Surviving at Work: Reducing Workplace and Clinical Barriers to Cancer Survivors Returning to Work

Details

• Personal Author:
  Dugan A
• Description:
  This research project investigated how clinical and workplace support influences cancer survivors' quality of life and work retention. We used an exploratory mixed methods design, collecting qualitative data from (1) focus groups to identify survivors' critical needs for support to improve practice, and (2) surveys to assess hypothesized associations between key study variables. Regarding workplace support, we found that survivors' need for flexible arrangements and reduced workloads was mostly met, while they received less support with navigating and coordinating benefits and paperwork, receiving understanding and empathy, and having sufficient time off for treatment and recovery. Further, we found that formal and informal organizational support are both associated with survivors' intent to remain in their current job, which may be explained by their perceived ability to continue meeting job demands. We also found that survivors who experienced conflict between their health and work role had poorer quality of life and more thoughts about leaving their job, and this association may be explained by survivors' constrained ability to engage in self-management behaviors needed to maintain health and reduce symptoms. Finally, we found that above and beyond cancer self-management, survivors engaged in specific self-care practices needed to support their own well-being and quality of life. Social disconnection was found to be common among survivors following the COVID-19 pandemic, and we convened a group of survivors to plan interventions to improve social connection. A social media-based virtual peer support group with a guided set of discussions and activities was perceived to be the best potential intervention for supporting employed survivors' personal well-being, social connection, and workforce engagement, and was also perceived to have the greatest well-being benefits, reach, cost-effectiveness, and feasibility. Similarly, we convened groups of survivors and clinicians to plan interventions for improving conflict between survivors' health and work role. We observed that both groups had similar perspectives on the support needs of employed survivors, as well as possible solutions for improving workplace and clinical support. Both populations identified the need for new clinical and workplace informational materials, enhanced clinical staffing and services to meet work-related needs, and improved work-related policy and practices (e.g., flextime policies, employee health programs, paid time off mandated, universal healthcare access). [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Breast Cancer Cancer Survivors Qualitative Analysis Quality Of Life Return To Work Social Media Well-being Work Arrangements Work Organization
• Series:
  Grant Final Reports
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Final Grant Report
• Place as Subject:
  Connecticut ; OSHA Region 1
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-18
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20069762
• Citation:
  Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, K01-OH-011596, 2024 Feb; :1-18
• Contact Point Address:
  Alicia Dugan, PhD, University of Connecticut School of Medicine/Dentistry, 263 Farmington Avenue, Farmington, CT 06030-5335
• Email:
  adugan@uchc.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2024
• Performing Organization:
  University of Connecticut School of Medicine/Dentistry
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20200901
• Source Full Name:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• End Date:
  20230831
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:b3e3093585e903884ad6c44dca9f8f2e394d9d389744b4a448cb971c1efd3eb70192680e4ca9cb4f20c6ac0465190d958848bad5b35f3b625110c5ed270ffe58
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/219261/cdc_219261_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 475.30 KB ]