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Your Injury Recovery Team
Understanding who may support your recovery after a workplace injury or motor vehicle accident in NSW.
Quick answer: Recovery after injury can involve more than one professional because different parts of recovery require different expertise. A GP may oversee the medical picture, a physiotherapist may address movement and physical function, a psychologist may treat trauma or other psychological barriers, and a rehabilitation provider may help translate capacity into practical participation at work, home, in the community or in education. The goal is not to build the biggest team. It is to involve the right people, for clear reasons, while keeping the injured person and their goals at the centre.
An injury can affect much more than the injured body part or the event that caused it. Pain may affect sleep. Reduced activity may affect strength and confidence. Trauma may make driving, travelling or returning to a workplace feel unsafe. Time away from normal roles can affect mood, identity and relationships. At the same time, the injured person may be attending appointments, dealing with an insurer, obtaining certificates, considering work capacity and trying to understand what each professional is actually responsible for.
This guide explains the different people who may become involved after a workplace injury or motor vehicle accident in NSW, how their roles differ, how Workers Compensation and CTP fit around treatment, and what useful collaboration can look like. It covers both physical and psychological injury. Not every person will need every service described here, and the team may change as recovery progresses.
In this guide
- Why recovery can be a team effort
- The injured person at the centre
- Workers Compensation and CTP
- GP / treating doctor
- Medical specialists
- Pain medicine and persistent pain
- Physiotherapy
- Accredited Exercise Physiology
- Hydrotherapy / aquatic rehabilitation
- Psychology
- Occupational therapy
- Chiropractic and osteopathic care
- Rehabilitation providers
- Employer and return-to-work support
- The insurer and case manager
- Legal advice
- What good collaboration looks like
- More treatment is not always better
- Choosing providers
- Professional contacts
- Frequently asked questions
- Sources and further information
Why recovery can be a team effort
Immediately after an injury, the questions are often medical: What happened? What has been injured? Is further investigation needed? What treatment is appropriate? Is it safe to work, drive, exercise or carry out normal activities?
As recovery develops, the questions often become broader. Someone may need to rebuild strength after months of reduced activity. Persistent pain may need a different approach from acute pain. A person who was physically injured may become frightened of movement or reinjury. Someone involved in a serious crash may regain physical capacity but remain unable to drive because of trauma symptoms. A worker may have some capacity for work but need suitable duties or gradual exposure to the workplace. Another person may need independent legal advice about a disputed claim.
These are not all the same problem, and no single profession is designed to answer all of them.
A useful recovery team is not a collection of providers treating separate symptoms in isolation. It is a group of people with different roles whose work, when needed, fits together around the injured person's actual goals and functional needs.
SIRA itself uses the language of a support team in the NSW Workers Compensation scheme. Its current guidance describes the worker, insurer case manager, nominated treating doctor, employer, allied health practitioners and, where needed, a workplace rehabilitation provider as having different roles in supporting recovery. In CTP, treatment and rehabilitation may also involve doctors, allied health practitioners, insurers and rehabilitation providers, although the structure and responsibilities are not identical to Workers Compensation.
The aim is therefore not to assume that every injured person needs a GP, specialist, physiotherapist, exercise physiologist, psychologist, pain specialist and rehabilitation provider. Often they do not. The better question is: What is currently getting in the way of recovery, and whose expertise is best suited to that problem?
The injured person should remain at the centre
It is easy for an injury claim to become provider-centred or system-centred. Appointments accumulate, reports are exchanged and decisions are discussed between professionals. Good care should still leave the injured person understanding what is happening and why.
Where possible, a person should understand:
- why a particular professional is involved
- what that professional is trying to help with
- how the service connects with the person's own goals
- what progress would look like
- what information may need to be shared with other members of the team
- and when the role of that provider may reduce or finish.
