WORKERS COMPENSATION - Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998; psychological injury; lump sum claim; appellant worker challenged assessment in four of the six psychiatric impairment rating scale categories- self-care and personal hygiene, travel, concentration, persistence and pace and employability; Held - error found and re-examination considered necessary in the circumstances of a finding of error; Medical Assessment Certificate revoked.

1. The worker Mohamad Osman (the appellant) lodged an Application to Appeal Against the Decision of a Medical Assessor. The medical dispute was assessed by Dr Christopher Rikard-Bell a Medical Assessor, who issued a Medical Assessment Certificate (MAC) on

12 September 2025. 2. The appellant relies on the following ground of appeal under s 327(3) of the Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998 (the 1998 Act): * availability of additional relevant information (being additional information that was not available to, and that could not reasonably have been obtained by, the appellant before the medical assessment appealed against); * the assessment was made on the basis of incorrect criteria, and * the MAC contains a demonstrable error. 3. The delegate is satisfied that, on the face of the application, at least one ground of appeal has been made out. The Appeal Panel has conducted a review of the original medical assessment but limited to the grounds of appeal on which the appeal is made. 4. Rule 128 of the Personal Injury Commission Rules 2021 (the PIC Rules) and Procedural Direction PIC7 - Appeals, reviews, reconsiderations and correction of obvious errors in medical disputes set out the practice and procedure in relation to the medical appeal process under s 328 of the 1998 Act. An Appeal Panel determines its own procedures in accordance with r 128(1) of the PIC Rules. 5. The assessment of permanent impairment is conducted in accordance with the SIRA NSW Workers Compensation Guidelines for the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment, 4th ed

1 March 2021 (the Guidelines) and the American Medical Association Guides to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment, 5th ed (AMA 5).

1. The Appeal Panel conducted a preliminary review of the original medical assessment in the absence of the parties and in accordance with the Procedural Direction PIC7.
2. The appellant sought a re-examination by a Medical Assessor who is also a member of the Appeal Panel. As a result of its preliminary review, the Appeal Panel determined that it was necessary for the worker to undergo a further medical examination because the Appeal Panel found error.

1. Section 328(3) of the 1998 Act provides that evidence that is fresh evidence or evidence in addition to or in substitution for the evidence received in relation to a medical assessment appealed against may not be given on an appeal by a party unless the evidence was not available to the party before the medical assessment and could not reasonably have been obtained by the party before that medical assessment.
2. The appellant seeks to admit the following evidence:

(a) statement of the appellant dated 10 October 2025, and

(b) report of Dr James Whan dated 7 October 2025.

1. The respondent objects to the admission of the above evidence.
2. The Appeal Panel determines that the above evidence should not be received on the appeal as it is evidence that seeks to cavil with the findings of the Medical Assessor. Evidence from the appellant and his doctor is evidence that was available to be given prior to the medical assessment taking place.

1. The Appeal Panel has before it all the documents that were sent to the Medical Assessor for the original medical assessment and has taken them into account in making this determination.

1. Medical Assessor Ash Takyar of the Appeal Panel conducted an examination of the worker and reported to the Appeal Panel as set out below.

1. The parts of the medical certificate given by the Medical Assessor that are relevant to the appeal are set out, where relevant, in the body of this decision.

1. Both parties made written submissions. They are not repeated in full, but have been considered by the Appeal Panel.

1. The procedures on appeal are contained in s 328 of the 1998 Act. The appeal is to be by way of review of the original medical assessment but the review is limited to the grounds of appeal on which the appeal is made.
2. In Campbelltown City Council v Vegan [2006] NSWCA 284 the Court of Appeal held that the Appeal Panel is obliged to give reasons. Where there are disputes of fact it may be necessary to refer to evidence or other material on which findings are based, but the extent to which this is necessary will vary from case to case. Where more than one conclusion is open, it will be necessary to explain why one conclusion is preferred. On the other hand, the reasons need not be extensive or provide a detailed explanation of the criteria applied by the medical professionals in reaching a professional judgement.
3. The matter was referred to the Medical Assessor for assessment as follows:

"The following matters have been referred for assessment (s 319 of the 1998 Act):

• Date of injury: 3 January 2023
• Body parts/systems referred: Psychiatric/Psychological disorder
• Method of assessment: whole person impairment."

1. The Medical Assessor issued a MAC certifying whole person impairment (WPI) as a result of the injury as follows:

page and paragraph number in NSW workers' compensation guidelines

Chapter, page, paragraph, figure and table numbers in AMA5 Guides

WPI deductions pursuant to S323 for pre-existing injury, condition or abnormality (expressed as a fraction)

Sub-total/s % WPI (after any deductions in column 6)

Total % WPI (the Combined Table values of all sub-totals)

1. The assessment was based on his assessment under psychiatric impairment rating scale (PIRS) as required by the Guidelines as follows:

Mr Osman is able to dress, feed and manage himself; however, he lacks motivation and does not shower every day. Therefore, there is mild impairment of self-care and personal hygiene.

