Crawford & Co. Unveils Service Delivery Model to Manage Comp Claims

Crawford & Company reported the formation of Crawford Integrated Services, a new business unit that was developed specifically to solve the most pressing issues facing the workers’ compensation industry: increasing workers’ comp loss costs; quality of care concerns; lack of consistency; and return-to-workplace productivity.

The foundation of Crawford Integrated Services is a new service-delivery model that reportedly standardizes the workers’ comp claims- reporting process and delivers comprehensive, consistent, and goal-oriented solutions.

This new process combines technology, evidenced based criteria, and the expertise of claims and medical professionals to reduce overall loss costs. The process also reportedly provides early intervention; supportable recommendations; and quick decision-making leading to reduced claims costs and increased worker productivity.

Integral to the new model is Crawford Claims Advantage, Crawford’s proprietary web-based application powered by e-Triage® that incorporates structured multi-level claimant interviews into the workers’ compensation claims process.

Using Crawford Claims Advantage, claims professionals conduct initial three-point contact and ongoing interviews and quickly gather important information on every file, every time. Crawford Claims Advantage applies internationally recognized evidence-based medical, economic, and psycho-social research to identify specific risk factors that directly impact the recovery process and formulates a best practices approach for medical treatment that is customized to the injured worker.

Once the interview process is complete, Crawford Claims Advantage will indicate any underlying issues that may contribute to the duration and cost of the claim and recommend proactive measures based on scientific and medical research. Crawford Claims Advantage will also identify (again, based on objective, high-quality research) certain issues that may require additional services such as investigation, medical case management, or vocational case management.

Crawford claims professionals use these recommendations to create Strategic Plans of Action that tackle identified issues by enlisting all appropriate personnel including medically trained professionals, subject matter experts, and supervisors.

Crawford Integrated Services not only offers comprehensive claim services; it can also consolidate, manage, report, and forecast losses with its market-leading proprietary risk management information systems (RMIS).

Every Crawford branch will be using this new service delivery model as of Jan. 1, 2006.

Crawford Integrated Services is a new division at Crawford that combines all the resources of its former Risk Management Services and Healthcare Management Services divisions into one. The new unit will be led by Bob Kulbick, senior vice president, Crawford Integrated Services.

For more information on Crawford Integrated Services, visit http://www.crawfordandcompany.com.