This matters for both physical and psychological injuries. A person with a spinal injury may have physical rehabilitation as the main focus initially and later need help with fear of movement, persistent pain or returning to work. A person with a primary psychological injury may need psychological and medical treatment as the central components of care, while exercise, occupational rehabilitation or workplace support becomes relevant later.
Recovery is also broader than employment. Returning to work can be an important rehabilitation goal, particularly in Workers Compensation, but normal life also includes sleep, mobility, independence, driving, family roles, social activity, hobbies, community participation and education. A good team keeps those broader life goals visible.
How Workers Compensation and CTP fit around treatment
Both NSW Workers Compensation and CTP can fund treatment and rehabilitation following eligible injuries, but they are different schemes. The language, certificates, approval pathways and people involved are not always interchangeable.
Workers Compensation
A worker generally nominates a treating doctor, often their usual GP, to manage the medical aspects of recovery and help with recovery at or return to work. The relevant work-capacity document is the Certificate of Capacity.
The insurer appoints a case manager who manages the claim, coordinates injury-management activities and deals with matters such as treatment expenses and weekly compensation. The employer also has responsibilities around suitable work and recovery at work, and a SIRA-approved workplace rehabilitation provider may be involved where additional rehabilitation support is needed.
CTP after a motor vehicle accident
The relevant work and activity certificate is the Certificate of Fitness. The first certificate must be issued by a treating medical practitioner. The CTP insurer manages the claim and decisions about treatment and rehabilitation that are required to be reasonable and necessary under the scheme.
CTP rehabilitation can extend beyond employment. Depending on the injury and circumstances, rehabilitation may address home and community activities, recovery at work, vocational goals, return to education, case management and coordination between providers.
Certificate of Capacity versus Certificate of Fitness
The difference sounds small but matters:
- Certificate of Capacity = NSW Workers Compensation.
- Certificate of Fitness = NSW motor accident CTP.
SIRA's current rules require the initial certificate to be completed by a treating medical practitioner. Subsequent certificates can, in certain circumstances, be issued by a treating physiotherapist or psychologist where the injury falls within that practitioner's area of expertise and the relevant scheme requirements are met.
Treatment requests are also scheme-specific
The Allied Health Treatment Request (AHTR) is used across the NSW personal injury schemes to communicate assessment findings, goals and requests for insurer approval. However, when it must be completed and what treatment can commence without prior approval differs between Workers Compensation and CTP, and can also depend on the profession, timing of treatment and circumstances of the claim. Providers should use the current SIRA requirements rather than assume that the rules are identical across both schemes.
Physical and psychological injuries can both require multidisciplinary care. In Workers Compensation, a psychological injury may be the primary injury or may arise secondarily to a physical injury. NSW introduced new rules for some primary psychological injuries notified from 1 July 2026, so current SIRA information should be checked where claim eligibility is relevant. In CTP, both physical and psychological/psychiatric injuries may require treatment. Clinical care should respond to the person's actual presentation rather than assuming the administrative label on a claim tells the whole recovery story.
Your GP, nominated treating doctor or treating medical practitioner
For many injured people, the treating doctor provides the medical anchor for recovery.
In Workers Compensation, the nominated treating doctor is the medical practitioner chosen by the worker, commonly their usual GP. SIRA describes the doctor as having a key role in assessing and diagnosing the injury, recommending treatment, assessing capacity for work and collaborating with the worker and support team around recovery.
In CTP, a GP or another treating medical practitioner may similarly assess injuries, arrange investigations, prescribe treatment and complete the initial Certificate of Fitness.
Depending on the injury, the doctor may:
- assess and diagnose physical or psychological conditions
- arrange investigations and referrals
- prescribe and review medication
- monitor general health and changes over time
- refer to medical specialists or allied health practitioners
- consider how different conditions and treatments interact
- assess work capacity and relevant restrictions
- and help maintain an overview when several providers are involved.
A doctor does not need to personally provide every aspect of treatment to be central to the team. Their value often lies in retaining the broader medical picture and recognising when another professional's expertise is appropriate.
