What is a disability, injury, or health condition?

If you’re unsure whether you have a disability, injury or health condition, this article will help you understand what these terms mean and how they might apply to your situation. 

While this guide offers a helpful starting point, best practice is to speak with your general practitioner for a professional assessment. If you discover that you have a condition that affects your ability to work, you might be eligible for employment support through Disability Employment Services (available until 31 October 2025) or Inclusive Employment Australia (starting 1 November 2025). 

What is disability?

A disability is when someone has a physical or mental condition that makes it hard to do everyday activities. A person is considered to have a disability if they have a limitation, restriction, or impairment that has lasted, or is likely to last, for at least six months.

Types of disability

Here are some examples of disabilities:

• Intellectual disabilities: Conditions like Down syndrome or other developmental disorders that affect learning and understanding.
• Physical disabilities: Conditions that affect movement, such as cerebral palsy, spinal cord injuries, or amputations.
• Sensory disabilities: Conditions that affect the senses, like blindness or deafness.
• Psychiatric disabilities: Mental health conditions like depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, or schizophrenia.
• Neurological disabilities: Conditions that affect the nervous system, such as epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, or Parkinson’s disease.
• Chronic illnesses: Long-term health conditions like diabetes, heart disease, or chronic fatigue syndrome.
• Learning disabilities: Conditions that affect the ability to learn in a typical way, such as dyslexia or ADHD.

What is an injury?

An injury is when you hurt your body or mind making it hard to work or fully take part in the workforce. This can include many different conditions, from physical disabilities like spinal cord injuries or amputations, to mental health conditions such as depression or anxiety, and long-term illnesses like diabetes.

Types of injuries

Here are some examples of what might be considered an injury:

• Physical injuries: This includes injuries to bones, muscles, ligaments, or tendons, such as fractures, sprains, strains, or spinal cord injuries.
• Mental health conditions: Conditions like depression, anxiety, PTSD, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia can impact a person’s ability to work and are considered injuries for employment purposes.
• Chronic illnesses: Diseases like diabetes, chronic fatigue syndrome, and HIV/AIDS can also be considered injuries if they affect a person’s ability to work.
• Neurological conditions: Conditions like multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, and traumatic brain injuries can also be considered injuries.
• Other health conditions: This includes a wide range of other conditions that may impact a person’s ability to work, such as autoimmune disorders, substance use disorders, and neurodevelopmental conditions like ADHD, autism, and dyslexia.

What is a health condition?

A health condition is when you have an illness or disease that affects your body or mind. This could be something like diabetes, which affects your blood sugar, or depression, which affects how you feel and think. Health conditions can be temporary or long-lasting.

Types of health conditions

Here are some examples of health conditions:

• Diabetes: Affects your blood sugar levels.
• Depression: Affects how you feel and think.
• Asthma: Affects your breathing.
• Arthritis: Affects your joints and makes them painful.
• Epilepsy: Causes seizures.
• Heart Disease: Affects how your heart works.
• Cancer: A disease where cells in the body grow out of control.
• Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Causes extreme tiredness that doesn’t go away with rest.

More information about disability, injury, or health condition

You can find out more about disabilities, injuries and health conditions on the Department of Social Services and JobAccess websites.

To speak to someone, you can call the Job Seeker Hotline on 13 62 68 or JobAccess on 1800 464 800.

If you are deaf or find it hard to hear or speak on the phone, you can connect with JobAccess through the National Relay Service (NRS) via Access Hub.

Connect to CVGT Employment

If you have any of these conditions or something similar, you might be eligible for employment support with Disability Employment Services, ending on 31 October 2025, or Inclusive Employment Australia starting on the 1 November 2025.

To register your interest to join:

If you do not have a disability, injury or health condition we have a range of other employment programs that can support you. You can explore our employment programs here.

If you would like to speak to one of our friendly staff about whether you may be eligible for our services, you can call us on 132 848 or live chat on our website cvgt.com.au