In terms of social and recreational activities, Mr Osman has very little interaction with friends or family. He is withdrawn and lacks interest in socialising. Occasionally, a friend will contact him, but there has not been a great deal of interaction with others and he is significantly isolated. Therefore, there is moderate impairment of social and recreational activities.

In terms of travel, there are no restrictions and no impairment of travel.

In terms of social functioning, Mr Osman's marriage broke down in 2016 initially and he formed a new relationship that subsequently broke down. He reconciled with his wife in 2020; however, the relationship does fluctuate. Therefore, the relationship separations and instability suggest moderate impairment of social functioning.

In terms of concentration, Mr Osman is able to make items with his hands and he is able to do some gardening. He can construct a piece of furniture; however, he would likely struggle with complex instructions, such as a complicated Ikea item. Therefore, there is mild impairment of concentration, persistence and pace.

In terms of employment, Mr Osman has low motivation, a lack of interest and poor focus, as well as trauma symptoms when triggered by certain events. He would be unable to work in the Police Force or in a challenging environment where he would be dealing with the general public or working closely with others. Therefore, there is moderate impairment of employment.

1. The worker appealed.
2. In summary, the appellant submitted that the Medical Assessor made assessments on the basis of incorrect criteria and demonstrable errors in the assessments he made under four of the six PIRS categories, namely self-care and personal hygiene, travel, concentration, persistence and pace, and employability causing him to make an error in the assessments in these domains as follows:

(a) in assessing Class 2 for self-care and personal hygiene when he should have assessed Class 3;

(b) in assessing Class 1 for travel when he should have assessed Class 2;

(c) in assessing Class 2 for concentration, persistence and pace when he should have assessed Class 3, and

(d) in assessing Class 3 for employability when he should have assessed Class 4 or 5.

1. In summary it was submitted that these errors arose because the Medical Assessor did not provide an adequate path of reasoning for his findings in the contested domains and findings were made on the basis of incorrect criteria and failing to take adequate account of the evidence.
2. In summary, the employer the State of New South Wales (NSW Police Force) (the respondent) submitted that the Medical Assessor neither erred nor made an assessment on the basis of incorrect criteria and the MAC should be confirmed. It was submitted that the MAC was adequately reasoned when read as a whole and the findings were open to the Medical Assessor applying his clinical expertise to the assessment.
3. The role of the Medical Assessor is to conduct an independent assessment on the day of examination. The Medical Assessor is required to take a history, conduct a mental state examination, make a psychiatric diagnosis and have due regard to other evidence and other medical opinion that is before the Medical Assessor. The Medical Assessor must bring his clinical expertise to bear and exercise his clinical judgement when making an independent assessment of impairment under the PIRS categories. The assessment is not to be based upon self-report alone. An appeal panel cannot disturb ratings under the PIRS for mere difference of opinion but must be satisfied as to error.
4. The path of reasoning disclosed by the Medical Assessor must be adequate. This is also dependent on the extent of the history taken and a thorough examination of the worker so that self-report can be properly evaluated in the context of other evidence before the Medical Assessor. The Appeal Panel considered that the path of reasoning was inadequate, the duration of the mental state examination was not clear and it was not clearly discernible from the reasons given that the assessments under the contested PIRS categories were based upon the correct criteria.
5. In these circumstances of the above finding of error, the Appeal Panel considered that a re-examination by a Medical Assessor member of the Appeal Panel was necessary. Medical Assessor Ash Takyar was appointed to conduct the re-examination, and he reported to the Appeal Panel as follows (emphasis in original):

Brief history of the incident/onset of symptoms and of subsequent related events, including treatment:

Mr Osman was examined over an hour and 39 minutes with respect to psychological injuries sustained in the course of his policing duties with the NSW Police Force. He joined in 2010 and was a radio operator, and he felt that in the course of police-duty related occupational trauma exposure he began noticing or experiencing depression and anxiety "maybe three or four years after joining", while flashbacks and nightmares of these trauma scenes began "Probably about 2013, 2014. The worst of them were after the Martin Place siege".

The type of trauma exposures he encountered included "a lot, murders, suicides, child abuse... a lot of violence", which was more pronounced when he was "maybe with the Detectives", where he remained for "three years, maybe three years". A colleague had completed suicide in 2023, he noted. Exposure to child sexual abuse material also occurred at the Detectives in Bankstown and in a role when he was in a role which involved "a lot of archiving, case files", in what he felt was 2021 to 2022.

He attends general practitioner, Dr Steven Le at Optimal Health in Gledswood, whom he sees monthly.