Medical specialists
Some injuries require expertise beyond general practice. The appropriate specialist depends on the clinical question rather than the compensation scheme itself.
Examples may include an orthopaedic surgeon, neurologist, neurosurgeon, rehabilitation physician, rheumatologist, pain medicine specialist or psychiatrist. A person with complex injuries may see more than one specialist over time.
Specialist involvement is usually most useful when there is a clear question to answer. For example:
- Does a structural injury require surgery or specialist medical management?
- Do neurological symptoms require further investigation?
- Is persistent pain becoming complex enough to warrant specialist pain assessment?
- Would psychiatric review assist with diagnosis, medication or management of a more complex psychological presentation?
Seeing another specialist is not automatically a sign that recovery is going badly. It can simply mean that a particular part of the presentation needs more specialised assessment.
Pain medicine and multidisciplinary pain care
Pain is expected after many injuries. When pain persists beyond the expected healing period or becomes increasingly complex, the way it is managed may need to change.
Persistent pain can involve injured tissues or the nervous system, but it can also interact with sleep, activity, physical conditioning, mood, attention, fear of aggravation and confidence in movement. That does not mean the pain is imaginary or "just psychological". It means persistent pain can affect several systems at the same time.
Healthdirect describes chronic pain as pain lasting at least three months or beyond expected healing time, and notes that management may involve medication, physiotherapy, psychological therapy and other strategies. A multidisciplinary pain approach may therefore involve several members of the recovery team rather than a single treatment.
What does a pain medicine specialist do?
A pain medicine specialist is a medical specialist with expertise in complex and persistent pain. Depending on the presentation, their role may include:
- reviewing likely contributors to pain
- considering whether further investigation is required
- reviewing medication and medical pain-management options
- considering procedures where clinically indicated
- and helping formulate a broader plan with physical and psychological rehabilitation.
For many people with persistent pain, the goal is not to postpone life until pain reaches zero. Treatment may instead work toward improving function, confidence and quality of life while pain is being managed.
Physiotherapy
Physiotherapists commonly play an important role after musculoskeletal, orthopaedic and other physical injuries. Their work may include assessment of movement and function, education, exercise prescription, manual therapy and graded restoration of activity.
Depending on the injury and stage of recovery, physiotherapy may focus on:
- mobility and range of movement
- strength and physical tolerance
- pain management
- balance or gait
- functional tasks
- graded rehabilitation after surgery or injury
- and preparing for everyday or work-related physical demands.
One important aspect of physical rehabilitation can be helping a person distinguish between symptoms that need protection and symptoms that can be approached safely through graded activity. After injury, caution is understandable. But when fear leads to prolonged avoidance beyond what the injury medically requires, strength, conditioning and confidence may gradually decline.
A physiotherapist can help establish what activity is appropriate and how it can be progressed. This is generally more useful than either complete avoidance or an indiscriminate "push through the pain" approach.
Accredited Exercise Physiology
The formal Australian credential is Accredited Exercise Physiologist (AEP). Exercise & Sports Science Australia describes AEPs as university-qualified health professionals who prescribe, deliver and adapt exercise for people with injuries, disability and physical or mental health conditions.
Physiotherapy and exercise physiology overlap, particularly around exercise and functional rehabilitation, but they are not identical. Healthdirect describes physiotherapy as often being more focused on diagnosing and treating injuries and restoring movement, particularly in earlier stages, while exercise physiology commonly focuses on using prescribed exercise to improve function and manage longer-term conditions.
In injury recovery, an AEP may be particularly useful when the challenge shifts toward rebuilding:
- strength
- endurance and cardiovascular fitness
- general physical conditioning
- confidence with sustained activity
- mobility and functional tolerance
- and capacity for everyday or work-related physical demands.
Someone may have recovered enough that the original injury no longer needs intensive hands-on treatment but still be physically deconditioned after months of reduced activity. Exercise physiology can help bridge the gap between being medically more stable and actually feeling capable of resuming a fuller life.
