Clinical tools to facilitate workplace accommodation after treatment for an upper extremity disorder

Assist Technol. 2001;13(2):94-105. doi: 10.1080/10400435.2001.10132040.

Abstract

Failure to implement work site accommodations for work-related upper extremity disorders (WRUEDs) may be a factor contributing to delayed functional recovery and relapse. The present study describes the use of the 38-item Job Requirements and Physical Demands (JRPD) scale, a self-report measure of ergonomic exposure, and other case management tools to improve accommodation efforts for 101 workers (75 women, 26 men) returning to work after lost time related to a WRUED. Items were categorized into five subscales based on item content: administrative, computer-related, workstation design, environmental, and equipment. Administrative risk factors were elevated among office clerks, whereas postal clerks and letter carriers reported more workstation design risk factors, and letter carriers and electrical/mechanical workers cited more equipment-related risk factors (p < 0.05). All occupational categories rated computer-related risk factors highest. The Integrated Case Management (ICM) approach, which relies on the JRPD scale to guide recommendations, was used with a subgroup of these workers (n = 53), resulting in 1.4 times more workplace accommodations per worker than with a non-ICM approach. Clinical use of the self-reported exposure measure within the overall workplace accommodation process may have been a factor contributing to more frequent accommodation in the ICM group. This study of a subgroup of workers' compensation cases highlights the need for additional investigation of tools to integrate ergonomic approaches within the workplace accommodation process.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Arm Injuries / physiopathology
  • Arm Injuries / therapy*
  • Case Management
  • Cumulative Trauma Disorders / etiology
  • Cumulative Trauma Disorders / physiopathology
  • Cumulative Trauma Disorders / therapy*
  • Ergonomics*
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Musculoskeletal Diseases / etiology
  • Musculoskeletal Diseases / physiopathology
  • Musculoskeletal Diseases / therapy*
  • Occupational Diseases / physiopathology
  • Occupational Diseases / therapy*
  • Workplace*