I’m the owner of a medium-sized company that makes boxes. What’s the latest thinking about work-related injuries? Should workers be given treatment right away or more of a “wait-and-see” approach?

The high cost of work-related injuries is driving research to answer this question. There doesn’t seem to be a difference between standard medical care and early programs of intervention. In fact, many workers do just as well with words of encouragement and some simple exercises. Putting the prognosis in positive terms doesn’t hurt, either.

In the future, there may be some way to tell who needs early care and who doesn’t. Right now, these kind of prognostic factors are unknown. Researchers at the University of Saskatchewan in Canada are studying various groups of workers to look at these issues. Stay tuned!

Reference:

Mark Lemstra, MSc, and W.P. Olszynski, MD, PhD, FRCP(C). The Effectiveness of Standard Care, Early Intervention, and Occupational Management in Worker’s Compensation Claims. In Spine. February 1, 2003. Vol. 28. No. 3. Pp. 299-304.

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I’m the owner of a medium-sized company that makes boxes. What’s the latest thinking about work-related injuries? Should workers be given treatment right away or more of a “wait-and-see” approach?