Evaluating effectiveness of an integrated return-to-work and vocational rehabilitation program on work disability duration in the construction sector

Area of Science:

• Occupational health
• Rehabilitation medicine
• Workplace safety

Background:

• Work-related injuries in the construction sector often lead to prolonged work disability.
• Integrated return-to-work (RTW) and vocational rehabilitation (VR) programs aim to mitigate disability duration.
• The Work Reintegration (WR) program in Ontario, Canada, was implemented to address these challenges.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of the integrated WR program on reducing work disability duration.
• To assess the impact of the WR program on construction workers with lost-time claims in Ontario.
• To determine if the WR program influenced cumulative disability days paid post-injury.

Main Methods:

• Utilized workers' compensation data from Ontario (2009-2015) for construction worker claims.
• Employed difference-in-differences regression models to compare claims with and without WR program referrals.
• Analyzed cumulative disability days paid within two years post-injury, considering different disability distribution percentiles.

Main Results:

• The WR program introduction was associated with reduced cumulative disability days for all claims.
• Significant reductions were observed for longer-duration claims referred to RTW specialists (90th percentile: 274 days).
• Shorter-duration claims referred to VR specialists also showed notable reductions (25th percentile: 255 days; 50th percentile: 214 days).

Conclusions:

• The WR program proved effective in reducing cumulative disability days for construction worker claims.
• Program effectiveness varied across different disability percentiles and by specialist referral type.
• Integrated RTW and VR services offer substantial benefits for injured construction sector workers.