Page 66 - Occupational Health & Safety, July/August 2019

HAND PROTECTION
ance (Marinković, 2015). Mann states the shortest recovery times are simple, superficial lacerations, and the longest recovery times are gunshot wounds. Doctors use a Modified Hand Injury Severity Score (MHISS) to measure functionality in a controlled way. Only 60 percent of those with major hand injuries defined by MHISS return to work (Marinković, 2015).
Reduced hand function can play a role in everyday tasks. A good outcome is defined as by regaining 75 percent of normal hand function after six months of treatment and physiotherapy. Poor outcomes lag at less than 50 percent of functionality. Accord- ing to the study, after eight months, only 60 percent of patients had returned to their original occupation (Abdelmoughit, 2017).
Beyond injury severity, a few factors can influence the dura- tion of reduced hand function. Thermal extremes can wreak havoc on “healed” injuries, disrupting the notion that things are back to normal. Despite adherence to treatment regimens, those with hand injuries often note stiffness and pain, especially when exposed to cold temperatures, for up to four years (Che, 2016).
Ignoring rehabilitation plans or cutting them short can cause a backslide in functional improvements. Leading trends in phys- iotherapy include purposeful activities that replicate job functions and common daily tasks to help patients improve grip and pinch strength over classic stretching. Mann sees shorter splinting times, more aggressive attention to motion and swelling, and involving fewer joints in hand surgeries as evolutions during the past decade
in hand surgery. These advances in physiotherapy and improve- ments in hand surgery cannot be effectual if patients ghost therapy.
What’s the Tipping Point Between
Full Recoveries vs. Lifetime Issues?
Safety and medical professionals alike hope for a speedy return to work for those injured. The median duration of hand incident- related lost work was three days, but severe incidents can delay re- turn to work for more than a year (Kaya, 2011). For those severely affected, a career change can cause a tumult of consequences in their personal life, finances, and professional growth opportunities. Workers’ compensation benefits are both a blessing and an obstacle for injured employees on the path back to work (Shi, 2014).
Return to work (RTW) following a work-related injury is a complex process not solely determined by physical readiness. The effect of psychological issues can delay recovery (Gustafsson, 2012). Those who have a higher perceived disability tend to delay their return to work (Ramel, 2013). Injured employees may even suffer from post-traumatic stress triggered by the machinery or en- vironment where the incident first occurred. The communication and interface style between work and the injured person can color an employee’s perception of acceptance for scaled-down alterna- tive work. Post-injury depression can creep into employees’ lives if their mobility continues to be affected, spurring a trickle down of reduced performance efficiency when their normal range of op-
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