Hydrotherapy and aquatic rehabilitation
Hydrotherapy is a treatment approach rather than a separate health profession. In injury rehabilitation, the term generally refers to therapeutic exercise in water, often delivered or supervised by a physiotherapist or exercise physiologist.
NSW Health describes aquatic physiotherapy as exercise-based rehabilitation conducted in warm water and uses it for presentations including post-traumatic injuries, fractures, joint or back pain and situations where exercising on land is difficult. The buoyancy of water reduces weight-bearing load, while the water can provide resistance for movement and conditioning.
For an injured person, aquatic rehabilitation may be useful when:
- land-based movement is temporarily difficult or poorly tolerated
- reduced weight bearing makes exercise more achievable
- a graded transition toward land-based exercise is needed
- or water-based exercise provides a clinically appropriate way to begin rebuilding movement and conditioning.
Workers Compensation funding is more specific. SIRA states that pool-based programs are not generally supported as a routine or ongoing treatment for work-related injuries. In exceptional circumstances they may be considered where they are tailored to the compensable injury and have a defined rehabilitation purpose, commonly to assist transition from non-weight-bearing or water-based activity toward land-based treatment and self-management. In CTP, as with other treatment, funding depends on whether the proposed service is considered reasonable and necessary for the individual claim.
So hydrotherapy can have a place, but it should have a clear reason, measurable goals and a plan for progression rather than becoming an indefinite treatment simply because exercising in water feels easier.
Psychology
Psychology belongs within an injury-recovery team even when the original injury was physical.
Injury can affect mental health through many pathways. A frightening accident or workplace incident can produce trauma symptoms. Persistent pain can increase distress and vigilance. Reduced independence and time away from normal roles can contribute to depression or adjustment difficulties. Fear of reinjury can restrict activity. A prolonged claim can add uncertainty and frustration. Sleep disruption can amplify both physical and emotional symptoms.
Psychological treatment may therefore address:
- post-traumatic stress symptoms
- driving or passenger anxiety after a motor vehicle accident
- panic or heightened threat responses
- depression and adjustment to injury
- pain-related distress and fear of movement
- sleep difficulties
- fear of reinjury or returning to a workplace associated with an incident
- loss of confidence, identity or routine
- and coping with the psychological demands of the compensation process.
The role of a psychologist is not to decide whether physical symptoms are "real". Psychological treatment addresses the emotional, cognitive and behavioural factors that may have developed around an injury and may now be affecting function, quality of life or recovery.
The reverse is also important. Someone with a psychological injury may benefit from exercise, sleep interventions, medical care or gradual restoration of physical routine. Physical and psychological rehabilitation are not competing explanations for someone's difficulties. They can address different parts of the same recovery.
For trauma-related conditions such as PTSD, Australian guidelines recommend evidence-based trauma-focused psychological therapies, with treatment matched to the person's presentation and broader clinical needs.
Occupational therapy
Occupational therapy is strongly focused on function: what a person needs or wants to be able to do in everyday life.
The word occupation does not simply mean paid employment. In occupational therapy it refers more broadly to the activities that occupy daily life, including personal care, household tasks, community participation, work, routines and meaningful activities.
Depending on the injury, an occupational therapist may assist with:
- activities of daily living and personal care
- home and community functioning
- fatigue or activity management
- functional routines
- equipment or assistive technology
- environmental or home modifications
- cognitive or functional strategies
- and increasing independence after more significant injury.
Occupational therapists can also work within rehabilitation-provider roles. That is a different function from providing treating occupational therapy and should be understood according to the particular service being delivered.
Chiropractic and osteopathic care
Some injured people use chiropractic or osteopathic care as part of treatment for musculoskeletal symptoms, particularly back, neck, joint or movement-related problems.
Chiropractic care may include joint mobilisation or manipulation, soft-tissue techniques, exercise, rehabilitation advice and ergonomic education. Healthdirect notes that evidence varies according to the condition: manual therapies may help some people with low-back pain and some neck-pain or headache presentations, particularly when combined with exercise, while evidence is less clear for other conditions.
