• Diana Achten, Tessa Westendorp, Hester Herweijer, and Michiel F Reneman.
• Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Center for Rehabilitation, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
• Pain Pract. 2020 Jun 1; 20 (5): 491-500.

BackgroundAdolescents with chronic musculoskeletal pain face different impairments in daily life. After an inpatient pain rehabilitation program, adolescents function better on several domains. The aim of this study was to explore the long-term work participation of adults who followed inpatient pain rehabilitation during adolescence because of chronic musculoskeletal pain and to identify potential facilitators and barriers regarding work in later life.MethodsA mixed-methods study with standardized questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. The questionnaires measured pain, disability, work status, and the quality and quantity of the work. The interviews contained questions about work participation. Potential participants were all patients who had participated in an inpatient pain rehabilitation program 15 to 20 years previously. Analyses were performed by thematic analysis. Using the Sherbrooke model as guidance, themes were classified into 4 systems: healthcare, workplace, legislative/insurance, and personal.ResultsFourteen patients consented to participate (12 females). Seventy-one percent of them had paid work. The mean self-reported quality of the work delivered was 9.6 (standard deviation = 0.5). Eighteen facilitators and 12 barriers regarding work participation later on in life were mentioned. The inpatient pain rehabilitation program was the most frequently mentioned facilitator (n = 5), while the personal system and coping-related factors were the most frequently mentioned barriers (n = 5).ConclusionsTen out of 14 participants are currently working, most of them despite experiencing pain. Several factors based on the 4 systems of the Sherbrooke model contribute as facilitators or barriers regarding current work participation. Pain rehabilitation is mostly regarded as a facilitator for work participation later on in life.© 2020 World Institute of Pain.

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