ABSTRACT

Objective : The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of work-hardening program on Job retention in industrially injured workers in the view of self-efficiency, depression, and motivation for rehabilitation. Methods : Forty-nine injured workers who attended work-hardening program at Korea Workers’ Compensation and Welfare Service (KCOMWEL) C hospital in Gyeongsangnam-do from June 2015 to August 2016 were recruited. Work-hardening program was offered to 49 injured workers 1 session (at least 3 hours) a day, 5 times a week, for 4~8 weeks. We evaluated self-efficacy, depression, and rehabilitation motivation before and after intervention. Additionally subjects were divided into two groups depending on whether or not they had returned to their own work two months after the intervention, and differences between two groups were investigated. Results : There were statistically significant differences in self-efficiency, depression, rehabilitation motivation between before and after work-hardening program (p<.05). Two months after the intervention, there was a significant difference in self-efficacy between two groups (p<.05). Conclusion : This study showed that the work-hardening program have positive effects on self-efficacy, depression, rehabilitation motivation and suggests that self-efficacy is an important factor for returning to work.