Kirrilly Thompson, Md Abdul Ahad, Gianluca Di Censo, Sonia Hines, Nicholas Rich, Alice McEntee, Jacqueline Bowden
{"title":"Present but Overlooked: A Scoping Review of Instruments and Approaches for Measuring Presenteeism Related to Alcohol, Tobacco, and Drug Use.","authors":"Kirrilly Thompson, Md Abdul Ahad, Gianluca Di Censo, Sonia Hines, Nicholas Rich, Alice McEntee, Jacqueline Bowden","doi":"10.1007/s10926-025-10317-z","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10926-025-10317-z","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Purpose: </strong>The use of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs (ATOD) can impact workplace productivity. Whilst presenteeism has a greater impact on productivity than absenteeism, it is less visible and often receives less attention. Measuring ATOD-related presenteeism is important for identifying the impact of AOD use and evaluating workplace AOD interventions. However, there is no standard approach to determining ATOD-related presenteeism. The aim of this scoping review was therefore to identify and describe different approaches and instruments used to determine ATOD-related presenteeism.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A scoping review of publications up to and including December 2024 was undertaken across three major databases: Scopus, Ovid Medline, and the Latin-American and Caribbean System on Health Sciences (LILACS). The population was workers for whom ATOD-related presenteeism was reported, the concept was presenteeism, and the context was the workplace.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The review included 27 original studies. The most common approach (n = 22 studies) was indirect, which involved examining differences in presenteeism between workers who did and did not use ATOD. Direct approaches-asking participants explicitly about their ATOD-related presenteeism-were less common (n = 5 studies) and focussed exclusively on alcohol. Across both approaches, there was substantial variation in instruments (n = 4 direct, n = 10 presenteeism, n = 18 ATOD), use of validated instruments, recall periods, and ways of reporting findings, which may compromise the interpretation and synthesis of studies.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>This scoping review provides an evidence base for informing approach and instrument selection. It establishes the need for further research on the impact of different approaches and instruments on findings. This information is essential to encourage more rigorous and standardised approaches to determining ATOD-related presenteeism and evaluating workplace interventions.</p>","PeriodicalId":48035,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-07-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144761801","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Anja Beno, Ingibjörg H Jonsdottir, Agneta Lindegård
{"title":"Facilitating Return to Work through a Broader Perspective on Vocational Rehabilitation: Insights from Patients with Stress-Related Disorders.","authors":"Anja Beno, Ingibjörg H Jonsdottir, Agneta Lindegård","doi":"10.1007/s10926-025-10311-5","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10926-025-10311-5","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Exhaustion disorder (ED) is a prevalent cause of sick leave in Sweden, and support from employers appears to facilitate return to work (RTW). The aim of this study was to explore and highlight what patients diagnosed with ED thought would have been beneficial for their RTW, on the individual level, on the workplace level and at the organisational level.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Twenty patients were invited to participate in an interview conducted seven years after they sought care. The semi-structured interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed using inductive content analysis.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The analysis revealed an overarching theme \"A need for a holistic view of the RTW process\" and three main categories emerged: \"The importance of a well-prepared organisation\", \"What characterises a good leader?\" and \"Meeting the needs of each employee\". Important findings were that adjustments are warranted on an organisational level. Leadership qualities such as having a supportive approach and authority to make changes were highlighted. On an individual level, influence on their work situation and tailored adjustments was essential. For most patients change of work situation, such as change of workplace, work tasks and reduced working hours were necessary.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>To facilitate RTW for patients with ED, it is essential to have a holistic approach that recognises necessary organisational changes, management support and individually tailored adjustments.</p>","PeriodicalId":48035,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-07-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144754896","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Anniina Anttila, Mikko Nuutinen, Riikka-Leena Leskelä, Mark van Gils, Anu Pekki, Riitta Sauni
{"title":"Cluster Analysis Reveals Subgroups with Different Risk Profiles and Sickness Absence Patterns in an Occupational Health Cohort.","authors":"Anniina Anttila, Mikko Nuutinen, Riikka-Leena Leskelä, Mark van Gils, Anu Pekki, Riitta Sauni","doi":"10.1007/s10926-025-10319-x","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10926-025-10319-x","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Purpose: </strong>Using unsupervised and supervised machine learning methods, we aimed to identify clinically relevant groups of employees with similar characteristics and analyze the association of long and short sickness absence periods with these groups.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>The participants were 12,099 employees of various occupations in Finnish companies. The data comprised 104 variables from medical records including data on sickness absences and a questionnaire used between 2011 and 2019 in health examinations. The latent dimensions for the employees were defined by principal component analysis to reduce the number of variables. Clusters were calculated using the K-means algorithm from datapoints expressed by the resulting five principal components. Logistic regression analyses were used to assess the associations of the clusters with long (> 30 days) and repetitive short (1-10 days) sickness absence (SA) episodes.