Return to Work

In August 2024, WorkSafe conducted a return-to-work inspection at Bulleen Templestowe Basketball Club.

The inspection assessed the employer's compliance with return-to-work obligations relating to my claim.

The outcome included an Entry Report Extract and improvement notices.

The day after that material was sent to me, the club wrote about improving its communication processes and provided return-to-work information.

That became the central tension of the next phase.

The employer had obligations to communicate and plan for my return.

I had obligations too.

But my treating professionals were also telling me that recovery had to come first and that contact with the workplace could itself be difficult.

What looked sensible on paper became complicated in real life.

By September the club proposed fortnightly meetings to discuss my recovery and support.

By October, correspondence became firmer. I was reminded of an obligation to maintain communication regarding recovery and rehabilitation. The laptop and keys were raised again. A courier was suggested if I could not return the items personally.

My response was direct.

I said I would be guided by my health professionals. I explained that emails of that kind were negatively affecting my mental health and that I was not ready for regular meetings with the organisation.

I had also been told that an independent party was being appointed to assist with the return-to-work process.

That party was Work Able Consulting.

Nicole Swan, an occupational therapist, contacted me in October 2024 after being engaged through DXC to assist with recovery and return-to-work support.

That was an important shift.

Until then, the language around the claim often focused on getting me back to Bulleen.

Gradually the question changed.

Could I return to Bulleen?

Then: should I return to Bulleen?

Eventually: how do we get Ryan back to work, whether or not that work is there?

Those are very different questions.

I did not know it yet, but the third question was the one that would eventually take me to Perth.