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WORK-RELATED INJURIES AND ILLNESS CLASSIFICATIONS

The Type of Occurrence Classifications System (TOOCS) was developed by SafeWork Australia. This classification system is used to classify the nature and cause of illnesses and injuries in the Work-Related Injuries topic in the Multi-Purpose Household Survey.

The work-related injury or illness classification used in this survey is based on the TOOCS nature of injury classification and is shown in Table 1, below. The classification of how the work-related injury or illness occurred is based on the TOOCS mechanism of injury classification, and shown in Table 2.

Table 1. WORK-RELATED INJURY OR ILLNESS
Fracture
	Breaking of a bone, cartilage, etc.
Chronic joint or muscle condition
	Arthritis
	Disorders of the joints
	Disorders of the spinal vertebrae and inervertebral discs
	Disorders of muscle, tendons and other soft tissues (e.g. Occupational Overuse Syndrome and Repetitive Strain Injury if this is the only description given)
	Acquired musculoskeletal deformities (e.g. flat feet, mallet finger, hammer toe)
Sprain/strain
	Sprains and strains of joints and adjacent muscles
	Acute trauma sprains and strains
	Sprains and strains of cartilage
	Dislocations
Cut/open wound
	Open wound not involving traumatic amputation (e.g. broken tooth, cuts, punctures, dog bites, tearing away of fingernail, serious wounds containing glass, metal or other foreign body)
Crushing injury/internal organ damage
	Internal injury of chest, abdomen and pelvis
	Injury with intact skin surface and crushing injury (e.g. bruises, haematomas)
Superficial injury - covers minor injuries such as:
	Needle stick puncture
	Abrasions, grazes, friction burns or blisters
	Scratch injury from a foreign body in eye
	Splinter or other foreign body in places other than eye
Stress or other mental condition
	Stress
	Anxiety
	Depression
	Nervous breakdown
	Effects of witnessing traumatic events
	Effects of involvement in a hold-up
	Victim of harassment
	Hyperventilation (hysterical, psychogenic)
	Hysterical symptoms
	Phobias
	Obsessional and compulsive symptoms
	Short term shock
Amputation
	Traumatic amputation including loss of eyeball
Burns
	Electrical burns, chemical burns, cold burns, hot burns, friction burns, combination burn or burns not elsewhere classified
Other
	Responses that could not be included into one of the categories above such as asthma, cancer, concussion or heart attack

Table 2. HOW WORK-RELATED INJURY OR ILLNESS OCCURRED
Lifting, pushing, pulling, bending
	Muscular stress while lifting, carrying or putting down objects
		Single or multiple events
		Lifting or carrying resulting in stress fractures
		Repetitive movement, high muscle loading
	Muscular stress while handling objects
		Single or multiple events
		Pushing or pulling objects
		Throwing or pressing objects
		Stress fractures from handling objects
		Continually shovelling
		Climbing ladders causing upper and lower limb injuries
	Muscular stress with no objects being handled
		Bending down, reaching, turning and twisting movements where no objects are being handled
		Stress fractures without objects being handled (e.g. from running)
		Continually twisting neck with no object being handled
Repetitive movement with low muscle loading
	Occupational overuse and repetitive movement occurrences
Prolonged standing, working in cramped or unchanging positions
	Working in cramped or unchanging positions
	Prolonged standing causing varicose veins
Vehicle accident
	Any accident or incident on a private road, farm, mine site or footpath involving a vehicle where the most serious injury is sustained as a result of that accident or injury
	A vehicle catching on fire after the accident
	Any accident or incident in a factory, mine or car park involving a fall from a moving vehicle
Hitting, being hit or cut by object or vehicle
	Hitting stationary objects or moving objects (e.g. cutting oneself while using a knife or other tool)
	Rubbing and chafing from wearing footwear or clothes, using tools or handling objects
	Being hit by falling objects
	Being bitten by an animal
	Being bitten by a snake
	Being trapped by moving machinery or equipment or between stationary and moving objects
	Exposure to mechanical vibration (e.g. from chain saws)
	Being assaulted by a person or persons
Fall on same level
	All slips, trips, stumbles, steps and jumps, even if a fall does not follow
	Falls of short distances such as off a curb or into a gutter
	Falls up stairs
	Fall with no further description
Fall from a height
	A fall from ground level to below ground level
	Landing awkwardly after a jump from a height
	Falling off an animal
	A fall down stairs etc.
Exposure to mental stress
	Exposure to a traumatic event
	Exposure to workplace or occupational violence (e.g. victim of assault or threatened assault by a person or persons, being a victim of or witnessing hold-ups etc.)
	Being a victim of sexual, racial, or other verbal harassment
	Work pressure (e.g. mental stress arising from work responsibilities, conflict with peers, performance counselling)
	Attempted suicide
	Other mental stress factors
Long term exposure to sound
	Long term exposure to workshop or factory noise, sharp sudden sounds, or low frequency (subsonic pressure) sounds
Contact with a chemical or substance
	Single contact with chemical or substance
		Immediate allergic reactions to a substance
		Splash with acid
		Caustic or corrosive substances in the eyes
		Contact dermatitis
		Swallowing chemical substances
		Exposure to smoke from a bush fire, chemical fire etc.
	Long term contact with chemicals or substances
		Acquired allergic reactions
		Slow poisoning, as with lead or other heavy metals
		Long term inhalation of dust or fibres, as with asbestos fibres
		Exposure to cigarette smoke
		Insect and spider bites and stings
		Contact with poisonous parts of plant or marine life (e.g. blue ringed octopus, bluebottles, stone fish etc.)
		Other and unspecified contact with chemical or substance
Other
	Those responses that could not be included into one of the categories above such as contact with hot food/drink/beverages, exposure to extreme weather, jumping on objects, struck by lightning or sunburn