Welcome to Palo Alto County Health System

Business Health Services

Injury Treatment Program

Employers spend millions of dollars each year in work injury expenditures. Not only does the employer absorb the cost of medical care for the injured/ill worker, up to 70% of the total cost can be due to worker replacement. To decrease costly delays in treatment and expedite workers' rate of recovery and return to work, Palo Alto County Health System's (PACHS) Business Health Services has developed a Workers' Injury Treatment Program and follow-up case management.

Our objectives in providing this service are:

  • Timely, appropriate injured worker health care.

  • Easy accessibility to the health care system

  • Continuity of care from injury through rehabilitation and return to work.

  • Communication to the employer and insurer of the worker's health status through a central system of management. Clear and precise treatment recommendations from the physician via the Business Health Nurse. (In many cases the employer isn't aware the employee is seeking care for work related injuries.)

This procedure will be followed when an employee is injured or becomes ill on the job:

  1. Notify PACHS Business Health Services at 712.852.5469.
  2. You will be asked to provide the following information:
    1. Company name
    2. Employee's name, home phone, and date of birth.
    3. Employee's social security number.
    4. Nature and severity of injury.
    5. Name of the physician the employee will seek medical care from.
  3. The Business Health Nurse (BHN) will notify the hospital or clinic in advance so the staff and physician will be expecting the employee. This helps to insure prompt service for your ill or injured worker. If the company deems it necessary or the type of injury requires it, the BHN will accompany the injured worker to the appointment if at all possible.
  4. After the appointment the employee will either return to work, be sent home, or be referred to the services of a specialist.
  5. The company will be provided a Work Injury Status form that the physician will fill out. One copy is for the physician, one for the employee to take back to the company and one is for the BHN. If the nurse does not accompany the employee on the visit, she will pick up copies of the form each day at the physician clinics.
  6. Case management services then begin if necessary. Please refer to the section Case Management Program for Workers' Compensation.