Experts' perspective on a definition for delayed return-to-work after surgery for nontraumatic upper extremity disorders: Recommendations and implications (original) (raw)

Experts' perspective on a definition for delayed return-to-work after surgery for nontraumatic upper extremity disorders: Recommendations and implications

2017, Journal of hand therapy : official journal of the American Society of Hand Therapists

Descriptive study. A delayed return to work (RTW) is often associated with poorer outcomes after a workplace injury but is ill defined. To define delayed RTW after surgery for nontraumatic upper extremity conditions. Experts were consulted to define delayed RTW and whether a universal time point can determine the transition from early to delayed RTW. Forty-two experts defined a delayed RTW as either a worker not returning to preinjury (or similar) work within the expected time frame (45%); not returning to any type of work (36%); or recovering slower than expected (12%). Two-thirds of experts believed that universal time points to delineate delayed RTW should be avoided. Multiple factors complicate a uniform definition of delayed RTW. Defining delayed RTW should be individualized with due consideration to the type of work. Time-based cutoffs for outcome measurement may not be appropriate with continuous measures more appropriate in research. Decision analysis V.