Gitte Frydenlund

What is the title of your thesis?

The Stay-At-Work (SAW) Trial: Developing and Evaluating a Co-designed, Person-Centred, Cross-Sectoral Vocational Rehabilitation Intervention for Individuals with Chronic Low Back Pain.

At which department and/or research unit did you complete your PhD?

Department of Regional Health Research – Spine Research Unit, Spine Centre of Southern Denmark, Lillebaelt Hospital.

Who was your principal supervisor?

Søren O'Neill, Clinical Associate Professor, Spine Research Unit, Spine Centre of Southern Denmark, Lillebaelt Hospital.

What question did you aim to answer with your thesis?

I investigated the feasibility of a cross-sectoral, work-oriented rehabilitation programme for people with chronic low back pain. The programme was developed in collaboration with patients, healthcare professionals and other stakeholders.

What did you find?

People with chronic low back pain often experience a lack of coordination between healthcare and employment services. This thesis demonstrates that closer and more structured cross-sectoral collaboration can be implemented in practice and is experienced as a coherent care pathway by most participants.

How did you do it?

I combined a literature review, interviews and focus groups with members of the public, workshops involving members of the public, healthcare professionals and other relevant stakeholders, and a feasibility study of the developed programme conducted in collaboration with the Spine Centre of Southern Denmark and the municipalities of Kolding, Middelfart and Aabenraa.

How can your research be applied (in the clinic, society, etc.)?

The research provides insights into how the healthcare and employment systems can work together to develop a work-oriented rehabilitation programme that focuses on coordinated care and supporting a return to work for people who are on sick leave or at risk of taking sick leave due to chronic low back pain.