Osteopathic treatment may also involve manual therapy, movement and exercise approaches. Healthdirect reports evidence supporting osteopathic care for some back and neck pain presentations, while noting that more research is needed for other conditions.
Rather than asking whether a particular profession is "good" or "bad" in general, more useful questions are:
- What condition is being treated?
- What is the clinical rationale?
- Is the treatment improving function as well as symptoms?
- Is there an active rehabilitation or self-management component where appropriate?
- Is the treatment duplicating another service?
- And is there a plan for review and progression?
Within NSW Workers Compensation, physiotherapists, chiropractors, osteopaths and accredited exercise physiologists are among the allied health practitioners subject to SIRA provider requirements for specified services. The rules for CTP are different and should not be assumed to be identical.
Rehabilitation providers
A rehabilitation provider is different from a treating clinician. Their role is usually to help convert clinical information into practical rehabilitation goals and coordinate the people or environments involved in reaching those goals.
Workers Compensation workplace rehabilitation
In NSW Workers Compensation, workplace rehabilitation providers must be approved by SIRA. A rehabilitation consultant may be an occupational therapist, rehabilitation counsellor, physiotherapist, exercise physiologist, psychologist or another appropriately qualified rehabilitation professional working within the provider organisation.
Depending on the situation, workplace rehabilitation may involve:
- assessing the workplace and job demands
- helping identify suitable duties
- working with the worker, employer, doctor and insurer
- clarifying barriers to recovery at work
- supporting graded work participation
- workplace assessment or modification
- and vocational rehabilitation where returning to the pre-injury role or employer is not feasible.
The rehabilitation provider is not there to replace the treating doctor, physiotherapist or psychologist. Their value often lies in translating clinical capacity into real-world participation.
CTP rehabilitation
CTP rehabilitation can be broader than workplace return. SIRA's current CTP guidance includes rehabilitation-needs assessment, case management, liaison with doctors and other providers, home and community activity, vocational support, workplace or educational assessment, return to education and other participation goals.
SIRA also states that where psychological injury is likely to delay return to work or other activities, insurers should wherever possible use rehabilitation providers with expertise in psychological injury.
In the CTP scheme, rehabilitation services are generally distinct from primary treating allied health care. That separation helps maintain clarity between the person providing treatment and the person coordinating broader rehabilitation.
The employer and return-to-work coordinator
For a workplace injury, the employer is not a treating provider, but the workplace can materially affect whether recovery at work is practical and sustainable.
SIRA's current Workers Compensation guidance emphasises recovery through work where appropriate. Employers may contribute by:
- maintaining appropriate communication with the worker
- identifying suitable work consistent with current capacity
- adjusting hours, days or duties when required
- implementing a recover-at-work plan
- and working with the worker and support team as capacity changes.
Some employers are required to have a return-to-work coordinator. The coordinator helps implement the organisation's return-to-work program and facilitate practical recovery-at-work arrangements.
For someone injured in a motor vehicle accident, the employer may also become relevant if the crash affects work capacity. CTP includes programs and rehabilitation supports aimed at recovery at work, even though the injury did not occur in the workplace.
Returning to work should not mean ignoring genuine medical or psychological restrictions. Good rehabilitation tries to identify what the person can safely do now, what support is needed, and how participation can progress as recovery changes.
The insurer and case manager
The insurer case manager is not part of the treating clinical team, but their role can substantially influence how treatment and rehabilitation are coordinated within a compensation claim.
In Workers Compensation, SIRA describes the insurer case manager as coordinating the claim, injury-management and recovery-at-work activities. The case manager may communicate with the worker, employer and treatment providers, arrange assessments or services, consider payment of reasonably necessary medical expenses and deal with weekly compensation entitlements.