His psychiatrist, Dr James Whan sees him "every four to six weeks", with treatment commencing in August 2023 (from the records).

• Amitriptyline 150mg nocte, which he has been taking for 18 to 24 months he felt.
• Prazosin 7.5mg nocte.
• Diazepam (a benzodiazepine) 5mg PRN, which he takes "close to most days, once a day", though he clarified that has it twice a day two to three times.
• Clonidine 100mcg - "I haven't been taking that more recently", taking it two to three times a week.

Psychologist, Harsha Kulasekaran sees him via telehealth on a weekly basis. They have worked on cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and EMDR (eye movement desensitisation). He had also seen an exercise physiologist for five to six months, but noted that he "stopped about four, five months ago... I just really lost motivation. I was really pushing myself to go".

This history was obtained with respect to a period of the last two months, as an average, unless otherwise stated.

Before the injury formed, Mr Osman had been sleeping around eight to ten hours a night without initial or middle insomnia. He said it takes him "a couple hours" to fall asleep once he is in bed though he described his sleep routine, and he clarified that he needs 45 to 60 minutes to get to sleep once he goes to bed to sleep due to rumination. Middle insomnia occurs due to nightmares or "if I hear something, if I get startled by something, I get really panicked, I think that there's a danger or someone's in the house, I have cameras all in the house". On refocusing, he was asked how long it takes to get to sleep - he was fairly anxious and his concentration declined. Mr Osman reported sleeping "five to six" hours a night these days, on average.

This declined at times where the injury events and impacts were more proximal. He was asked what he notices, and he reported, "I struggle to concentrate on most tasks. I struggle to do anything that's complicated" - asked what this meant, he expanded on this, stating that anything that requires reading to complete and he finds it difficult to help the children in homework (in the last four to five years). If Mr Osman watches a show he likes, he can maintain focus for 10 to 15 minutes if the TV is on and someone is watching though he noted that he no longer watches shows or has much interest ("I did used to watch a lot of TV shows and movies", ceasing after he joined the Police Force), and focus in this time is limited - although he tries to follow the plot, he misses parts. He no longer reads much because of concentration problems though he said he used to read recreationally monthly before the injury. Mr Osman reported that he avoids conversations with others, though he said he finds it hard to follow the conversation - he feels this is better with family. It was observed that when a higher level of detail was sought he appeared overwhelmed and he stammered and required more refocusing.

Mr Osman said this is now "Shit. I used to be really sharp and have a good memory and remember a lot of detail but not anymore, I forget things. I will lose things and find things that I forget that I had... pretty regular. Most important things I usually try to get my wife to be in charge of them so I don't lose them... things like valuables and important documents, and I forget where I put them".

This is "mostly down", these days - Mr Osman estimated that his mood is depressed for around 90% of his waking week - given a scale, which had to be explained again due to concentration problems, he rated it at a severe grade (2/10, where 1-2 reflect severe depression, 3-4 moderate depression, 5-6 mild depression, 7-8 normal mood and 9-10 elated mood). He reported crying at a lower threshold these days, more often. He holds some hope of "getting better at managing", though more broadly hope is diminished and he described amotivation along with diminished self-worth and feeling helpless. Mr Osman reported "occasionally" having suicidal ideation, "once every one to two months. I don't have any plans or anything, it's just like a fleeting thought... I won't do anything... I want to be there for my children". He denied having any self-harm or suicidal ideation, intent or plans on examination.

Energy is "pretty low, I don't have much, I get tired from not doing much in the day and I need naps - I feel like I am an old man". Naps are taken "almost every day", for between half an hour to two hours (typically around an hour). He rated energy these days at 10% of his pre-injury full baseline, and enjoyment also at 10%. He consumes "two to three meals" a day these days - three meals half the week - though he said he used to eat four to five a day pre-injury as he trained at the gym a lot, and enjoyment is limited; he used to enjoy sweets but said he no longer does. Meals are normally sized but he reported, "I do binge sometimes", describing comfort-eating if he is anxious and ruminating "mostly at meal times", rather than snacking separately (about thrice per week). Although he had lost weight earlier on, he said he had weighed 80 to 85kg pre-injury and he now weighs 110kg.

This is ever-present; his affect was anxious where history more closely related to the injury was obtained. He rated this at a high grade (7-8/10, where 1-3 reflect low anxiety, 4-6 moderate anxiety, 7-8 high anxiety, and 9-10 severe anxiety) and he described fatigue and becoming impatient at a lower threshold from things that did not bother him before, such as if the family disturb him when he is trying to rest. This occurs with irritability expressed at them, sometimes causing arguments, though he noted, "Usually my wife is pretty good - she is understanding", and he said she will come back later to repair things. Anxious muscle tension is experienced in his hands (asked what he notices, he spoke of clenching his hands), pressing his feet and legs into the ground and he stated, "I get tense in the head, that's not tension is it?" On exploring this, although he described faster thoughts he described headaches in the frontal area which appeared to reflect tension headaches. In describing this, he mentioned shaking and on exploring physiologic changes additional to this, he spoke of sweating, elevated heartrate and faster breathing (which he said is the first physiologic change he experiences). These occur as panic attacks (four or more of these changes at once) "four, five times a week". He presented with restlessness in his upper body during he examination and he spoke of sometimes feeling more fatigued and at other times "more fidgety, restless", sometimes feeling fatigued afterwards. Mr Osman said due to the agitation with this, he tends to steer clear of this family at such times.

