Online Perspectives of Workers Navigating Workers' Compensation Systems: A Content Analysis of the Reddit Social...

Social media platforms are increasingly used by the general public as a source of information on health-related and legal concerns, among other topics. Reddit.com, one of the top 10 most visited websites in the United States, is a popular social media platform that allows users to anonymously discuss various topics, including workers' compensation (WC). Understanding the candid concerns of workers who are navigating WC systems will allow for the development of more effective educational resources that are tailored to the needs of this population.  Methods: In January-March 2023, a cross-sectional review of anonymous public posts submitted to the r/WorkersComp section of the Reddit social media website between December 2021 and December 2022 was performed. Post content was extracted from a systematic random sample and coded into themes/sub-themes and emotional tones by two independent reviewers. A third reviewer resolved any discrepancies in coding in order to reach consensus prior to data analysis. The data were analyzed using Microsoft Excel 2019 (Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, WA, USA).

Content from 200 original posts submitted to r/WorkersComp was reviewed and analyzed. Nearly 94.0% of posts (n =187) specified a state of residence, with posters most frequently residing within the United States in California (32.0%), New York (7.0%), Pennsylvania (5.0%), and Florida (5.0%). The most common primary theme was "medical" (27.0%, n = 54), with questions and comments related to provider complaints, medical care access, referral denials, maximum medical improvement, and independent medical examinations being the most frequent within this category. The second most common primary theme was "legal" (26.5%, n = 53), with questions and comments related to lawyer retainment and settlements being the most frequent within this category. The third most common primary theme was "general" (18.5%, n = 37), with questions and comments related to the general claims process, eligibility for WC, claim denial, and communication issues with claims adjusters being the most frequent within this category. The fourth most common primary theme was "employer" (14.0%, n = 28), with questions and comments related to employer retaliation, job security, and work restrictions being most frequent within this category. Only 37.0% of posts (n = 74) expressed a clear emotional tone, with frustration (13.5%, n = 10), fear (13.5%, n = 10), and confusion (13.5%, n = 10) being the most frequent tones observed in this sample of posts.

Our findings indicate that there are workers who are navigating WC systems who use social media platforms such as Reddit to obtain information and advice on various aspects of WC, including medical issues, legal advice, and employer concerns. These findings may be used to address the information and education needs of workers who are navigating WC systems, which may help attenuate some of the frustrations surrounding the WC claims process.