Optimising return to work practices following catastrophic injury

And in another briefing paper from The National Trauma Research Institute, Optimising return to work practices following catastrophic injury, the aim was "to enhance understanding of the features of optimal return to work practices following traumatic brain and spinal cord injury and identify barriers and facilitators to their implementation."

Worldwide, mean return to work rates for people with catastrophic injury are approximately 30-40%, but in Australia this figure is unknown. Internationally, the best RTW rates reported for moderate to severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) come from the UK, Sweden and USA, whilst for spinal cord injury (SCI) they are in Switzerland and Sweden.

Interventions that have been identified to facilitate RTW for this group include program based rehabilitation, supported employment and case co-ordination. The questions that have been identified for future discussion are what barriers are there to optimising RTW outcomes in Australia and how can they be addressed.