Nightmares of trauma scenes as experienced without changes or distortions or non-experienced situations occur fortnightly (other dreams not of the events as occurred more often, twice or thrice a week). Intrusive visual flashbacks occur "pretty regular, almost every day", which are not thoughts or memory.

Trauma hyperarousal symptoms include the disruption to sleep and concentration, anger and irritability and the exaggerated startling to sudden or loud noises in the night which wakes him - this also occurs in the day. This occurs particularly with "yelling, or like a loud banging sounds, or um, sirens... maybe like a child crying". Hypervigilance occurs with an increase in anxiety before he leaves the home, and while out he is "usually on high alert or on edge, suspicious of everyone", watching out for "any sort of threat, any sort of danger. I get weird thoughts sometimes, suspect the worst of everyone". Negative cognitive and emotional changes include this loss of trust in other people, loss of interest, difficulties experiencing positive emotions and fear of confrontation.

He avoids going to certain trauma scene locations ("I avoid going to certain places, where certain things happened") and he added, "I avoid certain smells, certain metals, reminds me of blood... sorry the question was what was I avoid, is that what you asked?" On confirming this, Mr Osman described avoiding his former policing friends, areas around stations, policing shows and the news along with discussion of the injury events.

Details of any previous or subsequent accidents, injuries or condition:

He denied having any other accidents, injuries or conditions develop unrelated to the police injury, and no unrelated contributing factors were identified that impact his mental state outside of this injury and its impacts on him.

Mr Osman denied any significant general medical history other than shoulder surgery "a few years ago... maybe like three years ago", to his right shoulder for a policing injury. He said this recovered, with pain diminishing over time, now occurring "not much of the time, it's more restricted movement". He denied any mental state impact. The documents mention nasal surgery, which he confirmed (a year before or after he shoulder surgery, he felt).

He denied any family history of mental illness and he was not aware of any history of psychiatric illness before the policing injury, such as any anxiety or depression. Mr Osman had not required any antidepressant (or other psychotropic medications for his mental health) or psychological therapy or psychiatry prior to the injury.

Mr Osman smokes "too many" cigarettes these days (20 to 25), and he said he did not smoke before the police force. He feels he uses it "as an outlet, I guess". Alcohol use ceased five to six years back and he had been a non-drinker prior to the police force. He began consuming it "not long, a couple of years at the most" into his work there. "It started off as a social thing and it went to become like an escape, or if I was struggling with some thoughts it was a way to cope". Mr Osman reported drinking "quite heavily, binge-drinking... it would have been at least once, twice a week and as many as I could have - maybe 15, 20 drinks or more", which continued at that level "for maybe six, seven years". He reported that he ceased eventually as he feared losing control.

He does not use substances, gamble or have any forensic history. However, he noted that when his wife and he had separated some years ago and he had a new partner, they took an AVO against him; he and his wife reconciled subsequently.

Work history including previous work history if relevant:

On finishing Year 12 in around 2001, Mr Osman studied computer science over three years at university, then he worked in security duties for five or six years. He noted, "After security work, that's when I started with the police. I did a masters degree as well... in 2011 or '12... in policing intelligence and counterterrorism". He was at the NSW Police Academy for nine months and he attested and worked in General Duties at Bankstown from 2015 for "eight years, seven years", where he finished. He had secondments to the State Crime Command, with the longest for two years along with briefer secondments. He has not worked since ceasing work in January 2023, with medical retirement "end of '23".

Mr Osman lives with his wife ("38, 39 maybe") - they married in 2006 but separated for over a year; their four children are aged 18, 17, 5 and 3; although he also mentioned his 7 year old here, he later clarified that he lives with a former partner and while he is meant to see him fortnightly, he has only done so twice in the last nine months due to distance (30 to 45 minutes by car) and as he has to see him under supervision, which he said he has not been able to manage due to his mental health. They have no pets.

