Does early referral to an on site rehabilitation programme predict an early return to work?

A study was undertaken of the length of time between injury and referral for occupational rehabilitation and return to work among 443 employees involved in an on-site rehabilitation program. Analysis of the data revealed that the earlier injured workers were referred to occupational rehabilitation, the more likely they were to return to work. The relationship between time of injury, referral and time of return to work were not explained by the differences between early and late referrals in age, sex, birthplace, severity of injury or place of work