‘I didn’t meet the criteria for my injury’: Broncos crash first responder denounces WCB claims process

“That was a huge breach of trust,” he said. “When you take into account the size of the Broncos crash, well that breach of trust I experienced was equally harmful.”

The claim he filed with WCB cited his removal from the call list as the main reason for his mental anguish.

“A few weeks later, my claim was denied. They said I didn’t meet the criteria for my injury to be accepted,” he said.

In a letter to Phillips dated March 2021, WCB recognized his mental health condition as legitimate, but noted psychological injuries arising out of an employer’s management decisions and actions are not covered by the organization.

“It seems like their approach was harsh, confusing and potentially a violation of some sort of employment standard. If you had openly expressed that you were struggling with the crash, they could have notified WCB and we could have helped you with the trauma,” the letter read, in part.

“If you’d had a claim based on the trauma of the crash itself, we would have certainly accepted that and covered the associated counselling.”

“Clearly there is medical evidence that their actions resulted in a psychological injury. The impact that this has had on you is NOT in question whatsoever, but the events leading to your diagnosis fall outside the scope of our coverage.”

WCB said in the letter that it received dozens of claims in response to the crash.

“In fact, each employer involved was approached by WCB to see if any of their staff needed our help. The Town of Tisdale Fire Department did not proactively file any mental health claims for any of their affected staff and volunteers.”

When paNOW asked Phillips why he didn’t file his claim based on the trauma of the crash, Phillips said “that wouldn’t be honest” and reiterated the core of his injury was due to management’s reaction to what he shared in the debrief.

Phillips appealed the WCB’s decision and 18 months later, his claim was accepted.

Last month marked the first time he was able to see a psychologist and not have to pay out of pocket. Alleging possible errors made by the WCB during the adjudication process, Phillips said the whole ordeal had a serious impact on his mental health.

“Having to be the one to do the investigations and gather more evidence for my claim was extremely frustrating, because my injury is a result of the actions of other people. To try and get that information from other people was extremely difficult,” he said.

Part of that evidence-gathering required Phillips to seek statements from those at the fire department, who were hesitant to talk out of concern their actions may be investigated by the WCB, he said.

Dealing with trauma like the one in the Broncos bus crash and reading through WCB’s policies, Phillips believes he should have just been handed everything he needed, as opposed to navigating a bureaucratic process to get it. He said by speaking out publicly, his goal is to provide awareness and get people the help they need faster.

“I see that there is legislation in this province that should have protected my worker’s and human rights but if it’s not being followed, that legislation really [doesn’t] mean much,” he said.

Prior to the Broncos bus crash, Phillips served as a firefighter for over 11 years. Describing his own mental state at the time of the response, he said it was the highest level of emotion he ever felt in his life. He said he knew when he responded to the crash just how much pain and suffering friends and family would feel from the event, but had to cast that thought aside while focusing on the job at hand.

“The call didn’t end from the time I drove away from the accident scene; it was ongoing and I think that’s what needs be recognized and first responders need to be able to deal with the emotional wave that hits you afterwards,” he said.

After his removal from the department’s call list, Phillips said he felt betrayed by his firefighting community. As a result of not receiving proper supports after the crash, Phillips admitted to having suicidal thoughts but told paNOW he was reminded each time of the 16 lives that were lost and that has motivated him to keep going. He still wears a Humboldt Broncos bracelet to this day.

Reaction to Nathan’s story

Brian Minhinnick who was fire chief at the time of the Broncos crash and is now retired has not responded to multiple requests for comment from paNOW. Trevor Woolsey, the current fire chief, said he was uncomfortable providing comment as this incident occurred prior to his term with the department.

paNOW obtained a letter written to Phillips by the Tisdale and District Fire Protection board. In it, Chairperson Richard Lamb explained the decision to take Phillips off the call list was not done lightly, and was made after conversations between ranking members of the department and counsellors with the Saskatchewan Fire Service Critical Incident Stress Management team.

Lamb also explained within the letter that during the time the department’s leadership discussed temporarily removing Phillips from the paging list, Phillips cleaned out his locker, turned in his pager, and removed his name from the white board. They took that as an indication Phillips was resigning.

In a statement from the WCB, a spokesperson explained the organization could not speak to Phillips’ claim or provide comment due to privacy restrictions. Instead, they offered details on the appeals process.

“If customers have new information that could affect their injury claim decision, they should let the initial decision-maker or customer care facilitator know. We are always willing to consider new information,” the statement said.

Brian Starkell, national president of the National Volunteer Fire Services Association, said he was shocked to hear Phillips’ story, adding in his own experience he’s never heard any members having problems filing a claim with WCB.

“In fact, when I was the chief in Nipawin, workers’ comp came out to Nipawin and sat us all down and took our history and had an open file just in case there was some stuff happening,” he said.

He noted he’s aware of three members who chose to seek help after the Broncos crash.

Michelle McKeaveney helps run the River Valley Resilience Retreat southwest of Prince Albert. It’s a place where correctional workers and first responders, suffering from operational stress injuries, can come for support. She said Phillips’ story represents a common thread she’s seen over the past six years through working with clients involved in emergency response and corrections.

“It’s a very tricky situation and I would like to see it quickly resolved but I think that WCB is now recognizing there are now some inconsistencies and hopefully they will let us be part of their solution by giving them some feedback on what’s not working and what possibly could,” she said.

When asked what she thought were the reasons for those inconsistencies, McKeaveney said she did not know, but suggested it’s possible the documentation required makes those filing a claim uncomfortable with the process.

“People get re-victimized in having to explain their stories,” she said. She added a first responder not knowing the claims process can have a lot fears and insecurities in sharing something they have only recently been brave enough to talk about.

McKeaveney said if the worker does not get a positive reaction from sharing, or worry their story will impact the person they are speaking with, it will lead to an improper diagnosis and improper adjudication.

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nigel.maxwell@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @nigelmaxwell

by Nigel Maxwell

‘I didn’t meet the criteria for my injury’: Broncos crash first responder denounces WCB claims process

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