How Much Physiotherapy, Chiropractic, and Osteopathy Care Do Compensated Australian Workers with Low Back Pain Receive? A Retrospective Cohort Study.

Objectives: To identify the prevalence and frequency of physiotherapy, chiropractic, and/or osteopathy care in Australians with workers' compensation claims for low back pain (LBP).

Methods: We included workers with accepted workers' compensation claims longer than 2 weeks from the Australian states of Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, and Western Australia. Workers were grouped by whether they attended physiotherapy, chiropractic, and/or osteopathy in the first 2 years of their claim.

Patterns of physiotherapy attendance in compensated Australian workers with low back pain: a retrospective cohort study.

Workers with low back pain (LBP) frequently seek care from physiotherapists. We sought to identify patterns of physiotherapy attendance and factors associated with these patterns in Australian workers with accepted compensation claims for LBP. We included workers with accepted workers' compensation claims for LBP from 4 Australian states between 2011 and 2015.

Defining work-focused cognitive behavioural therapy (W-CBT) and whether it is effective at facilitating return to work for people experiencing mental health conditions: A systematic review and narrative synthesis.

It is unclear what constitutes Work Focused Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (W-CBT). This review sought to define W-CBT and ascertain its effectiveness at facilitating return to work (RTW) for people experiencing mental health conditions. A systematic review and narrative synthesis were undertaken.

Transition between social protection systems for workers with long term health problems: A controlled retrospective cohort study.

Many nations have established workers' compensation systems as a feature of their social protection system. These systems typically provide time-limited entitlements such as wage replacement benefits and funding for medical treatment. Entitlements may end for workers with long-term health conditions before they have returned to employment.

Career intentions and satisfaction influences in early career Australian physiotherapists.

Background: The current workforce does not meet the demand for physiotherapy services in Australia. Future demand is predicted to expand driven primarily by the aging population. Previous research describes significant attrition and short career intentions of junior physiotherapists.

Development and initial application of a harmonised multi-jurisdiction work injury compensation database.

Objectives: Workers' compensation schemes provide funding for wage replacement and healthcare for injured and ill workers. In Australia, workers' compensation schemes operate independently in different jurisdictions, making comparisons of health service use challenging. We sought to develop and deploy a new database of health service and income support data, harmonising data from multiple Australian workers' compensation jurisdictions.

Impact of work and coping factors on mental health: Australian truck drivers' perspective.

Introduction: Truck driving is one of the most common male occupations worldwide. Drivers endure long working hours, isolation, separation from family, compromised sleep, and face rigid regulatory requirements. Studies have documented the work factors contributing to poor health outcomes, however these have not been explored in the Australian context.

Factors Associated with Fatigued Driving among Australian Truck Drivers: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Background: Fatigued driving is one of the leading factors contributing to road crashes in the trucking industry. The nature of trucking, prolonged working time, and irregular sleep patterns can negatively impact drivers' health and wellbeing. However, there is limited research in Australia investigating the impact of demographic, occupational, or lifestyle factors on fatigue among truck drivers.

Do personal and behavioural characteristics of physiotherapy students predict performance during training and course completion?

Background: Specific personal and behavioural characteristics are required for competent health care practice. Research investigating relationships between these characteristics and course performance of health professions students is expanding, yet little research is conducted within the undergraduate physiotherapy student population. This study aimed to explore the relationships between personality, approaches to learning, and coping strategies of undergraduate physiotherapy students and their performance in academic, clinical and in-course assessment tasks and course progression.

Exploring the Health and Economic Burden Among Truck Drivers in Australia: A Health Economic Modelling Study.

Background The transport and logistics industry contributes to a significant proportion of the Australian economy. However, few studies have explored the economic and clinical burden attributed to poor truck driver health. We therefore estimated the work-related mortality burden among truck drivers over a 10-year period.

The physical and mental health of Australian truck drivers: a national cross-sectional study.

Background: The negative health consequences of truck driving are well documented. However, despite the distinct occupational challenges between long- and short-haul driving, limited research has been conducted on how the health profile of these drivers differ. The aims of this study were to characterise the physical and mental health of Australian truck drivers overall, and to identify any differences in factors influencing the health profile of long-haul compared to short-haul drivers.

The effect of weight loss interventions in truck drivers: Systematic review.

Introduction: Truck driving is the most common vocation among males internationally with a high proportion overweight/obese due to a combination of work and lifestyle factors leading to health complications. With limited studies in this area, this systematic review aimed to identify and describe interventions addressing weight reduction in truck drivers.

Methods: Five electronic databases were searched, January 2000 to June 2020 (CINAHL, Cochrane Library, Embase, Ovid MEDLINE, Scopus).

