What workplace-based interventions are effective in helping workers with musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) recover and return to work after a period of work absence? This is the question that a team of researchers from the Institute for Work & Health (IWH) in Toronto, Canada, and the Institute for Safety, Compensation and Recovery Research (ISCRR) in Melbourne, Australia, set out to answer through a systematic review of high quality research on the topic.
The team found strong evidence that RTW programs can effectively reduce the time away from work when workplaces offer interventions that cut across at least two of three different domains:
(1) The injured worker is provided with health services, either at work or in settings linked to work. These may include physical therapy, occupational therapy, psychological therapy, medical assessments or exercises aimed at restoring function (e.g. graded activity and work hardening).
(2) The injured worker is supported by RTW planning and coordination, which may take the form of case management, RTW plans, or improved communication between the workplace and health-care providers.
(3) The workplace addresses work modification in the form of work accommodation, ergonomics or other worksite adjustments, and supervisor training on work modification.
For more findings, please see the article in the Winter 2017 issue of IWH’s At Work: http://www.iwh.on.ca/at-work/87/effec...
