Abstract
Design
Retrospective cohort study.
Objectives
To investigate paid work status and return to work (RTW) pathways after spinal cord injury (SCI).
Setting
SARAH Network of Rehabilitation Hospitals.
Methods
Participants were adults with traumatic SCI, aged between 18 and 60 years at the time of the injury, admitted between 2000 and 2017. In the first stage, socio-demographic, injury-related, and functional status data were collected from medical records. In the second stage, data on paid work, means of mobility, driving ability, return to study, ability to work, and satisfaction with the work status were collected through an online survey conducted between January and March 2020.
Results
A total of 154 participants were included in the sample. Of these, 90% were working at the time of SCI and 23% were engaged in paid work at the time of the study. Three RTW pathways were identified among those who were working at the time of the injury and: did not return to work (78%); returned to a different occupation (12%) and returned to the same occupation (9%). Number of post-injury complications, returning to study, good work ability, and satisfaction with the work status were predictors of paid work. The model’s adjusted coefficient was 56.5% (p = 0.001).
Conclusion
Working-age people with SCI who underwent rehabilitation in Brazil had a low rate of paid work. Fewer complications at the time of the injury, returning to study, good ability to work and greater satisfaction with the work status increased the likelihood of being engaged in paid work.
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Data availability
Anonymized data will be shared by request from any qualified investigator.
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FGO: design the work, acquisition of the data and interpretation of the results. FCMSD: design the work and interpretation of the results. RAR: Drafted and revised the paper. MCM: Drafted and revised the paper; RFS: design the work, interpretation of the results and approved the final version.
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The Research Ethics Committees of the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG), and Sarah Network of Rehabilitation Hospitals approved this study number: 08882319.1.3001.5149 and 08882319.1.0000.0022 respectively. We certify that all applicable institutional and governmental regulations concerning the ethical use of human volunteers were followed during this research.
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Oliveira, F.G., Dutra, F.C.M.S., Resende, R.A. et al. Spinal cord injury and work challenges: an analysis of paid work status and pathways of return to work in Brazil. Spinal Cord 59, 1111–1119 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41393-021-00637-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41393-021-00637-1