A history was obtained of his typical daily routine over the last two months - he wakes usually early, at 5 to 6:30am and Mr Osman exits bed after 15 to 30 minutes (not before the injury, due to amotivation to start his day) and then goes to the toilet, makes a coffee, sits and smokes while he consumes it and he reported that he sits on lounge waiting until the children wake up around 7am or 7:30am; he does not put the TV on in this time. His wife or daughters make breakfast, which he then has. His wife or his 18 year old daughter drive the two school-age children to school and the two that attend daycare go with her as she works in the sector; they leave home at 8am or 8:30am and return between 3 to 5:30pm. He goes with them "once or twice every fortnight". While they are out, he stated that his daughter is sometimes home if she is not at university. Of his routine in these hours, he stated, "I don't really do much, I will sit around, might smoke. I wear a plate for bruxism and I might wash that. I might have two or three coffees and smoke". Mr Osman said he has no other routines in the day. When the children get home, he spends intermittent blocks of five to ten minutes with the children. Dinner is at 6pm and the children go to bed around 7 or 8pm, while he tends to at 10pm or so.

He consumes "two to three meals" a day these days - three meals half the week - though he said he used to eat four to five a day pre-injury as he trained at the gym a lot, and enjoyment is limited; he used to enjoy sweets but said he no longer does. Meals are normally sized but he reported, "I do binge sometimes", describing comfort-eating if he is anxious and ruminating "mostly at meal times", rather than snacking separately (about thrice per week). He has lunch from 1 to 3pm; his wife prompts him to eat by calling him to come to eat and then tells him the children are waiting for him to eat, which he described as a "guilt trip". Although he had lost weight earlier on, he said he had weighed 80 to 85kg pre-injury and he now weighs 110kg. While he used to shower twice a day he weight-trained or did martial arts and boxing pre-injury, this has reduced to two or three times a week (which has been the case "a long time, years I'd say") and he changes his clothing "about the same I'd say, two or three times a week". Toothbrushing has declined from twice a day to every two days or once daily - he said his wife or elder daughter bring him his towel and clothing and then prompt him to shower. Mr Osman was clean-shaven pre-injury and used to shave his face and head every day or two days, mostly daily, but he has grown a beard since the injury not for any particular reason (not due to religion or style, he noted, "I just let myself go").

The cooking was shared with his wife - pre-injury, he did about 30 to 40% but he no longer does due to his mental state due to depressive symptoms including lack of energy and amotivation. He grocery shopped around two to three times a week, which he does "very rarely, once a month, usually with someone with one of my daughters or my wife", going alone "not often at all, I avoid going most places on my own" - he goes alone every two months and tries to get back home as fast as he can due to anxiety, feeling on edge and hypervigilant. His share of the chores has reduced to depressive impacts.

Hobbies were explored. He goes for walks alone "once every three, four months... very local, around the block". Mr Osman said he has no other hobbies now but he used to weight train three to five times a week (mostly three), did martial arts/boxing five times a week or might otherwise run. These have all ceased due to his mental state, ceasing before the shoulder injury, he noted.

Pre-injury he "was pretty social, from the training community, from work, social...", with "50 plus" people in his social circle, reduced to one or two friends now that he might text "every three to six months", speaking to them on the phone around yearly. Mr Osman is not seeing them often - about yearly. He sees his sisters around monthly each, and his brother around every two months.

Mr Osman drives "not very often, maybe once a week", travelling alone to "usually local places - I have family that live nearby, if I have to go there for some reason or local shops". He said a sister lives 200m away, another is 500m away and his brother five-minute drive from his home. He does not drive to new places. The shops are around a two-minute drive from home. He said he sees his GP, his psychologist and psychiatrist via telehealth. If he has to go further than local he has to have someone with him.

His relationship with the four children at home is fair but he said he can get frustrated and irritable at his eldest daughter at times. He said his wife is understanding, and he stated, "I owe a lot to them and her, to be honest, I get a lot of support". There was strain that required separation earlier on, which has recovered, and strain is mild now and they are accommodation. He said he has not seen his son much - twice in nine months rather than fortnightly, due to "avoidance of travel and avoidance of seeing him under supervision", which he said is as he feels guilty that this is due to his mental health - asked what the driver of this was, he said this was a mitigating factor due to his mental health problems as the mother of the child raised this as an issue. They speak on the phone once or twice a week and the relationship is okay "Yeah, surprisingly, I love my children a lot... we get along well, it's more the logistical issue... I am trying to have the supervision removed, it's tricky".

Initially, this declined more substantially when the injury events were more proximal through the history but over the course of the hour and 39 minute history it became clearer that the baseline deficits were fairly prominent, with drops in concentration aligning with increased anxious affect over the examination and a fairly regular need for refocusing; through the functioning and symptom histories in particular where a higher level of detail was sought and he appeared overwhelmed, stammered and had to be redirected more substantially. Mr Osman was asked what he notices, and he reported, "I struggle to concentrate on most tasks. I struggle to do anything that's complicated" - asked what this meant, he expanded on this, stating that anything that requires reading to complete and he finds it difficult to help the children in homework (in the last four to five years). If Mr Osman watches a show he likes, he can maintain focus for 10 to 15 minutes if the TV is on and someone is watching though he noted that he no longer watches shows or has much interest ("I did used to watch a lot of TV shows and movies", ceasing after he joined the Police Force), and focus in this time is limited - although he tries to follow the plot, he misses parts. He no longer reads much because of concentration problems though he said he used to read recreationally monthly before the injury. Mr Osman reported that he avoids conversations with others, though he said he finds it hard to follow the conversation - he feels this is better with family.