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Employees in cluster one indicated positive managerial performance and workplace atmosphere, and employees had the least of both short and long SA. Cluster two indicated deficiencies related to managerial performance and workplace atmosphere. Cluster three had deficiencies mainly related to mood and depression and cluster four had cardiovascular diseases. Employees in cluster five reported many symptoms, especially dizziness and sensory symptoms, and had the highest occurrence of repetitive short SA. Cluster six indicated deficiencies related to work ability and had the highest occurrence of a long SA episode during follow-up.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Unsupervised and supervised machine learning methods identified six clinically coherent employee clusters, providing information on typical combinations of characteristics and risk profiles of sickness absence.</p>","PeriodicalId":48035,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-07-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144745533","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Yana van der Meulen Rodgers, Lisa Schur, Flora M Hammond, Renee Edwards, Jennifer Cohen, Douglas Kruse
{"title":"Disability, Job Satisfaction, and Workplace Accommodations: Evidence from the Healthcare Industry.","authors":"Yana van der Meulen Rodgers, Lisa Schur, Flora M Hammond, Renee Edwards, Jennifer Cohen, Douglas Kruse","doi":"10.1007/s10926-025-10316-0","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10926-025-10316-0","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Purpose: </strong>This paper examines the extent to which job satisfaction, requests for accommodations, and the likelihood of a request being granted vary by disability status. We further analyze whether being granted workplace accommodations moderates the relationship between work satisfaction and disability.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We use a novel survey of healthcare workers centered on disability status, perceptions of work experiences, and the provision of accommodations. The data are used in a descriptive analysis and multiple regressions to examine the moderating effect of accommodations on the relationship between disability and indicators related to job satisfaction.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Results show that people with disabilities have more negative perceptions of their work experiences than people without disabilities. Although people with disabilities are more likely to request accommodations than people without disabilities, they are equally likely to have their requests wholly or partly granted. Regression results indicate that the negative relationships between disability status and most measures of work experience are largely eliminated when accounting for the disposition of accommodation requests. The main exception is turnover intentions, in which the adverse relationship with having a disability does not change even when an accommodation is granted. Partly granting accommodations is helpful only for some metrics of job experience.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Our paper shows that fully granting accommodations can go a long way to closing the disability gap in job satisfaction between people with and without disabilities.</p>","PeriodicalId":48035,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-07-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144733998","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Alexandra Lecours, Mélissa Laliberté, Andrée-Anne Drolet, Lily Bellehumeur-Béchamp, Roxanne Bédard-Mercier, Marie-Josée Drolet, Samuel Turcotte, Camille Gauthier-Boudreault, Claude Vincent, Marie-Michèle Lord, Jocelyne Kiss, Isabelle Feillou
{"title":"Description of Managers' Competencies in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion: A Scoping Review.","authors":"Alexandra Lecours, Mélissa Laliberté, Andrée-Anne Drolet, Lily Bellehumeur-Béchamp, Roxanne Bédard-Mercier, Marie-Josée Drolet, Samuel Turcotte, Camille Gauthier-Boudreault, Claude Vincent, Marie-Michèle Lord, Jocelyne Kiss, Isabelle Feillou","doi":"10.1007/s10926-025-10315-1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10926-025-10315-1","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Purpose: </strong>Organizations are increasingly integrating a diverse workforce, bringing both opportunities and challenges. To harness the benefits of diversity while addressing its complexities, the adoption of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) principles is essential. These principles are particularly important in ensuring optimal accommodation for people returning to work after a period of disability, to take account of their multifaceted realities. Managers are pivotal in implementing and overseeing these initiatives, yet their specific roles and the required competencies remain underexplored. This study aimed to provide a comprehensive overview of the competencies managers need to effectively uphold DEI principles.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We conducted a scoping review to collect and analyze information from 21 manuscripts, following a systematic five-step process.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The analysis identified seven core competencies and 28 sub-competencies that managers must exhibit to promote DEI in organizations. The seven competencies include the following: (1) communicating effectively with individuals; (2) managing DEI-related conflicts with diligence; (3) identifying and improving personal challenges related to DEI; (4) demonstrating transparency toward individuals; (5) acting as a role model to promote DEI at all levels; (6) facilitating the full potential of individuals; and (7) creating a team dynamic that fosters a sense of belonging for all individuals.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>This study underscores the critical role managers play in fostering inclusive environments, not only by promoting diversity but also by implementing fair workplace accommodations that facilitate the return to work of employees following a period of disability. This framework provides a foundation for future research on managerial practices in DEI.</p>","PeriodicalId":48035,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2025-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144692050","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Deborah S Crown, Emily J Dinelli, Angelika Kudla, Pamela Capraro, Jasin Wong, Robert Trierweiler, Manasi Sheth, Allen W Heinemann
