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- Title
Return-to-Work Experiences in Ontario Policing: Injured But Not Broken.
- Authors
Van Eerd, D.; Le Pouésard, M.; Yanar, B.; Irvin, E.; Gignac, M. A. M.; Jetha, A.; Morose, T.; Tompa, E.
- Abstract
Purpose: Police officers and others working in police services are exposed to challenging and traumatic situations that can result in physical and/or psychological injuries requiring time off work. Safely returning to work post-injury is critical, yet little is known about current return-to-work (RTW) practices in police services. This study examines RTW practices and experiences in police services from the perspective of RTW personnel and workers with physical and/or psychological health conditions. Methods: We used a purposive sampling approach to recruit sworn and civilian members from several police services in Ontario, Canada. The recruited members had experienced RTW either as a person in a RTW support role or as a worker with a work-related injury/illness. We conducted and transcribed interviews for analysis and used qualitative research methods to identify themes in the data. Results: Five overarching themes emerged. Two pointed to the context and culture of police services and included matters related to RTW processes, injury/illness complexity, the hierarchical nature of police organizations, and a culture of stoicism and stigma. The remaining three themes pointed to the RTW processes of accommodation, communication and trust-building. They included issues related to recovery from injury/illness, meaningful accommodation, timely and clear communication, malingering and trust. Conclusions: Our findings point to potential areas for improving RTW practices in police services: greater flexibility, more clarity, stricter confidentiality and reduced stigma. More research is needed on RTW practices for managing psychological injuries to help inform policy and practice.
- Subjects
ONTARIO; OCCUPATIONAL diseases; EMPLOYEE attitudes; EMPLOYMENT of people with disabilities; WORK-related injuries; CONVALESCENCE; INTERVIEWING; SOCIAL stigma; EXPERIENCE; QUALITATIVE research; COMMUNICATION; DESCRIPTIVE statistics; RESEARCH funding; EMPLOYMENT reentry; JUDGMENT sampling; PHILOSOPHY; THEMATIC analysis; DATA analysis software; POLICE; TRUST; CORPORATE culture
- Publication
Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation, 2024, Vol 34, Issue 1, p265
- ISSN
1053-0487
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1007/s10926-023-10135-1