Improving Vocational Rehabilitation Services for Injured Workers in Washington State

Details

• Personal Author:
  Schulman BA ; Sears JM ; Wickizer TM
• Description:
  Workers who incur permanent impairments or have ongoing medical restrictions due to injuries or illnesses sustained at work may require support from vocational rehabilitation programs in order to return to work. Vocational rehabilitation programs implemented within workers' compensation settings are costly, and effective service delivery has proven challenging. The Vocational Improvement Project, a 5.5-year pilot program beginning in 2008, introduced major changes to the Washington State workers' compensation-based vocational rehabilitation program. In the evaluation of this pilot program, set within a large complex system characterized by competing stakeholder interests, we assessed effects on system efficiency and employment outcomes for injured workers. While descriptive in nature, this evaluation provided evidence that several of the intended outcomes were attained, including: (1) fewer repeat referrals, (2) fewer delays, (3) increased choice for workers, and (4) establishment of statewide partnerships to improve worker outcomes. There remains substantial room for further improvement. Retraining plan completion rates remain under 60% and only half of workers earned any wages within two years of completing their retraining plan. Ongoing communication with stakeholders was critical to the successful conduct and policy impact of this evaluation, which culminated in a 3-year extension of the pilot program through June 2016. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Delivery Of Health Care Occupational Health Occupational Injuries Safety
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Vocational Rehabilitation Employment Outcomes Impact Evaluation Medical Care Occupational Accidents Occupational Injuries Policy Policy Impact Process Evaluation Quality Improvement Return To Work Stakeholders Workers' Compensation Workers Compensation

  More +
• ISSN:
  0149-7189
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Ohio ; OSHA Region 10 ; OSHA Region 5 ; Washington
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  26-35
• Volume:
  44
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20057167
• Citation:
  Eval Program Plann 2014 Jun; 44:26-35
• Contact Point Address:
  Jeanne M. Sears, Department of Health Services, University of Washington, Box 354809, Seattle, WA 98195, United States
• Email:
  jeannes@u.washington.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2014
• Performing Organization:
  University of Washington
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Evaluation and Program Planning
• End Date:
  20250630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:c3b5ec2a1f27b428b1efd235b6a57f2b1ab0b12ed7a2a0e995ffbd014a029cbd6435b1c85c610eedeb0a8b77396d385653c37951d1ff23ebf2871880bf15f76d
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/214597/cdc_214597_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 332.36 KB ]