Return-to-employment for working-aged adults after burn injury: A mixed methods scoping review.

BACKGROUND: This scoping review aimed to identify the barriers, facilitators and benefits of returning to work following burn injury, outcome measures used, management strategies, and models of care. OBJECTIVE: To provide a comprehensive overview about working-aged adults returning to their preinjury employment after burn injury. METHODS: We followed a pre-determined scoping review protocol to search MEDLINE, CINAHL, Embase, PsycINFO, PubMed, Scopus, CCRCT and CDSR databases between 2000 to December 2023. Papers reporting primary data from previously employed adults with cutaneous burn injuries were included. RESULTS: In all, 90 articles met the review criteria. Return-to-work was both an outcome goal and process of recovery from burn injury. Physical and psychological impairments were identified barriers. Job accommodations and modifications were important for supporting the transition from hospital to workplace. Employment status and quality of life sub-scales were used to measure return-to-work. CONCLUSIONS: Consistent definitions of work and measurements of return-to-employment after burn injury are priorities for future research. Longitudinal studies are more likely to capture the complexity of the return-to-employment process, its impact on work participation and changes in employment over time. The social context of work may assist or hinder return-to-work more than physical environmental constraints. Equitable vocational support systems would help address disparities in vocational rehabilitation services available after burn injury.

Understanding return-to-employment experiences after burns: Qualitative scoping review findings.

INTRODUCTION: Participation in work and employment is a milestone of adulthood. People returning to work after burn injury may have physical, psychological, social, and environmental barriers to overcome in order to resume their pre-injury employment. The aim of this paper is to evaluate qualitative findings regarding return-to-employment after burn injury. METHODS: A qualitative synthesis was conducted based on the qualitative findings of an earlier mixed methods review. A pre-determined scoping review protocol was used in the earlier review to search MEDLINE, CINAHL, Embase, PsycINFO, PubMed, Scopus, CCRCT, and CDSR databases between 2000 and Aug 2021. Any papers presenting qualitative data from previously employed adults with cutaneous burn injuries were included. FINDINGS: A total of 20 papers with qualitative data on return-to-employment after burn injury were found. Only six included studies focused on return-to-employment outcomes and the remaining studies reporting on quality of life and life experiences after burn injury. Common themes included impairments that develop and change over time; occupational identity and meaning; temporal aspects of burn recovery; burn rehabilitation services and interventions; attitudes, knowledge and support of service providers; workplace environments supporting work re-engagement after burn injury; usefulness of work accommodations; family and social supports, individuals attributes that influence re-engaging in employment; and accepting and rebuilding. CONCLUSION: Resumption of work after burn injury is regarded as a key marker of recovery for working-aged adults by burn survivors and burn care professionals. Support at transition points during the burn recovery process and peer-led programmes were important. However, limited information currently exists regarding clinical practices, service gaps, and understanding of return-to-employment outcomes after burn injury.

Return to employment for working-aged adults after burn injury: a scoping review protocol.

INTRODUCTION: Cutaneous burns can have a catastrophic effect on people's lives and may restrict opportunities for employment due to physical impairment and psychosocial deficits. Failure or delay in return to work can result in loss of income and support for the family unit. It can also negatively affect life role and identity and present difficulties with future opportunities. Current literature indicates multiple discrete influences on return to work as a result of burn injury but an understanding of how working-aged adults resume employment after burn injury is lacking. This scoping review will provide a comprehensive overview of the current literature by mapping and consolidating knowledge in this area of burn recovery and thus provide an informative basis for developing return-to-work programmes for survivors of burn injury. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: This scoping review protocol will follow the Arksey and O'Malley's (2005) methodological framework. A comprehensive search strategy has been developed with subject expert librarians. These databases were used: OvidSP: Medline, Embase, PsycINFO, PubMed and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials and EBSCOhost: CINAHL and Scopus. Reference lists of selected full text will be hand searched for additional literature. To enhance consistency and rigour, all reviewers will undertake a calibration exercise before paired reviewers independently screen all records using Rayyan. Full-text articles meeting the study inclusion criteria will be retrieved and examined. Extracted data will be analysed using the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethics approval is generally not required for scoping reviews. Findings of this scoping review will be reported in a peer-reviewed journal and presented at conferences.