Mr Osman said this is now "Shit. I used to be really sharp and have a good memory and remember a lot of detail but not anymore, I forget things. I will lose things and find things that I forget that I had... pretty regular. Most important things I usually try to get my wife to be in charge of them so I don't lose them... things like valuables and important documents, and I forget where I put them".

Given the significant concentration deficits, anxiety symptoms and depressive symptoms, it was determined that Mr Osman would realistically struggle with being able to work on the open and competitive labour markets - that is, there is no realistic work capacity based on the history obtained, correlating it to the mental state examination features through the examination of an hour and 39 minutes, and with the file documentation.

Mr Osman presented as a male of 42 years with moderately long dark/black hair, wearing a brown sweatshirt. He was restless in his upper body over the hour and 44 minute examination (with a brief four-minute break at one point) and eye contact was reduced but appropriate. Mood was low, affect was restricted in range, quite anxious in quality and consistent with what he described, appropriate to context. Thought content revealed anxious, trauma-related and depressive themes. He denied having any acute self-harm or suicidal ideation, intent or plans on examination. Concentration was moderately disrupted with short-term memory deficits. Insight and judgement were intact.

On the basis of the history, Mr Osman's mental state features over the reasonably long examination and the material in the file brief, he presents diagnostically under the DSM-5-TR with symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and major depressive disorder. These diagnoses reflect those in Dr Allen's May 2024 report, though it is noted that while Dr Young (October 2024) agreed that Dr Allen's diagnoses were consistent with the history they obtained, and with his own diagnoses, he felt there were inconsistencies in the history. During this examination, mental state features were consistent with the history and the symptoms reported across timepoints, as described, and his history did not appear to be unreliable or inconsistent in any substantial manner outside of normal variation in presentation across time points. Treating psychiatrist, Dr Whan has also diagnosed these conditions (treatment reports of August 2023, January 2024, April 2024 and January 2025 in particular though the latter report focuses more on the PTSD. Clinical psychologist, Mr Kulasekaran referred only to the PTSD diagnosis. Additionally, Allied health treatment request 6 also affirms this diagnosis.

In terms of the appealed domains, Self Care and Personal Hygiene has been rated at Class 2 here - Mr Osman's appetite is mildly disrupted in terms of number of meals since the injury (reduced by one meal a day on half of the week, normal for the other half), and the prompting described is being called to attend the dinner table, which makes him feel guilty. For showering, he can shower two or three times a week and his wife or eldest child bring him his towel and clothing though he does not require daily prompting or community nurse visits, nor does he miss meals daily. This is congruent with the MA's score and lower than that of Dr Allen, though some nearly two years have elapsed since that report, so this may reflect change in symptoms over time.

In regard to Travel, Mr Osman drives around weekly alone locally, and refrains from travelling to new places - he mostly goes to family nearby or to local shops; treaters are seen via telehealth. Travelling further distances requires a support person present. This is congruent with the Class 2 score of Dr Allan and higher than the MA's score, though the MA references Mr Osman being able to drive around 5km, not a total lack of restriction.

Concentration, Persistence and Pace has been scored at Class 3 for substantial deficits across the reasonably long examination, correlating to his mental state and fluctuations in anxiety over the history. It is not clear how long the MA saw him for, and struggling to follow complex instructions as described by the MA appears to reflect a moderate deficit, which is what Dr Allen rated.

Employability is scored at Class 5, consistent with Dr Allen's view and that of the treating practitioners, higher than the Class 3 score of the MA. This is based on the detail of its own history correlated with the material in the brief and the mental state features and symptoms on re-examination.

1. The Appeal Panel considers that the examination undertaken by Medical Assessor Ash Takyar was conducted in a thorough manner. The Appeal Panel notes the history Medical Assessor Ash Takyar has provided in his report to the Appeal Panel, including the history as to the appellant's ability to function in the PIRS categories that has been challenged on appeal, namely self-care and personal hygiene, travel, concentration, persistence and pace and employability. The Appeal Panel notes that Medical Assessor Ash Takyar had regard to the other evidence before him, has not relied on self -report alone and has used his clinical expertise on the day of assessment to make recommendations to the Appeal Panel about the assessments of the contested PIRS categories. The Appeal Panel notes Medical Assessor Ash Takyar's findings on clinical examination of the appellant and his diagnosis made after clinical examination of the appellant as follows:

"On the basis of the history, Mr Osman's mental state features over the reasonably long examination and the material in the file brief, he presents diagnostically under the DSM-5-TR with symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and major depressive disorder."