{"title":"Job Accommodations for People with Physical Disabilities: Findings of a United States National Survey.","authors":"Deborah S Crown, Emily J Dinelli, Angelika Kudla, Pamela Capraro, Jasin Wong, Robert Trierweiler, Manasi Sheth, Allen W Heinemann","doi":"10.1007/s10926-025-10314-2","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10926-025-10314-2","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Purpose: </strong>Identify the job accommodations associated with increased job retention and satisfaction for people with physical disabilities.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A national survey of 1265 people with physical disabilities in the United States, who worked for an employer after their disability onset. The sample was 58% males, average age of 44 years, 74% white, and worked an average of 36 h weekly. We assessed frequency, type, and use of job accommodations and used multivariate Poisson regression to evaluate the relationship between job accommodations, job tenure, and satisfaction.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The top job accommodations were modified work schedules, modified policies/rules, job sharing, allowing sitting/standing changes, and unpaid leave. The job accommodations needed but not received were limiting lifting, pushing, pulling; co-worker assistance; limiting twisting, bending; using modified/new equipment; and telework. Males reported higher frequency of accommodation use than females, while females reported not needing accommodations more often. Among respondents who used an accommodation, 82% rated it as moderately or very helpful. Most respondents (79%) reported that they were satisfied or very satisfied with their jobs. Poisson regression models revealed an association between using a job accommodation and job tenure for 4 years or longer for all job accommodation categories, with an increased likelihood of job tenure beyond 4 years by 10-70%. Four of 12 job accommodation categories were associated with job satisfaction.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Use of employer- and self-provided job accommodations is associated with longer job tenure and increased job satisfaction. Each person, job, and environmental factor provides opportunities to tailor accommodations.</p>","PeriodicalId":48035,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2025-07-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144660723","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Sonja Senthanar, Bahar Ahmadi, Gillian Creese, Suhail Marino, Christopher B McLeod, Mieke Koehoorn
{"title":"\"He was Threatened and Told to Cooperate\": Immigrant Worker Experiences with the Workers' Compensation System in the Canadian Context.","authors":"Sonja Senthanar, Bahar Ahmadi, Gillian Creese, Suhail Marino, Christopher B McLeod, Mieke Koehoorn","doi":"10.1007/s10926-025-10307-1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10926-025-10307-1","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Purpose: </strong>To understand immigrant workers' experiences when navigating the workers' compensation system for access to benefits following a work injury or illness.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Interviews were conducted with 17 injured immigrant workers recruited in British Columbia through partnerships with settlement organizations, social media and professional networks. A situational analysis approach was used to analyze interview data and to identify contextual reasons for immigrant workers' experience with the workers' compensation system.</p><p><strong>Findings: </strong>The findings describe a tension between how the workers' compensation system is intended to work and how injured immigrant workers experienced the system. Workers described challenges with accessing and communicating with their case managers for timely access to benefits, work accommodation that did not align with their needs and disrupted their rehabilitation, and complicated claim trajectories stemming from perceptions of procedural unfairness. Immigrant workers described how these experiences were perpetuated by their different contexts including language barriers, unfamiliarity with the workers' compensation system, and their identity as immigrant workers.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>This study identifies contextual factors for the experiences of immigrant workers, within the Canadian context, for consideration by workers' compensation system in the management of injury and illness to reduce inequities where they may exist.</p>","PeriodicalId":48035,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2025-07-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144585304","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
E de Groot, A M Hermans, M A C de Jongh, R E Geuze, I M van Dongen, S Hommes, R D Vromans, E Krahmer, T Houwen, K M E Janssens, M C W Joosen
{"title":"What Works (or Doesn't) in Return to Work after Physical Injury? A Qualitative Study on the Perspectives of Trauma Patients and Health Care Professionals on Barriers and Facilitators in Return to Work.","authors":"E de Groot, A M Hermans, M A C de Jongh, R E Geuze, I M van Dongen, S Hommes, R D Vromans, E Krahmer, T Houwen, K M E Janssens, M C W Joosen","doi":"10.1007/s10926-025-10309-z","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10926-025-10309-z","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Purpose: </strong>Return to work (RTW) after physical injury may be challenging. This study aims to gain insight into barriers and facilitators in RTW, using a multi-stakeholder perspective from trauma patients with diverse injuries and health care professionals (HCPs).</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Three focus groups (n = 13) and four interviews were conducted with patients who sustained an extremity injury, spinal injury, or traumatic brain injury. Four focus groups (n = 19) were conducted with HCPs (e.g., occupational physicians, trauma surgeons). Data were transcribed verbatim and thematically analyzed for patients and HCPs separately.