Individualized Return-to-Work Intervention Within the Cancer Care Continuum

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Occupational Therapy
• Rehabilitation Medicine

Background:

• Advanced cancer treatments improve survival rates, increasing the desire for survivors to return to work.
• Many brain cancer survivors face challenges returning to work due to physical and cognitive impairments.
• Occupational therapists are skilled in addressing person and environmental factors that impede return to work.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe a novel three-phase occupational therapy intervention for brain cancer survivors.
• To evaluate the intervention's effectiveness in facilitating return to work.
• To base the intervention on the Person-Environment-Occupation-Performance (PEOP) model.

Main Methods:

• A case series design was employed in an outpatient clinic setting.
• Three adult participants with brain cancer, who had completed or were undergoing treatment, were included.
• A three-phase occupational therapy intervention focused on self-care, job demands, prework skills, and return-to-work support was administered.

Main Results:

• All three participants successfully returned to work post-intervention.
• Significant improvements were observed in participants' cognition, physical abilities, mobility, and work-related skills.
• One participant transitioned to permanent disability after 8 months of successful employment.

Conclusions:

• The three-phase occupational therapy approach, grounded in the PEOP model, effectively supports brain cancer survivors' return to work.
• The intervention addresses cognitive and physical impairments alongside environmental and occupational demands.
• Findings suggest a valuable role for occupational therapy within the cancer care continuum to enhance return-to-work outcomes.