1. The Appeal Panel agrees with and adopts the findings of Medical Assessor Ash Takyar.
2. In respect of Self-care and personal hygiene, Table 11.1 of the Guidelines provides as follows:

Table 11.1: Psychiatric impairment rating scale - self care and personal hygiene

No deficit, or minor deficit attributable to the normal variation in the general population

Mild impairment: able to live independently; looks after self adequately, although may look unkempt occasionally; sometimes misses a meal or relies on take-away food.

Moderate impairment: Can't live independently without regular support. Needs prompting to shower daily and wear clean clothes. Does not prepare own meals, frequently misses meals. Family member or community nurse visits (or should visit) 2-3 times per week to ensure minimum level of hygiene and nutrition.

Severe impairment: Needs supervised residential care. If unsupervised, may accidentally or purposefully hurt self.

Totally impaired: Needs assistance with basic functions, such as feeding and toileting.

1. Medical Assessor Takyar reported to the Panel his finding on re-examination as follows:

"his appetite is mildly disrupted in terms of number of meals since the injury (reduced by one meal a day on half of the week, normal for the other half), and the prompting described is being called to attend the dinner table, which makes him feel guilty. For showering, he can shower two or three times a week and his wife or eldest child bring him his towel and clothing though he does not require daily prompting or community nurse visits, nor does he miss meals daily. This is congruent with the MA's score and lower than that of Dr Allen, though some nearly two years have elapsed since that report, so this may reflect change in symptoms over time."

1. Medical Assessor Takyar recommended a rating of a mild impairment at Class 2.
2. The Appeal Panel adopts the findings on re-examination and agrees with the recommendation that the findings are consistent with a rating of a mild impairment (Class 2) for self-care and personal hygiene. This rating is the same as that assessed by the Medical Assessor.
3. In respect of Travel, Table 11.3 of the Guidelines provides as follows:

Table 11.3: Psychiatric impairment rating scale - travel

No deficit, or minor deficit attributable to the normal variation in the general population: Can travel to new environments without supervision.

Mild impairment: can travel without support person, but only in a familiar area such as local shops, visiting a neighbour.

Moderate impairment: cannot travel away from own residence without support person. Problems may be due to excessive anxiety or cognitive impairment.

Severe impairment: finds it extremely uncomfortable to leave own residence even with trusted person.

Totally impaired: may require two or more persons to supervise when travelling.

1. The Appeal Panel adopts the history taken and findings of Medical Assessor Takyar re-examination as follows:

"In regard to Travel, Mr Osman drives around weekly alone locally, and refrains from travelling to new places - he mostly goes to family nearby or to local shops; treaters are seen via telehealth. Travelling further distances requires a support person present. This is congruent with the Class 2 score of Dr Allan and higher than the MA's score, though the MA references Mr Osman being able to drive around 5km, not a total lack of restriction."

1. The Appeal Panel agrees with the recommendation Medical Assessor Takyar that the findings are consistent with a rating of a mild impairment (Class 2) for travel. This is higher than the rating given by the Medical Assessor.
2. In respect of concentration, persistence and pace, Table 11.5 of the Guidelines provides as follows:

No deficit, or minor deficit attributable to the normal variation in the general population. Able to pass a TAFE or university course within normal time frame.

Mild impairment: can undertake a basic retraining course, or a standard course at a slower pace. Can focus on intellectually demanding tasks for periods of up to 30 minutes, then feels fatigued or develops headache.

Moderate impairment: unable to read more than newspaper articles. Finds it difficult to follow complex instructions (e.g. operating manuals, building plans), make significant repairs to motor vehicle, type long documents, follow a pattern for making clothes, tapestry or knitting.

Severe impairment: can only read a few lines before losing concentration. Difficulties following simple instructions. Concentration deficits obvious even during brief conversation. Unable to live alone, or needs regular assistance from relatives or community services.

Totally impaired: needs constant supervision and assistance within institutional setting.

1. The Appeal Panel notes the findings on mental state examination on re-examination as follows:

"Mr Osman presented as a male of 42 years with moderately long dark/black hair, wearing a brown sweatshirt. He was restless in his upper body over the hour and 44 minute examination (with a brief four-minute break at one point) and eye contact was reduced but appropriate. Mood was low, affect was restricted in range, quite anxious in quality and consistent with what he described, appropriate to context. Thought content revealed anxious, trauma-related and depressive themes. He denied having any acute self-harm or suicidal ideation, intent or plans on examination. Concentration was moderately disrupted with short-term memory deficits. Insight and judgement were intact."

