Only one in five employees on long-term sick leave return to full-time work. Barry Nelson discovered how the public and private sectors are working together to address the problem.

CONTRARY to popular belief, the vast majority of people who are off sick want to return to work.

But statistics suggest that a significant minority - often key workers - never make it back to work after an accident or serious injury.

The damaging impact this can have on businesses and individuals is why the Government is looking at new ways of dealing with the problem, targeting at-risk individuals and providing extra support.

A six-site pilot study called Routeback has been under way since April 2003.

Teesside and Tyneside are two of the six sites, along with Glasgow, Sheffield, Birmingham and west Kent.

About 700 people in the North-East are expected to join the scheme by the time it winds up.

With their agreement, many employees are referred to the scheme by their employers.

Employees can also volunteer to join by calling a hotline or completing a form at GP surgeries in the target areas.

To qualify for the Routeback scheme, people must be off work due to illness, injury or disability for between six weeks and six months.

As well as being at risk of losing their job due to absence, they must also live and work in the Teesside or Tyneside postcode areas.

To see whether extra help really makes a difference, one in four of those who sign up will form a control group, and will not receive additional support.

Everyone who takes part will be placed in one of four groups: those receiving extra health care, those receiving extra workplace care, and those receiving a combination of extra health and work care.

The fourth, randomly selected group, will be monitored but no action will be taken.

Cynthia Bartley, spokeswoman for the Routeback team in the North-East, says the scheme has been well received and is popular with employees and employers.

"Virtually all the major employers on Teesside and Tyneside are signed up to Routeback," she said.

"We would love to see more of the small employers signed up as well."

Statistics show that 80 per cent of those who take sick leave are back at work within six weeks.

But of those who are still off work sick after 26 weeks, only 20 per cent return to work.

Depression is one of the problems affecting those who fail to return to work.

"It seems that the longer you are on the sick, the more depressed you become," said Ms Bartley.

When workers agree to take part in the Routeback scheme, their details are put into a computer programme that randomly allocates them to one of the four groups.

Those in the health care only group may receive a range of extra NHS care, from MRI scans to physiotherapy and even complementary health therapy.

The emphasis for those in the workplace intervention group is to provide mediation between the employer and employee and remove barriers to getting back to work.

"This could include the provision of transport," said Ms Bartley.

"Quite often, we have someone with a bad back who can't use the bus to get to work because of pain.

"In that case, it could involve providing taxis to get to work for two months."

A mentoring service to boost morale is another option.

Anyone who has fallen into debt during their illness can also have access to a debt counsellor.

The third group of employees enjoys combined health and workplace care under the supervision of an occupational healthcare nurse.

"Basically, she can use any service she thinks fit which is on offer as part of the scheme," explained Ms Bartley.

Routeback is still recruiting and expects to continue until the end of this year. The scheme is expected to be wound up in March next year.

It is expected that a report into the Routeback project will be produced in December next year.

Depending on the results, the pilots could influence future Government policy in this area.

* Anyone interested in taking part in Routeback can call 0800 052 4038, or visit www.routeback.co.uk. Employers interested in more information can call 0191-215 6657.

Crash victim took the successful route back

WHILE the Routeback project will need to be evaluated by government, at least one beneficiary is already convinced.

Simon Brown, who runs his own Middlesbrough company, turned to Routeback after he was badly injured in a car crash.

Because of his injuries, which left him with severe back problems, Simon was unable to go back to work at Chilli Media, a creative agency involved in web design, online marketing and branding solutions.

He managed to stay in touch via his laptop but feared that his business would be damaged by his long-term absence.

Simon knew nothing about Routeback until a member of his staff rang him about a radio advertisement giving details about the additional help available for people on long-term sick leave.

Simon rang the helpline immediately, was quickly enrolled and allocated to the healthcare group.

Within a short period, he was contacted by an experienced case worker who advised on the best treatment for his back problems.

Within a fortnight of calling the helpline, he began receiving spinal rehabilitation treatment at the Cleveland Nuffield private hospital, Stockton.

For four months, Simon had three-hour spinal rehabilitation sessions at the hospital three times a week.

As his condition improved he started going back to the office, on a part-time basis at first and then full-time.

Simon was hugely impressed. "Without Routeback and the treatment I received, it would have taken far longer to be able to return to work," he said.

He urged anyone in a similar position - off work through sickness or injury - to call Routeback for help.

"I am incredibly grateful to Routeback for the help they gave me. I returned to work with renewed enthusiasm and am now expanding my business into new avenues," said Simon.