TY - JOUR
T1 - People With Spinal Cord Injury/Disease in the Labor Market
T2 - A Comparative Outlook
AU - Escorpizo, Reuben
AU - Osterthun, Rutger
AU - Hiekkala, Sinikka
AU - Kim, Onyoo
AU - Avellanet, Mercè
AU - Berna, Lorena
AU - Arsh, Aatik
AU - InSCI
AU - Middleton, James W.
AU - Uddin, Taslim
AU - Chan, Elaine
AU - Grisales, Maria Paz
AU - Corrales, Angela Cristina Yánez
AU - Perrouin-Verbe, Brigitte
AU - Weidner, Norbert
AU - Rapidi, Christina Anastasia
AU - Chhabra, Harvinder Singh
AU - Setiono, Steven
AU - Yousefzadeh-Chabok, Shahrokh
AU - Baricich, Alessio
AU - Otom, Ali
AU - Hasnan, Nazirah
AU - Hajjioui, Abderrazak
AU - Hla, Khin Myo
AU - Singal, Balraj
AU - Strøm, Vegard
AU - Popa, Daiana
AU - Joseph, Conran
AU - Sunnerhagen, Katharina Stibrant
AU - Sabariego, Carla
AU - Kovindha, Apichana
AU - Erhan, Belgin
AU - Sadowsky, Cristina
AU - Leiulfsrud, Annelie Schedin
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2025 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine
PY - 2026/4
Y1 - 2026/4
N2 - Objectives: To describe the employment of people with spinal cord injury/disease (SCI/D) and identify employment-associated factors among participating countries in the International Spinal Cord Injury 2024. Design: Cross-sectional, multinational, observational cohort study. Setting: Community setting with participants from 31 countries representing all 6 World Health Organization regions. Participants: A total of 11,170 working age people (N=11,170) with SCI/D were analyzed. Interventions: Not applicable. Main Outcome Measures: International Spinal Cord Injury (InSCI) Community Survey. Results: The majority were men (72.4%), most persons had paraplegia (65.6%), incomplete (57.2%), and traumatic as cause of injury (77.5%). The median age was 45.5 years, the median time since injury was 11 years, and the median total years of education was 12 years. A third of the respondents were engaged in paid work (33.1%). Participants from lower middle-income countries had 59% lower odds (OR=0.413; 95% CI, 0.363-0.469; P<.001) of employment compared with high-income countries. Modifiable factors that positively influence employment included education and receiving vocational rehabilitation. Conclusions: A major finding of this study is the difference in employment rates and employment factors for people with an SCI/D in high-income countries versus low income countries. Although employment can powerfully facilitate wellbeing in this population, it is heavily influenced by broader socioeconomic factors that vary across countries. Efforts can be targeted toward addressing education and vocational rehabilitation to improve employment of people post-SCI/D.
AB - Objectives: To describe the employment of people with spinal cord injury/disease (SCI/D) and identify employment-associated factors among participating countries in the International Spinal Cord Injury 2024. Design: Cross-sectional, multinational, observational cohort study. Setting: Community setting with participants from 31 countries representing all 6 World Health Organization regions. Participants: A total of 11,170 working age people (N=11,170) with SCI/D were analyzed. Interventions: Not applicable. Main Outcome Measures: International Spinal Cord Injury (InSCI) Community Survey. Results: The majority were men (72.4%), most persons had paraplegia (65.6%), incomplete (57.2%), and traumatic as cause of injury (77.5%). The median age was 45.5 years, the median time since injury was 11 years, and the median total years of education was 12 years. A third of the respondents were engaged in paid work (33.1%). Participants from lower middle-income countries had 59% lower odds (OR=0.413; 95% CI, 0.363-0.469; P<.001) of employment compared with high-income countries. Modifiable factors that positively influence employment included education and receiving vocational rehabilitation. Conclusions: A major finding of this study is the difference in employment rates and employment factors for people with an SCI/D in high-income countries versus low income countries. Although employment can powerfully facilitate wellbeing in this population, it is heavily influenced by broader socioeconomic factors that vary across countries. Efforts can be targeted toward addressing education and vocational rehabilitation to improve employment of people post-SCI/D.
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105023999087
U2 - 10.1016/j.apmr.2025.11.005
DO - 10.1016/j.apmr.2025.11.005
M3 - Article
C2 - 41241292
AN - SCOPUS:105023999087
SN - 0003-9993
VL - 107
SP - 587
EP - 594
JO - Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
JF - Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
IS - 4
ER -