1. The Appeal Panel adopts the history taken and findings on re-examination as follows:

Initially, this declined more substantially when the injury events were more proximal through the history but over the course of the hour and 39 minute history it became clearer that the baseline deficits were fairly prominent, with drops in concentration aligning with increased anxious affect over the examination and a fairly regular need for refocusing; through the functioning and symptom histories in particular where a higher level of detail was sought and he appeared overwhelmed, stammered and had to be redirected more substantially. Mr Osman was asked what he notices, and he reported, 'I struggle to concentrate on most tasks. I struggle to do anything that's complicated' - asked what this meant, he expanded on this, stating that anything that requires reading to complete and he finds it difficult to help the children in homework (in the last four to five years). If Mr Osman watches a show he likes, he can maintain focus for 10 to 15 minutes if the TV is on and someone is watching though he noted that he no longer watches shows or has much interest ('I did used to watch a lot of TV shows and movies', ceasing after he joined the Police Force), and focus in this time is limited - although he tries to follow the plot, he misses parts. He no longer reads much because of concentration problems though he said he used to read recreationally monthly before the injury. Mr Osman reported that he avoids conversations with others, though he said he finds it hard to follow the conversation - he feels this is better with family.

Mr Osman said this is now "Shit. I used to be really sharp and have a good memory and remember a lot of detail but not anymore, I forget things. I will lose things and find things that I forget that I had... pretty regular. Most important things I usually try to get my wife to be in charge of them so I don't lose them... things like valuables and important documents, and I forget where I put them."

1. The Appeal Panel adopts the recommendations of Medical Assessor Takyar on re-examination as follows:

"Concentration, Persistence and Pace has been scored at Class 3 for substantial deficits across the reasonably long examination, correlating to his mental state and fluctuations in anxiety over the history."

1. The Appeal Panel agrees that the best fit is a moderate impairment at Class 3 for concentration, persistence and pace. This is higher than the rating by the Medical Assessor.
2. In respect of Employability, Table 11.6 of the Guides provides as follows:

No deficit, or minor deficit attributable to the normal variation in the general population. Able to work full time. Duties and performance are consistent with the injured worker's education and training.

The person is able to cope with the normal demands of the job.

Mild impairment. Able to work full time but in a different environment from that of the pre-injury job. The duties require comparable skill and intellect as those of the pre-injury job. Can work in the same position, but no more than 20 hours per week (eg no longer happy to work with specific persons, or work in a specific location due to travel required).

Moderate impairment: cannot work at all in same position. Can perform less than 20 hours per week in a different position, which requires less skill or is qualitatively different (eg less stressful).

Severe impairment: cannot work more than one or two days at a time, less than 20 hours per fortnight. Pace is reduced, attendance is erratic.

1. The Appeal Panel adopts the findings on re-examination by Medical Assessor Takyar as follows:

"Given the significant concentration deficits, anxiety symptoms and depressive symptoms, it was determined that Mr Osman would realistically struggle with being able to work on the open and competitive labour markets - that is, there is no realistic work capacity based on the history obtained, correlating it to the mental state examination features through the examination of an hour and 39 minutes, and with the file documentation."

1. The Appeal Panel adopts the recommendations of Medical Assessor on re-examination as follows:

"Employability is scored at Class 5, consistent with Dr Allen's view and that of the treating practitioners, higher than the Class 3 score of the MA. This is based on the detail of its own history correlated with the material in the brief and the mental state features and symptoms on re-examination."

1. The Appeal Panel agrees that the findings are consistent with the rating of Class 5 or total impairment for employability. This is higher than the rating by the Medical Assessor.
2. What this means is that the classes assessed by the Appeal Panel are in accordance with the classes assessed by the Medical Assessor for the contested PIRS category of self-care and personal hygiene. For the contested category of travel, there is a higher rating at Class 2. For the contested category of concentration, persistence and pace there is a higher rating at Class 3 or moderate impairment. For the contested category of employability, there is a higher rating at Class 5.
3. This means the calculations become as follows:

1. For these reasons, the Appeal Panel has determined that the MAC issued on

12 September 2025 should be revoked and a new MAC issued. The new certificate is attached to this statement of reasons.

This Certificate is issued pursuant to s 328(5) of the Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998.

The Appeal Pane revokes the Medical Assessment Certificate of Medical Assessor Christopher Rikard-Bell and issues this new Medical Assessment Certificate as to the matters set out in the table below:

page and paragraph number in NSW workers compensation guidelines

Chapter, page, paragraph, figure and table numbers in AMA5 Guides

WPI deductions pursuant to S323 for pre-existing injury, condition or abnormality (expressed as a fraction)

Sub-total/s % WPI (after any deductions in column 6)

Total % WPI (the Combined Table values of all sub-totals)

The above assessment is made in accordance with the SIRA NSW Guidelines for the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment for injuries received after 1 January 2002.