Understanding the impact of Non-Inflammatory musculoskeletal conditions on work and work transitions: a QUalitativE investigation (UNIQUE)

Musculoskeletal conditions affect around 1 in 3 of the Scottish population. These conditions have a substantial impact on people's ability to work, and can put individuals at risk of leaving the workforce altogether. Despite this, few programmes exist to support people with musculoskeletal conditions to stay in work. We identified an effective online programme developed in Canada called Making it Work ™ which supports individuals working with inflammatory arthritis to stay in work for as long as they wish to do so. Our ultimate goal is to adapt this programme via the Making it Work™ - Scotland study so that it is relevant for people in the UK and so that it is relevant for people working with both inflammatory and non-inflammatory musculoskeletal conditions.

The goal of the UNIQUE study was provide key perspectives on this future work by examining any specific impacts experienced by people with non-inflammatory conditions.

This study aimed to understand the key social, psychological and functional impacts of non-inflammatory musculoskeletal conditions and chronic musculoskeletal pain on work. This information helped to inform ongoing adaptations being made to the Making it Work™ programme via the Making it Work™ - Scotland study so that it can improve the working lives of individuals in the UK with both inflammatory and non-inflammatory musculoskeletal conditions.

We did this by gathering individual accounts on how people's pain impacts their working life (including transitions such as decisions to change jobs or modify their existing work patterns), and gained their perspective on which impacts, if addressed, would have the greatest effect on work participation.

​​​​​The research consisted of a series of virtual interviews to gather the perspectives of people with a variety of non-inflammatory musculoskeletal conditions such as fibromyalgia and osteoarthritis. We advertised the study publicly and via clinicans, and people who were interested in taking part completed a short screening questionnaire to allow us to assess their eligibility to take part in an interview.

We interviewed 15 people for the study, and asked them questions about their condition, working life, and the impact of their pain on their ability to work. Each interview lasted around 45 minutes, and was typed up by a transcription service and data was then analysed to assess themes emerging across all of our conversations.

The Making it Work™ programme has been successful in Canada in supporting people with inflammatory arthritis to stay in work for as long as they wish to. This not only has obvious economic benefits for society and the individual, but participation in working life is also known to have many personal and social benefits. Findings from this study have helped us get a clearer picture of the challenges of working life in the UK for people with non-inflammatory musculoskeletal conditions. Ultimately, this information has helped us to effectively adapt the Making it Work™ programme for people with a broader range of musculoskeletal conditions.

This study was funded by the Wellcome Trust Institutional Strategic Support Fund .

You can view the study Participant Information Sheet^*, which contains further details about this research and what participation involved, here .

_{* (Version 2, 22^nd July 2021)}

Tel: +44 (0)1224 437863
Email: UNIQUE@abdn.ac.uk