide. The mechanism operates through administrative commissioning to non-profit organizations, which are responsible for upholding safety. In 2022, the Ministry of Labor created a non-profit organization (NPO) to enhance the credibility and technical capabilities of these inspection agencies in a bid to upgrade inspection and service technologies.
 

COAPRE coordinates and promotes a dedicated network of hospitals specializing in injury and disease diagnosis and treatment, providing meticulous and comprehensive services tailored for workers and their families. Minister of Labor and Chairman of COAPRE, Hsu Ming-Chun, commented that as of this year, there are 15 nationally approved hospitals specializing in occupational injury and disease diagnosis and treatment and occupational rehabilitation. Each hospital is equipped with occupational injury and disease case managers to assist disadvantaged workers with registration, initial consultations, and ongoing case management, as well as proactively helping them with relevant subsidy applications. It is hoped to provide occupational accident workers with the necessary services through the center, integrating information from the initial medical and occupational rehabilitation interventions to subsequent return to work or referral and vocational rehabilitation resources. The objective is to help workers return to their original workplace or find new employment as soon as possible.
 

“We hope to provide occupational accident workers with one-stop integrated services. Once they engage with us, they will become our customers.” CEO Ho Jiune-Jye stated that the center is mainly in charge of occupational accident prevention and rehabilitation, acting as a conduit between the public and various government agencies such as the Ministry of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Bureau of Labor Insurance, and the Workforce Development Agency. In cases of occupational accidents, where immediate rehabilitation and care services are urgently needed for injured workers, the center provides specialized assistance for occupational injury and disease treatment and diagnosis, rehabilitation services, and information on claiming occupational accident benefits. This ensures that workers can return to work in good health and with peace of mind. If workers are unable to return to their original workplace, the center also refers them to the Workforce Development Agency for additional support.
 

With COAPRE celebrating its first anniversary, efforts are underway to expand services for occupational accident workers. COAPRE has integrated digital services tailored to occupational injury and disease treatment, diagnosis, and rehabilitation. It has launched an official Line for workers who experience occupational accidents and face unresponsive or neglectful employers, allowing them to seek assistance by simply entering their queries in the dialogue box within the center's Line menu, and personnel from the center will reach out to them and arrange personalized one-on-one services.
 

To provide more user-friendly and convenient integrated occupational injuries and diseases services for occupational accident workers, the official Line account of the center also offers additional services. Workers can inquire about working capacity assessments after an injury, undergo customized rehabilitation training, and access consultation services for job adjustment and accommodation. This helps in creating appropriate return to work plans for workers. Additionally, the center's Line official account integrates occupational safety and health-related training courses and workshops across Taiwan, providing real-time occupational safety and health information, and enabling workers who unfortunately encounter occupational accidents to quickly find assistance, resources, and solutions. With the center's support and guidance, they can undergo psychological adjustment, return to work successfully, and resume normal life. Join COAPRE's official Line account now!