An investigation of the predictive validity of selection tools on performance in physiotherapy training in Australia.

Objectives: Despite a large body of research on selection in medical education, very little is conducted in other health professions. This study investigated the predictive validity of multiple selection tools on academic and clinical performance outcomes of undergraduate physiotherapy students.

Design: A retrospective observational study.

Patterns of opioid dispensing and associated wage replacement duration in workers with accepted claims for low back pain: a retrospective cohort study.

This study aimed to identify patterns of opioid dispensing in Australian workers with low back pain (LBP) and determine the association of dispensing patterns with wage replacement duration. Australian workers' compensation claimants with LBP and at least 1 day of wage replacement were included. We used group-based trajectory modelling to identify opioid dispensing patterns over a two-and-a-half-year period from reported LBP onset and quantile regression to compare wage replacement duration between each dispensing pattern group.

Timing of Health Service Use Among Truck Drivers After a Work-Related Injury or Illness.

Purposes Timely delivery of treatment and rehabilitation is generally acknowledged to support injury recovery. This study aimed to describe the timing of health service use by injured truck drivers with work-related injury and to explore the association between demographic and injury factors and the duration of health service use. Methods Retrospective cohort study of injured truck drivers with accepted workers' compensation claims in the state of Victoria, Australia.

The impact of long-term workers' compensation benefit cessation on welfare and health service use: protocol for a longitudinal controlled data linkage study.

Background: In 2012, the Australian state of New South Wales passed legislation that reformed its workers' compensation system. Section 39 introduced a five-year limit on income replacement, with the first affected group having their benefits cease in December 2017. There is limited evidence on how this will affect their healthcare service use and where they will go for financial support.

Prevalence, Predictors and Wage Replacement Duration Associated with Diagnostic Imaging in Australian Workers with Accepted Claims for Low Back Pain: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

Objectives To determine in Australian workers with an accepted workers' compensation claim for low back pain (LBP) (1) the prevalence of diagnostic imaging of the spine and factors associated with its use, and (2) the association between spinal diagnostic imaging events and wage replacement duration. Methods Workers with accepted workers' compensation claims for LBP longer than 2 weeks were grouped by whether workers' compensation funded no, single, or multiple diagnostic spinal imaging in the 2 years since reported LBP onset. Ordinal logistic regression was used to define the demographic, occupational and social factors associated with each group.

Quantifying Lumbar Movement Patterns of Allied Health Professionals in an Australian Health Care Facility.

Health professionals responsible for return to work plans have little data about allied health movement to guide recommendations following lower back injury. This study aimed to quantify the lumbar movement patterns of allied health professionals within a health care facility throughout a normal workday. An observational case study was undertaken at a public health care facility with 122 allied health professionals.

Progressive resistance exercise for improving pain and disability in chronic neck pain: A case series.

Objectives: Chronic neck pain is known to be associated with neck muscle weakness. However, many strengthening programs do not target multi-directional weakness in a functional position. Specialised assessment and treatment technology that is able to strengthen the neck muscles in an upright position may be used to achieve this.

The impact of income support systems on healthcare quality and functional capacity in workers with low back pain: a realist review.

Low back pain (LBP) is a leading cause of work disability. While absent from work, workers with LBP may receive income support from a system such as workers' compensation or social security. This study examines how and in what contexts income support systems impact the healthcare quality for people with work disability and LBP and their functional capacity.

Comparison of Compensated Low Back Pain Claims Experience in Australia with Limb Fracture and Non-Specific Limb Condition Claims: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

Objectives To describe the incidence, duration, and patterns of working time loss claims in compensated Australian workers with low back pain (LBP), and compare this with limb fracture (LF) and non-specific limb condition (NSLC) claims. Methods The National Dataset for Compensation-based Statistics was used for this study. Accepted workers' compensation time loss claims for LBP, LF or NSLC occurring between July 2010 and June 2015 were included.

Assessment of a new tool to improve case manager identification of delayed return to work in the first two weeks of a workers' compensation claim.

Objective: To determine whether the Plan of Action for a Case (PACE) tool improved identification of workers at risk of delayed return to work.

Design: Prospective cohort of workers with accepted workers' compensation claims in the state of New South Wales, Australia.

Interventions: The 41-item PACE tool was completed by the case manager within the first two weeks of a claim.

Individual recovery expectations and prognosis of outcomes in non-specific low back pain: prognostic factor review.

Background: Low back pain is costly and disabling. Prognostic factor evidence can help healthcare providers and patients understand likely prognosis, inform the development of prediction models to identify subgroups, and may inform new treatment strategies. Recent studies have suggested that people who have poor expectations for recovery experience more back pain disability, but study results have differed.