Return-to-work coordinators' resourcefulness and the provision of suitable duties for nurses with injuries
Titel:
Return-to-work coordinators' resourcefulness and the provision of suitable duties for nurses with injuries
Auteur:
James, Carole Southgate, Erica Kable, Ashley Rivett, Darren A. Guest, Maya Bohatko-Naismith, Joanna
Verschenen in:
Work
Paginering:
Jaargang 48 (2014) nr. 4 pagina's 557-566
Jaar:
2014-06-24
Inhoud:
BACKGROUND: There is little health specific literature on returning nurses with injuries to work despite the high incidence of injuries and the workforce shortages of these professionals. OBJECTIVE: To identify enabling factors and barriers to return-to-work for nurses with injuries from the perspective of return-to-work coordinators. PARTICIPANTS: Workplace return-to-workcoordinators employed in a health or disability facility who had worked on a rehabilitation case with a nurse with injuries in the past 12 months in New South Wales (NSW), Australia. METHOD: Five focus groups were conducted with 25 return-to-work coordinators from 14 different organisations, representing different health sectors (aged, disability, public and private hospital and community health) in metropolitan and rural areas of NSW, Australia. RESULTS: This study reports findings specifically relating to the provision of suitable duties for nurses with injuries. Four key themes were identified: suitable duties; supernumerary positions; nurse specialisation and tailoring of return-to-work plans. CONCLUSIONS: This study identified that return-to-work coordinators were resourceful and innovative in their approach to the provision of suitable duties for nurses with injuries and highlighted the importance of including clinical duties in any return-to-work program and of tailoring the return-to-work to the nurses' work and personal circumstances.