OLAWIS cohort, return to work and recovery status at 18-month follow-up, by persistent pain status
| All respondents (n=1131) | No pain (n=254) | Mild pain, functional impairment unlikely (n=479) | Severe pain, functional impairment likely (n=398) | P value | |
| Current employment status, n (%) | <0.001 | ||||
| Working with at injury employer | 695 (61.5) | 165 (65.0) | 312 (65.1) | 218 (54.8) | |
| Working with different employer | 177 (15.6) | 48 (18.9) | 80 (16.7) | 49 (12.3) | |
| Not currently working | 259 (22.9) | 41 (16.1) | 87 (18.2) | 131 (32.9) | |
| Sample group, n (%) | <0.001 | ||||
| Benefit duration 1 day-3 months | 358 (31.7) | 119 (46.9) | 164 (34.2) | 75 (18.8) | |
| Benefit duration 3–12 months | 373 (33.0) | 95 (37.4) | 162 (33.8) | 116 (29.1) | |
| Benefit duration 12–18 months | 400 (35.4) | 40 (15.7) | 153 (31.9) | 207 (52.0) | |
| Loss of earnings duration (days)*, mean (SD) | 71.93 (88.40) | 55.30 (64.10) | 62.45 (80.40) | 93.58 (105.13) | <0.001 |
| Loss of earnings*, $C, mean (SD) | 7885 (11,087) | 6026 (7,215) | 7223 (10,391) | 9890 (13,461) | <0.001 |
| Median | 4132 | 3206 | 3450 | 5183 | |
| Healthcare benefits*, $C, mean (SD) | 7398 (13,186) | 4064 (6,551) | 6335 (11,378) | 10 841 (17,122) | <0.001 |
| Median | 2657 | 1466 | 2144 | 5288 | |
| Current WSIB services, n (%) | 223 (19.8) | 9 (3.5) | 72 (15.1) | 142 (35.9) | <0.001 |
| Received healthcare for injury, n (%) | 1067 (94.4) | 232 (91.3) | 450 (94.1) | 385 (96.7) | 0.013 |
| Current healthcare for injury, n (%) | 356 (33.5) | 14 (6.0) | 127 (28.4) | 215 (56.1) | <0.001 |
| Seen multiple healthcare providers for injury, n (%) | 872 (81.7) | 178 (76.7) | 357 (79.3) | 337 (87.5) | 0.001 |
| Stressful healthcare experience (%) | <0.001 | ||||
| Not at all stressful | 627 (58.8) | 166 (71.6) | 278 (61.9) | 183 (47.5) | |
| Not very stressful | 163 (15.3) | 30 (12.9) | 76 (16.9) | 57 (14.8) | |
| A bit stressful | 157 (14.7) | 17 (7.3) | 65 (14.5) | 75 (19.5) | |
| Quite a bit stressful | 76 (7.1) | 10 (4.3) | 24 (5.3) | 42 (10.9) | |
| Extremely stressful | 43 (4.0) | 9 (3.9) | 6 (1.3) | 28 (7.3) | |
| Prescription opioid use (past year), n (%) | 151 (13.5) | 13 (5.1) | 60 (12.6) | 78 (20.2) | <0.001 |
| Prescription sedative use (past year) n (%) | 272 (24.2) | 34 (13.4) | 94 (19.7) | 144 (36.5) | <0.001 |
| Poor/fair physical health, n (%) | 294 (26.0) | 13 (5.1) | 76 (15.9) | 205 (51.5) | <0.001 |
| Poor/fair mental health, n (%) | 313 (27.7) | 32 (12.6) | 88 (18.4) | 193 (48.7) | <0.001 |
| Kessler Distress Scale (K6) Score >12, proportion (SD) | 169 (15.1) | 12 (4.7) | 30 (6.3) | 127 (32.2) | <0.001 |
| Trouble going to or staying asleep, n (%) | <0.001 | ||||
| All of the time | 187 (16.6) | 12 (4.7) | 58 (12.1) | 117 (29.5) | |
| Most of the time | 265 (23.5) | 31 (12.2) | 102 (21.3) | 132 (33.2) | |
| Sometimes | 324 (28.7) | 78 (30.7) | 151 (31.6) | 95 (23.9) | |
| Rarely | 182 (16.1) | 67 (26.4) | 85 (17.8) | 30 (7.6) | |
| Never | 171 (15.1) | 66 (26.0) | 82 (17.2) | 23 (5.8) | |
| Financial difficulties during work absence, n (%) | |||||
| Yes | 576 (51.2) | 79 (31.2) | 222 (46.5) | 275 (69.8) | <0.001 |
| Any cannabis use in the past year, n (%) | |||||
| Yes | 349 (30.9) | 70 (27.6) | 136 (28.4) | 143 (35.9) | <0.001 |
$C indicates that values are in Canadian dollars.
*Indicates outcome variables. Non-imputed mean and median values shown.
OLAWIS, Ontario Life After Work Injury Study; WSIB, Workplace Safety & Insurance Board.