As soon as your employer notifies Zenith of your injury, we will immediately refer you to a qualified doctor and medical facility. It is our goal to refer you to medical providers who will see you promptly, listen to your concerns, give you appropriate treatment for your injury, and keep you informed of your treatment plan.

We encourage you to get a referral from us - you may be required to receive treatment from an authorized provider. If, for whatever reason, your employer has not provided you with an appropriate medical referral, ask them to contact Zenith's First Call® hotline. We will immediately refer you to a medical provider.

Zenith works to give you specialized care referrals. Our goal is to find doctors who will:

• Provide immediate and appropriate medical treatment for your injury;
• Understand workers' compensation rules and benefits;
• Understand the causes of workplace injuries;
• Make an effort to understand your job;
• Help you and your employer find ways for you to return to work safely;
• Return you to your pre-injury physical condition, if possible; and
• Return you to your pre-injury earnings, if possible.
• Help you return to work, possibly in a temporary, transitional work assignment or, in a modified or alternative job.

Each state has a different waiting period, ranging from three to seven days. Zenith usually processes payments every two weeks. However, this processing time can vary based on your specific state laws.

Please call the Zenith claims representative who is working with you. If you do not have his or her number, call us at 800-440-5020, and we will connect you. Our claims representative will assist you through all aspects of your injury, answer any questions you may have, and help you get the medical care you need so that you can return to work quickly.

We will work with your doctor and your employer to identify the job duties that you can safely do now. We may be able to help you start "transitional work," a temporary assignment approved by your doctor that meets your physical restrictions and will enable you to get back to work without risk of re-injury. Zenith will work with both you and your employer to guide this process to success -- with a focus on your abilities rather than disabilities.

A transitional job helps you stay connected to your workplace and coworkers. It also minimizes the physical de-conditioning and loss of work skills that might result from extensive periods off the job due to injury. Best of all, by taking a transitional work assignment you might accelerate your healing process. Studies show that many injured employees recover faster when they return to a stable, safe work environment.

We want you to be comfortable with the doctor who treats you. However, industrial injuries are different than other illnesses. That's why we want you to see a doctor who is familiar with work-related injuries and understands the importance of helping you back to work.

Some injuries never completely go away. We want you to return to a condition as close as possible to your state of health prior to your injury. Unfortunately, injured workers may experience some ongoing or occasional pain.

After an injury, there is a three-day waiting period unless you are hospitalized overnight. If you are off work more than the first three days, we are required to issue you a check within 14 days. If you remain off work, you will receive your checks every 14 days until you return to work.

You can address these issues with your doctor at your regularly scheduled appointments, or call the doctor's office in between appointments. If you do not feel the doctor is helping you with these issues, contact your Zenith claims representative or Zenith nurse, if you have a nurse assigned to your case.

Workers' compensation insurance deals only with injuries or illnesses that happen on the job in the course of employment. Benefits are paid by your employer's workers' compensation insurance company, which also pays medical expenses for all appropriate treatment to cure or relieve conditions that directly result from your on-the-job injury or illness.

If you are not pleased with the location of any of your medical providers, call your claims representative or nurse, if you have a nurse assigned to your case. They can select a new provider who better meets your needs.

The law prohibits discrimination against a worker for notifying the employer of an injury on the job, or for making known the intention to file a claim for an on-the-job injury.

You can always call your Zenith nurse if you are unable to reach your claims representative, or if you have questions about your medical condition or treatment.

Under certain circumstances, you may be eligible for future medical treatment even after your claim is closed. Your claim representative can discuss all possible options with you.

For some medical conditions, you may receive treatment from a chiropractor. However, there are medical diagnoses and conditions where such treatment is not medically appropriate.

If you can't return to your regular job, Zenith staff will work with you and your employer to try to coordinate a modified job for you.

Failure to accept a job within the medical recommendations of your primary treating physician could jeopardize your disability benefits.

Workers' compensation checks will be sent to you every 14 days while you are off work. Zenith claims staff will also work with you and your employer to get you back to work, as soon as medically appropriate, so you can resume your normal salary.

Zenith's claims team tries to guide you through the workers' compensation system, helps you understand your benefits and rights, addresses all your questions and concerns, and makes sure you receive the right medical care. However, if you feel the need to consult an attorney, you have the right to do so.