In CTP, the insurer similarly manages the statutory-benefits claim and makes decisions about treatment and rehabilitation requests under the relevant scheme rules. Where rehabilitation-provider services are proposed, the insurer generally determines whether the requested services are reasonable and necessary.
Because the insurer has both administrative and decision-making functions, it is useful for an injured person to distinguish between:
- clinical advice from treating professionals
- rehabilitation recommendations from rehabilitation providers
- and claim decisions made within the insurance scheme.
These roles interact, but they are not the same.
Legal advice
A lawyer is not a treating member of the clinical team and should not direct clinical treatment.
However, independent legal advice may become an important part of the broader support around an injured person when there are questions about matters such as:
- rights and entitlements
- claim liability
- disputed treatment or claim decisions
- permanent impairment
- damages or settlement
- or other issues requiring legal interpretation.
There is value in keeping professional roles clear. A psychologist or physiotherapist should not become the person's legal adviser, and a lawyer should not become the person's treating clinician. When a genuine legal question exists, obtaining advice from a practitioner experienced in the relevant NSW scheme may allow the clinical team to remain focused on treatment and recovery.
SIRA's CTP Assist service can also provide information to people navigating motor accident claims and direct them toward appropriate assistance.
What good collaboration looks like
Multidisciplinary care does not mean every professional needs to speak to every other professional after every appointment. Often, useful collaboration is much simpler.
Each person understands why they are involved and does not try to take over another profession's role.
The team may approach recovery differently, but the overall direction should make sense and not leave the injured person receiving contradictory messages.
Providers communicate when there is a genuine clinical or rehabilitation reason, rather than exchanging information simply because a claim exists.
Collaboration does not mean unrestricted sharing. Information should be relevant to the purpose and handled within consent, privacy and professional requirements.
Progress is considered in terms of what the person can increasingly do: move, sleep, drive, participate, work, study, socialise or manage everyday life.
Where appropriate, treatment should help the person build skills and confidence rather than become indefinitely dependent on appointments.
An example of useful coordination might be a doctor documenting current work capacity, a physiotherapist identifying physical tolerances, a psychologist describing psychological barriers or appropriate graded exposure, and a rehabilitation provider helping translate those recommendations into practical duties. Each professional contributes something different.
More treatment is not always better
An effective recovery team is not necessarily a large recovery team.
Too many services without clear roles can create:
- conflicting advice
- repeated assessments
- duplicate treatment
- excessive time spent attending appointments
- uncertainty about whose advice to follow
- and a growing sense that normal life cannot resume without constant professional input.
A useful question for any member of the team is:
What is this service helping me move toward?
The answer might be increased shoulder movement, sleeping through the night, tolerating a longer drive, returning to a social activity, rebuilding physical endurance, resuming two shifts per week or understanding a legal decision. The goal should be understandable.
Providers may also be needed at different times. Someone might initially require medical investigation and physiotherapy, later benefit from exercise physiology or psychology, and only need a rehabilitation provider if participation in work or normal activity becomes difficult. The team should be able to change as the person's needs change.
Choosing the right providers
Experience with Workers Compensation or CTP can be helpful because these systems have their own forms, approval processes, reporting requirements and communication expectations. But scheme knowledge should never replace competence in the provider's actual profession.
Useful qualities to look for may include a professional who:
- has appropriate qualifications, registration or accreditation for their profession
- understands the type of injury or problem they are treating
- can explain why a particular treatment or service is being recommended
- sets meaningful functional goals
- reviews whether treatment is helping
- communicates appropriately with other members of the team when needed
- understands the relevant compensation scheme without allowing the claim to replace clinical judgement
- respects the person's autonomy and right to participate in decisions
- does not promise outcomes that cannot be guaranteed
- and has a plan for progression, self-management or discharge where appropriate.
For NSW Workers Compensation, some allied health professions and workplace rehabilitation providers must meet specific SIRA approval requirements. CTP provider arrangements differ, so a provider who is familiar with one scheme should not automatically assume that all administrative rules carry over to the other.
