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Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation
Published in: Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation 4/2019

Open Access 01-12-2019 | Review

Sustainable Return to Work: A Systematic Review Focusing on Personal and Social Factors

Authors: Abasiama Etuknwa, Kevin Daniels, Constanze Eib

Published in: Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation | Issue 4/2019

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Abstract

Purpose A systematic review was conducted to evaluate the impact of important personal and social factors on sustainable return to work (RTW) after ill-health due musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) and common mental disorders (CMDs) and to compare the effects of these personal and social factors across both conditions. Sustainable RTW is defined as a stable full-time or part-time RTW to either original or modified job for a period of at least 3 months without relapse or sickness absence re-occurrence. Methods A literature search was conducted in 13 databases and 79 studies were selected for the review, of which the methodological design was graded as very high, high and low quality. Results The most consistent evidence for achieving sustainable RTW for both MSDs and CMDs was from support from line managers or supervisors and co-workers, positive attitude, self-efficacy, young age and higher education levels. Job crafting, economic status, length of absence and job contract/security showed promising results, but too few studies exist to draw definite conclusions. Results regarding gender were inconsistent. Conclusions This review demonstrates that a variety of personal and social factors have positive and negative influences on sustainable RTW. We suggest that the social environment and how it interrelates with personal factors like attitudes and self-efficacy should be studied in more detail in the future as the inter-relationship between these factors appears to impact positively on sustainable RTW outcomes. Areas for future research include more high-quality studies on job crafting, economic status/income, length of absence, job contract/security and gender.
Appendix
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Metadata
Title
Sustainable Return to Work: A Systematic Review Focusing on Personal and Social Factors
Authors
Abasiama Etuknwa
Kevin Daniels
Constanze Eib
Publication date
01-12-2019
Publisher
Springer US
Published in
Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation / Issue 4/2019
Print ISSN: 1053-0487
Electronic ISSN: 1573-3688
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10926-019-09832-7

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