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Table 2 Results of bivariate analyses of worker characteristics associated with the first health care provider sought and the compensation duration (n = 5511)

From: Workers’ characteristics associated with the type of healthcare provider first seen for occupational back pain

Variables

Association with the first healthcare provider

DC

MD

PT

P-value

n or mean

% or SD

n or mean

% or SD

n or mean

% or SD

 

Individual characteristics

Predisposing characteristics

Demographic:

 Sex; n (%)

  Male

393

62.7 %

2919

62.0 %

100

57.5 %

0.445

  Female

234

37.3 %

1791

38.0 %

74

42.5 %

 Age; mean (SD)

40

11

39

11

42

10

0.002a

Social:

 Language; n (%)

  English or French

599

96.8 %

4436

95.3 %

168

96.6 %

0.184

  Other

20

3.2 %

221

4.7 %

6

3.4 %

Workplace:

 Job tenure (years); mean (SD)

9.5

8.9

7.6

8

8.8

8.6

0.002b

 Union member; n (%)

  Yes

341

55.0 %

2381

51.3 %

93

53.8 %

0.193

  No

279

45.0 %

2261

48.7 %

80

46.2 %

 Employer doubts the accident is work-related; n (%)

  Yes

69

13.2 %

505

12.3 %

16

11.0 %

0.753

  No

455

86.8 %

3602

87.7 %

129

89.0 %

 Physical demands; n (%)

  Manual

374

60.9 %

3050

66.9 %

110

65.1 %

0.041

  Non-manual

81

13.2 %

548

12.0 %

24

14.2 %

  Mixed-manual

159

25.9 %

962

21.1 %

35

20.7 %

 Sector of economic activity; n (%)

  Agriculture, fishing/trapping, logging and forestry, mining, quarrying and oil wells

5

1.0 %

56

1.5 %

3

2.2 %

0.503

  Manufacturing

139

29.1 %

1147

29.8 %

37

27.4 %

  Construction

31

6.5 %

243

6.3 %

4

3.0 %

  Transportation and storage

35

7.3 %

280

7.3 %

7

5.2 %

  Communication and other utility

9

1.9 %

74

1.9 %

2

1.5 %

  Wholesale trade

37

7.7 %

288

7.5 %

10

7.6 %

  Retail trade

76

15.9 %

566

14.7 %

21

15.6 %

  Real estate operator or insurance agent

1

0.2 %

26

0.7 %

1

0.7 %

  Business service

18

3.8 %

163

4.2 %

8

5.9 %

  Government service

10

2.1 %

33

0.9 %

3

2.2 %

  Educational service

1

0.2 %

29

0.8 %

0

0.0 %

  Health and social service

80

16.7 %

606

15.7 %

30

22.2 %

  Accommodation, food and beverage service

19

4.0 %

205

5.3 %

4

3.0 %

  Other service

17

3.6 %

137

3.6 %

5

3.7 %

 Early return to work program; n (%)

  Yes

502

84.2 %

3783

86.5 %

144

88.3 %

0.235

  No

94

15.8 %

590

13.5 %

19

11.7 %

 Number of employees; n (%)

  20 or fewer

210

33.6 %

1359

28.9 %

50

29.1 %

0.053

  More than 20

415

66.4 %

3343

71.1 %

122

70.9 %

Enabling resources

Financial:

 Gross personal income per year ($CAN); mean (SD)

40054

17300

37173

16948

39732

17021

<0.001c

Organizational:

 Community size; n (%)

  1,500,000 +

185

29.6 %

1719

36.6 %

77

44.3 %

<0.001

  500,000–1,499,999

60

9.6 %

614

13.1 %

20

11.5 %

  100,000–499,999

207

33.1 %

1395

29.7 %

44

25.3 %

  10,000–99,999

78

12.5 %

424

9.0 %

16

9.2 %

  Less than 10,000

96

15.3 %

545

11.6 %

17

9.8 %

 Urban/rural indicator; n (%)

  Rural

105

16.8 %

657

14.0 %

20

11.5 %

0.098

  Urban

520

83.2 %

4035

86.0 %

154

88.5 %

Needs

 Previous similar injury; n (%)

  Yes

288

47.1 %

1565

34.3 %

83

48.3 %

<0.001

  No

323

52.9 %

2997

65.7 %

89

51.7 %

 Previous 100 % wage compensation claim; n (%)

  Yes

301

48.0 %

2112

44.8 %

86

49.4 %

0.179

  No

326

52.0 %

2598

55.2 %

88

50.6 %

 Restricted use of public transportation; n (%)

  Yes

6

1.2 %

38

0.9 %

0

0.0 %

0.432

  No

510

98.8 %

4165

99.1 %

142

100.0 %

 Restricted operation of a motor vehicle; n (%)

  Yes

8

1.6 %

106

2.5 %

2

1.4 %

0.306

  No

503

98.4 %

4127

97.5 %

142

98.6 %

 Any task limitations; n (%)

  Yes

402

77.5 %

3160

73.8 %

107

72.8 %

0.182

  No

117

22.5 %

1123

26.2 %

40

27.2 %

 Nature of injury; n (%)

  Least severe

581

92.7 %

4488

95.3 %

158

90.8 %

0.001

  Most severe

46

7.3 %

222

4.7 %

16

9.2 %

 Part of body; n (%)

  Upper back pain

53

8.5 %

246

9.0 %

13

7.5 %

0.494

  Low back pain

522

83.3 %

3859

81.9 %

147

84.5 %

  Multiple regions

40

6.4 %

267

5.7 %

8

4.6 %

  Back pain (unspecified upper or low)

12

1.9 %

158

3.4 %

6

3.4 %

Health behavior

  Days between the accident and the first health care consultation; mean (SD)

2.3

3.8

2

3.7

5.1

6.4

<0.001d

 Additional type of care sought within the first 4 weeks; n (%)

  Chiropractor

507

10.8 %

3

1.7 %

<0.001*

  Physician

144

23.0 %

102

58.6 %

  Physiotherapist

25

4.0 %

1213

25.8 %

  No additional type of care

476

75.9 %

3026

64.2 %

70

40.2 %

Compensation process

 Days between the accident and the registration of the claim; mean (SD)

8.9

9.7

7.5

8.1

9.1

8.3

<0.001e

 Days between the accident and the approval of the claim; mean (SD)

43

100

31

51

37

50

<0.001f

  1. *: Chi-squared for “no additional type of care”
  2. a: Workers who chose a physician as the first healthcare provider were significantly younger than workers choosing physiotherapists
  3. b: The workers who chose a physician as the first healthcare provider had significantly fewer years of experience compared with the workers who chose chiropractors
  4. c: The workers who chose chiropractors as the first healthcare provider had significantly higher incomes than the workers who chose physicians
  5. d: The workers who chose a physiotherapist as the first healthcare provider had a significantly higher time interval between the accident date and the first healthcare consultation compared with the workers who chose a chiropractor or physician
  6. e: The workers who chose a physician as the first healthcare provider had significantly lower time intervals between the accident date and the date of claim registration compared with the workers who chose a chiropractor or physiotherapist
  7. f: The workers who chose a chiropractor as the first healthcare provider had a significantly higher time interval between the accident date and the claim approval compared with the workers who chose a physician