A Review of the Initial Outcomes of a Return-to-Work Programme for Police Officers following Injury or Illness

Abstract

Industrial injury and, conversely, chronic illness have well-described consequences on work performance, including the individual's ability to maintain paid employment and the necessity for medical retirement and/or benefits payments. Return to work following prolonged illness has long been valued as a goal and an outcome measure of varied models of rehabilitation, including back schools, work hardening, work conditioning and pain management programmes. Age, gender, length of sickness time, psychological factors, and type and duration of rehabilitation programme, among others, have all been presented as predictors of outcome and continue to be debated in the literature. This article describes the initial outcomes of a return-to-work programme established specifically to address the development of chronicity following injury or illness in police officers. Early findings, that is, return-to-work rate, increases in lifting capacity and grip strength, appear positive. No correlation was found between length of time since diagnosis, age or number of sessions attended. The limitations of these findings are also discussed.