**Alberta's WCB landscape for psychological injury has fundamentally
shifted — and most organizations' documentation practices haven't
kept pace.**
Bill 30 amendments to the Workers' Compensation Act brought explicit
recognition of psychological injury as a compensable workplace injury in
Alberta. For first responders, the amendments included presumptive PTSD
coverage — meaning the burden of proof is reversed. For other workers,
the amendments expanded the compensability criteria and increased the
Allostatic load as an evidentiary concept.
The concept of allostatic load — the cumulative physiological cost of
chronic stress — is beginning to appear in occupational health
assessments in ways that are legally significant. Occupational
physicians assessing workplace psychological injury can now measure
biomarkers of chronic stress (cortisol patterns, inflammatory markers,
autonomic nervous system indicators) that provide objective evidence of
sustained physiological stress response.
For organizations, this means: the 'I can't prove it caused harm'
defence has a narrowing shelf life. The evidence base for connecting
*What the amendments to Alberta's Workers' Compensation Act mean for
your organization, your managers, and your documentation practices.*
*Psychological injury is no longer a secondary consideration in
workers' compensation. It is a primary claim category with an expanding
evidentiary framework and a shifting burden of proof.*
THIS WEEK'S BIG IDEA
THE SCIENCE YOU NEED
Allostatic load as an evidentiary concept.
The concept of allostatic load — the cumulative physiological cost of
chronic stress — is beginning to appear in occupational health
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