‘Falling out of culture’: the effects of repetition strain injury on sufferers’ roles and identity

Abstract

Re|:)etition Strain Injury (RSI), a non-specific and controversial constellation of work-related hand, arm and neck symptoms, became endemic in Australian industry in the early 1980s. Fifty two women who worked in a telecommunications organisation and chicken processing factory and had been diagnosed as having Repetition Strain Injury were interviewed about their perceptions and experiences of the illness. Their accounts ofthe effects of the pain and limitation on their work, home lives and identity reveal pervasive and ramifying consequences, including unemployment, a reduced capacity to do housework, disruption to family relationships and plans for the future, financial hardship, emotional and mental distress, loss of sleep, and an erosion of self-esteem and involvement in leisure activities. Dominant themes in the interviews are the ambiguity of the illness and uncertainty about the prognosis, the disbelief of others which marginalises sufferers and contributes to a sense of loss of 'self and integrity, and the emotive political climate in which the women are forced to renegotiate roles and adapt to the limitations which RSI places on their lives.

Social and economic consequences of workplace injury: A population‐based study of workers in British Columbia, Canada

“…In addition to financial stress, workplace injury may have negative effects on family relationships [Feuerstein et al, 1985;Ewan et al, 1991;Dawson, 1994;Morse et al, 1998;Keogh et al, 2000;Ballantyne, 2001;Adams et al, 2002;Strunin and Boden, 2004]. For example, data from the US National Longitudinal Survey indicated that workers who experienced a workplace injury were 25% more likely to divorce than the non-injured population [Dembe, 1999].…”

Upper limb work-related musculoskeletal disorders among newspaper employees: Cross-sectional survey results

“…Studies focusing on women show that some workers tend to have to search for recognition of their symptoms [Reid et al, 1990. RSI may severely disrupt day-today work and home life as Ewan et al [1991] document in their study of women.…”

The postmodern heart: war veterans’ experiences of invasive cardiac technology

“…Ewan et al. (1991) wrote about powerlessness in a situation in which patients struggled to convince physicians that their pain was genuine, and described the specialist's approach to patients as ‘overpowering’.…”