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Patterns of health service use following work‐related injury and illness in Australian truck drivers: A latent class analysis
Author(s) -
Xia Ting,
Iles Ross,
Newnam Sharon,
Lubman Dan I.,
Collie Alex
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
american journal of industrial medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.7
H-Index - 104
eISSN - 1097-0274
pISSN - 0271-3586
DOI - 10.1002/ajim.23072
Subject(s) - latent class model , medicine , multinomial logistic regression , occupational safety and health , truck , injury prevention , poison control , environmental health , socioeconomic status , mental health , occupational injury , logistic regression , suicide prevention , human factors and ergonomics , gerontology , psychiatry , population , statistics , physics , mathematics , pathology , machine learning , computer science , thermodynamics
Objectives To identify patterns of health service use (HSU) in truck drivers with work‐related injury or illness and to identify demographic and work‐related factors associated with patterns of care. Method All accepted workers’ compensation claims from truck drivers lodged between 2004 and 2013 in Victoria were included. Episodes of HSU were categorised according to practitioner type. Latent class analysis was used to identify the distinct profiles of users with different patterns of HSU. Multinomial logistic regression was used to examine the associations between latent class and predictors. Results Four profiles of HSU were identified: (a) Low Service Users (55% of the sample) were more likely to be younger, have an injury that did not result in time off work and have conditions other than a musculoskeletal injury; (b) High Service Users (10%) tended to be those aged between 45 and 64 years, living in major cities with musculoskeletal conditions that resulted in time off work; (c) Physical Therapy Users (25%) were more likely to be aged between 45 and 64 years, live in major cities and have nontraumatic injuries that resulted in time off work; and (d) GP/Mental Health Users (10%) were more likely to be over 24 years of age, from the lowest socioeconomic band, be employed by smaller organizations and be claiming benefits for a mental health condition. Conclusions This study identified distinct categories of HSU among truck drivers following work‐related injury. The results can be used to prioritize occupational health and safety promotion to maintain a healthy truck driver work force.