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Both patients and HCPs emphasized that RTW can be influenced by the extent to which core work tasks are affected by the injury. Barriers in RTW related to lack of RTW follow-up care, limited consultation time, and lack of support in the work environment. Shared facilitators were found in work not affecting the injury, and when adequate support is provided by HCPs and the work environment. While patients and HCPs shared similar ideas, perspectives diverged on RTW follow-up care, provided by HCPs in hospital. HCPs in hospital perceive physical recovery as their core task instead of RTW follow-up care, which is perceived by patients to detract attention to life after injury.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>According to patients and HCPs, regardless of the injury, the combination of injury type and job type influences RTW. Across injuries, receiving RTW follow-up care from HCPs in hospital was often missed, while perceived to facilitate RTW. Tailored RTW information could be useful to patients in resuming life after injury.</p>","PeriodicalId":48035,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2025-07-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144568003","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Gitte Frydenlund, Søren O'Neill, Ole Steen Mortensen, Jens Søndergaaard, Anders Hansen
{"title":"Mapping Vocational Rehabilitation Interventions for People with Chronic Low Back Pain: A Scoping Review.","authors":"Gitte Frydenlund, Søren O'Neill, Ole Steen Mortensen, Jens Søndergaaard, Anders Hansen","doi":"10.1007/s10926-025-10308-0","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10926-025-10308-0","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Purpose: </strong>Low back pain (LBP) is the leading cause of years lived with disability worldwide. Clinical guidelines recommend multidisciplinary rehabilitation for managing chronic LBP. This scoping review maps vocational rehabilitation (VR) interventions delivered within the healthcare sector for individuals with chronic LBP. It explores (1) which professional groups are involved and how they collaborate, (2) the setting, (3) the duration, intensity, and components of interventions, and (4) how work status is assessed.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A systematic search across six databases (MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, AMED, OT Seeker, and Scopus) was conducted in September 2023 and updated in October 2024, following PRISMA-ScR guidelines. Studies were included if they involved working age individuals with chronic LBP receiving VR initiated within the healthcare sector. Articles published before 2013, from outside Europe, or with > 50% of participants on sick leave > 12 months were excluded.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Of 7032 records, 26 articles representing 21 studies from seven European countries were included. Interventions varied in duration (1-12 weeks or until return-to-work (RTW) or a new plan was established), intensity (a few hours to 30 h/week), complexity, and follow-up periods (5 weeks to 5 years). Interdisciplinary collaboration was most common (six studies), although descriptions were limited. Interventions ranged from simple to complex, with up to seven components. Nineteen different methods were used to assess work status.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Substantial heterogeneity in intervention design and RTW outcome measures limits comparability and evidence synthesis. Clearer definitions of collaboration and standardized RTW reporting are needed to inform future development of VR in healthcare contexts.</p>","PeriodicalId":48035,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2025-07-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144545507","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Karin Vierø, Lisbeth Lund Pedersen, Jan Hartvigsen, Jette Primdahl
{"title":"The Experience of Return to Work Among People with Persistent Symptoms Following a Concussion: An Interview Study.","authors":"Karin Vierø, Lisbeth Lund Pedersen, Jan Hartvigsen, Jette Primdahl","doi":"10.1007/s10926-025-10305-3","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10926-025-10305-3","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Purpose: </strong>This study aimed to explore the experiences of Danish adults experiencing persistent symptoms following a concussion with a focus on their return to work (RTW) process.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We employed a phenomenological-hermeneutic approach, using semi-structured interviews with seven persons with persistent symptoms following a concussion from two Danish municipalities. Data were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The analysis derived four main themes: (1) The importance of understanding and consideration from others. The participant's quality of life and RTW outcomes were influenced by the level of understanding and consideration they received from others. (2) Balancing needs and limitations. The participants struggled to balance their desire to work with their limited ability, which resulted in feelings of pressure and guilt towards their families. (3) Experiencing random support. The participants experienced random support from stakeholders and lack of guidance from the healthcare system. (4) A sense of loneliness, due to their inability to tolerate being around others.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Recognition in daily life seem to play a key role in the RTW process for individuals with persistent symptoms following a concussion. They struggle to balance their limitations to match their desire to both work and family life. The support they received was often random and they felt lonely. The findings reflect the participant's desire for structured and recognition-based rehabilitation and support to enhance their daily lives and facilitate the RTW process.</p>","PeriodicalId":48035,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2025-06-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144530435","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}