Organizational and Structural Factors in Building the Therapeutic Alliance in a Work Rehabilitation Program With...

The therapeutic alliance is central to occupational rehabilitation, particularly for immigrant workers who face unique challenges of migration and of social and occupational integration. This study explores the development and maintenance of this alliance between immigrant workers with compensated work injuries and their care providers during work rehabilitation. Using ethnography, semi-structured interviews, and focus groups, the qualitative case study involved 7 injured immigrant workers and their interdisciplinary clinical team. The study identified several factors that weakened the alliance, including administrative complexity, conflicting views on pain and disability, cultural stereotypes, and interorganizational communication issues. Many of these challenges were systemic and structural, occurring outside the clinic, complicating the rehabilitation process, and potentially prolonging the duration of disability. This paper discusses these systemic issues and their implications for the rehabilitation of immigrant workers.