Professional contacts
This page is primarily an educational resource. Over time, Revamp Psychology may add a small number of professional contacts whose services may be relevant to people recovering from workplace injuries or motor vehicle accidents.
Where organisations are listed, the aim will be to help people identify potentially relevant services, not to rank providers or create a preferred-provider arrangement.
About future listings: Revamp Psychology does not receive payment, commissions or referral fees for inclusion. A listing will not guarantee that a particular provider is suitable for every person or guarantee any clinical, rehabilitation or legal outcome. People remain free to choose their own treatment, rehabilitation and legal providers.
Where Revamp Psychology has had professional involvement with an organisation, that relationship may be described factually if relevant. The educational explanation of each profession on this page will remain separate from any future provider listings.
Frequently asked questions
No. The right team depends on the injury, symptoms, functional needs and stage of recovery. A smaller team with clear roles is often more useful than involving many providers without a specific purpose. The team can also change over time.
A Certificate of Capacity is used in NSW Workers Compensation, where the first certificate is typically completed by the worker's nominated treating doctor. A Certificate of Fitness is used in NSW CTP after a motor vehicle accident, where the first certificate must be completed by a registered medical practitioner. Current SIRA rules allow certain subsequent certificates to be issued by treating physiotherapists or psychologists within their areas of expertise.
Yes. Pain, trauma, disrupted sleep, fear of reinjury, loss of independence, prolonged time away from normal roles and claim stress can all affect psychological health. Psychological treatment can complement medical and physical rehabilitation when these factors are affecting function, quality of life or recovery.
Yes. A psychological injury can be associated with reduced activity, poor sleep, deconditioning and withdrawal from normal routines. Where clinically appropriate, graded exercise or physical rehabilitation can support general health and functional recovery while psychological treatment addresses the mental health condition.
No. A treating clinician provides treatment within their professional scope. A rehabilitation provider usually focuses on coordination and functional participation, such as work, community activity, education or broader rehabilitation goals. The exact role differs between Workers Compensation and CTP.
No. A lawyer provides legal advice rather than treatment. Legal advice may still become part of the broader support around an injured person when there are questions about rights, entitlements, liability, disputes or other legal matters.
Hydrotherapy or aquatic rehabilitation is a treatment approach rather than a separate profession. It may be delivered by a physiotherapist or exercise physiologist when water-based exercise is clinically appropriate. Workers Compensation has specific funding expectations for pool-based programs, so it should not be assumed that hydrotherapy is routinely or indefinitely funded.
Related Revamp Psychology resources
Sources and further information
This guide is educational and draws primarily on current NSW scheme information and Australian health sources. Key sources include:
- SIRA: Workers Compensation guide for medical practitioners (updated July 2026).
- SIRA: Workers Compensation guide for allied health practitioners.
- SIRA: Certificates of Capacity for workplace injuries.
- SIRA: Certificates of Fitness for motor crash injuries.
- SIRA: Allied Health Treatment Request (AHTR).
- SIRA: Providing allied health services in NSW CTP.
- SIRA: Providing rehabilitation services in NSW CTP.
- SIRA: What to expect from a workplace rehabilitation provider.
- Healthdirect Australia: Chronic pain.
- Healthdirect Australia: Exercise physiologists.
- Healthdirect Australia: Water-based exercise and hydrotherapy.
- NSW Health: Aquatic physiotherapy.
- Healthdirect Australia: Chiropractic treatment.
- Healthdirect Australia: Osteopathy.
- Phoenix Australia: Australian PTSD Guidelines.
Make an enquiry
To discuss a psychology referral under NSW Workers Compensation or CTP, call or email directly. All enquiries are handled personally.
This page provides general educational information for people in NSW. It is not personal medical, rehabilitation or legal advice. The appropriate team, treatment, funding and claim pathway depend on individual circumstances and the current scheme rules. Check your circumstances with your treating practitioners, insurer, SIRA or an appropriate legal adviser.