A serious injury can mean jobs need to be adapted, skills need to be refreshed or new skills need to be learnt. Many people with a serious injury don’t currently get specialised help getting back to work. Long term sickness-absence after an injury can lead to financial problems, loss of self-esteem and confidence, relationship problems, social isolation and emotional difficulties.

Professor Kate Radford at the University of Nottingham is leading a research programme to develop, evaluate and assess the implementation of a theory-based early intervention to enhance return-to-work and improve the quality of life and wellbeing in people with at least moderate trauma.

The research programme will run from 2019-2024 and is funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR).

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The RETAKE programme aims to determine whether a new therapy “Early Stroke Specific Vocational Rehabilitation” (ESSVR) in addition to usual NHS rehabilitation is more effective and cost effective at returning stroke survivors to work and keep them there at 12 months post-randomisation than usual NHS rehabilitation alone.  ESSVR is delivered by occupational therapists and includes matching survivors’ abilities to job demands and negotiating return to work with an existing employer.

The four-year study is a multicentre randomised controlled trial lead by Professor Kate Radford at the University of Nottingham and is funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR).

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