Rehabilitation of injured workers with chronic pain: a stage of change phenomenon.

OBJECTIVE

This study was designed to explore the stages of change involved in return to work (RTW) for a group of workers who had been suffering from chronic pain.

METHOD: The participants were 67 (mean age = 42.67) injured workers who participated in a six-week RTW program. Assessments of the participants on various measures were conducted before and during the program, and at the end of the follow-up period (3 months post-program).

RESULTS

The overall RTW rate of the participants was 65.7%. Most importantly, the participants' RTW outcomes were found to be significantly predicted by their readiness for RTW (action) at the baseline. In the third week, their RTW was significantly predicted by their confidence in returning to work and their readiness for RTW (action). By the sixth week, their RTW outcomes were predicted by their readiness for RTW (pre-contemplation).

CONCLUSION

The results enable us to better understand the stage-of-change factors that might influence injured workers' resumption of a productive work role and the rehabilitation process of RTW.