Patterns and Predictors of Failed and Sustained Return-to-Work in Transport Injury Insurance Claimants.

UNLABELLED

Purpose To determine the incidence of employed people who try and fail to return-to-work (RTW) following a transport crash. To identify predictors of RTW failure.

METHODS

A historical cohort study was conducted in the state of Victoria, Australia. People insured through the state-based compulsory third party transport accident compensation scheme were included. Inclusion criteria included date of crash between 2003 and 2012 (inclusive), age 15-70 years at the time of crash, sustained a non-catastrophic injury and received at least 1 day of income replacement. A matrix was created from an administrative payments dataset that mapped their RTW pattern for each day up to 3 years' post-crash. A gap of 7 days of no payment followed by resumption of a payment was considered a RTW failure and was flagged. These event flags were then entered into a regression analysis to determine the odds of having a failed RTW attempt.

RESULTS

17% of individuals had a RTW fail, with males having 20% lower odds of experiencing RTW failure. Those who were younger, had minor injuries (sprains, strains, contusions, abrasions, non-limb fractures), or were from more advantaged socio-economic group, were less likely to experience a RTW failure. Most likely to experience a RTW failure were individuals with whiplash, dislocations or particularly those admitted to hospital.

CONCLUSIONS

Understanding the causes and predictors of failed RTW can help insurers, employers and health systems identify at-risk individuals. This can enable earlier and more targeted support and more effective employment outcomes.