Predictive validity of a customized functional capacity evaluation in patients with musculoskeletal disorders

Do patient characteristics affect the predictive validity of Functional Capacity Evaluations?

“…The predictive validity of ELA was demonstrated in workers with MSD. A positive ELA outcome (moderate to very good) was associated with a sixfold higher RTW chance after adjusting for the current pain intensity, the Work Ability Score and further patient-reported data (Bühne et al 2020 ). According to our knowledge, reliability has not yet been evaluated.…”

“…A successful return to work was considered if participants were working full- (≥ 35 h/week) or part-time (15-34 h/week) at the 3-month follow-up and did not reach or exceed a total duration of 1.5 weeks of sick leave due to MSD following discharge from the WMR program (Streibelt et al 2009 ; Bühne et al 2020 ). In both cases, the information was taken from the written post-survey questionnaire.…”

“…The ELA method (German: Einschätzung körperlicher Leistungsfähigkeiten bei arbeitsbezogenen Aktivitäten) was used at discharge to estimate the ability to cope with the physical demands of work. ELA is a customized short-form FCE containing 24 work-related activity tests such as kneeling, torso rotation and lifting (Bühne et al 2020 ). Prior to the test, an interview was carried out between a health care professional and the patient to identify work demands that might exceed the current physical capacity.…”

“…These extrapolations to the entire working day were then summarized in an estimation of the patient’s ability to cope with physical work demands using a 5-point scale (very poor via moderate to very good). The characteristics of the procedure are described in detail elsewhere (Bühne et al 2020 ). The assessments were guided by 26 physical therapists, eight occupational therapists and ten sports scientists with an average professional experience of 11.3 year (0–27 years).…”

“…In fact, little is known about criteria that are associated with lower resp. increased risk of assessing the ability to perform work-related activities or the ability to meet physical demands of work incorrectly (Bühne et al 2020 ). Such findings would be of great benefit for both FCE developers and health care professionals.…”