Stay-at-work and return-to-work (SAW/RTW) programs are supported by research from national and international organizations. The resources below highlight their impact on recovery, outcomes, and costs.
This ACOEM Position Statement notes the following:
- It is important that physicians appreciate the importance of work to human life and well-being.
- In addition to providing money for necessities, work adds meaning and purpose to life and is an important source of individual identity.
- Studies show that worklessness (lack of work) increases morbidity and mortality and results in decreases in mental, family, social, and economic well-being.
- 60-80% of lost workdays involved time off from work not required by the condition itself.
- Most of the time, it is safe for patients to be productive—the question is how and under what circumstances
Resources: Jurisic, M., Bean, M., Harbaugh, J., Cloeren, M., Hardy, S., Liu, H., Nelson, C., & Christian, J. (2017). The personal physician’s role in helping patients with medical conditions stay at work or return to work. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 59(6), e125–e131. https://doi.org/10.1097/JOM.0000000000001055
Washington State Department of Labor and Industries conducted a study of all the state’s compensable claims from 2011 to 2012 and tracked them for 2 years post-injury.
- The probability of RTW after 1 year was 32% if not returned in the previous quarter and after 2 years was 4.9%.
- At some point between 3 to 6 months is the highest rate of the setting-in of chronic disability.
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Resource: AIABC Disability Management and Return to Work Committee. (2016). RETURN TO WORK: A FOUNDATIONAL APPROACH TO RETURN TO FUNCTION.
https://dlt.ri.gov/sites/g/files/xkgbur571/files/documents/pdf/wc/Retum…;
A multidisciplinary team of 26 international researchers with published research in employer-based disability management or related fields convened for a working group on workplace disability prevention. This workgroup noted costs to the injured employee unable to SAW/RTW include:
- More severe or new health conditions such as substance abuse
- Poorer psychosocial adjustment • Increased health service utilization
- Increased poverty
- Reduced quality of life
Resource: Shaw, W. S., Main, C. J., Pransky, G., Nicholas, M. K., Anema, J. R., Linton, S. J., & Hopkinton Conference Working Group on Workplace Disability Prevention. (2016). Employer policies and practices to manage and prevent disability: Foreword to the special issue. Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation, 26(4), 394–398. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10926-016-9658-x as cited in Return-To-Work, S.-A.-W. (n.d.). The council of state governments. Csg.org. Retrieved March 10, 2025, from https://seed.csg.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/seed_report_issuu.pd