The Industrial Rehabilitation Program

Advanced Care's Industrial Rehabilitation Program has two primary purposes:

● To rehabilitate clients injured on the job and to return them quickly to work

● To help Case Managers with timely resolution of Worker's Compensation cases

The program is directed by Debbie Nassau, PT, MBA, who has worked with injured workers and employers in Maryland since 1989. Debbie is an experienced clinician specializing in musculo-skeletal impairments that limit the function of the worker.

Services provided through the program include:

● Land and aquatic physical therapy

● Functional Capacity Evaluations

● Work Ability Evaluations

● Work Conditioning and Work Hardening programs

"Time is of the essence when dealing with a worker injured on the job," explains Debbie. "The sooner a client is seen after an injury, the less rehabilitation is needed and the sooner that client will be able to return to work." The patient profile of Mike Smith, a 28-year-old machinist, provides a good example.

Patient Profile

When Mike first began coming to Advanced Care, he could not even straighten up as the result of a back injury he suffered on a job in 1999. His injury kept escalating until he was forced to undergo two back surgeries in 2002 and 2004.

 

"I was in pretty bad shape," recalls Mike, who limped with his left leg and could hardly bend when he began the work hardening program at Advanced Care.  After several months of intensive therapy, Mike stopped taking pain medication and has made amazing progress.

 

He is now able to stand up straight, no longer walks with a limp, can lift up to 75 pounds, and is able to return to work. Instead of facing a total disability for life, the young husband recently passed his initial physical for the Baltimore City Police Academy.

 

"I liked it here and felt comfortable coming," explains" the Cockeysville resident who worked out diligently five days a week for several hours a day. "The staff members are good people who actually do the exercises; with you. It felt like a family here."

During the past year, the Industrial Rehabilitation program boasted a more than 75% success rate in returning clients to full or modified duty on the job.

The Industrial Rehabilitation program features a dedicated facility within the clinic equipped with specialized equipment. Clinicians develop individualized therapy regimens that emphasize a worker's ability rather than his disability. Clients are able to achieve successful outcomes through a combination of supervised land and aquatic therapies and work conditioning and work hardening programs.

 

Patient Profile

Diana Orbin, a policewoman with the Maryland Transportation Authority for 22 years, developed Carpal Tunnel Syndrome after holding a laser speed detector in her hand every day for years as she patrolled the Route 40 corridor for speeding vehicles.

 

The Harford County resident first received light physical therapy for her hand three times a week but developed a condition known as Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD) which slowed her recovery.

 

Out of work for more than a year and anxious to return, Diana recently began the work hardening program at Advanced Care to build up the strength and flexibility in her injured arm through a customized therapy program. She now looks forward to soon rejoining her fellow officers at the Transportation Authority.

Through the WorkSmart program at Advanced Care, Debbie Nassau also provides expert consulting services for employers on the job-site, including: Job Site Analysis; Pre-Work Functional Screening; Work Ability Evaluations, and Transitional Work Programs.

For further information about these programs or to schedule a tour of the Advanced Care facilities, contact Debbie Nassau at 410-663-3133 or click here to contact us.

Clients are able to achieve successful outcomes through a combination of supervised land and aquatic therapies and work conditioning and work hardening programs.

The WorkSmart Program

WorkSmart is an innovative approach to Worker Compensation rehabilitation for employers, offered through the Industrial Rehabilitation Program at Advanced Care.

The program provides expert consulting services on the job-site to help employers:

● Ensure employees have the physical capabilities to perform their job functions

● Strengthen their workforce through increased productivity, quality and attendance

● Enhance their safety record and save money on workers' compensation premiums

The WorkSmart program is directed by Debbie Nassau, PT, MBA an experienced consultant who has worked with injured workers and employers in Maryland since 1989.

Debbie has conducted extensive research studies and published in the field of Industrial Rehabilitation on how Pre-Work Functional Screenings lower an employer's injury rate, medial costs and lost workdays. She is also trained to perform Functional Capacity Evaluations (FCEs) and develops and supervises the work conditioning and work hardening programs at the Advanced Care clinic.

The WorkSmart program at Advanced Care includes the following components:

Job Site Analysis - a comprehensive analysis designed to determine the essential functions of the job through first-hand observation.

Pre-Work Functional Screening - a screening designed to match a worker's physical capabilities with the physical demands of the job in compliance with the ADA, thereby helping to reduce the number and severity of costly industrial injuries.

Transitional Work Programs - Development of safe worker progression of tasks from light duty to regular duty at the job site.

Work Ability Evaluations - Two-hour screenings to determine baseline functioning before entering a work hardening program.

During the past year, the Industrial Rehabilitation program at Advanced Care boasted a more than 75% success rate in returning clients to full or modified duty on the job, an outcome much higher than the national average for such cases.

Employer Profile: City of Baltimore

As a consultant to the City of Baltimore, Debbie has conducted job site analysis of several categories of city workers, including cafeteria workers, secretaries, and sanitation workers for the Department of Public Works.

 

After completing a Functional Capacity Evaluation in the clinic on an injured sanitation worker, Debbie accompanied him to the job site to observe performance of his job tasks. She then developed a I progression of safe worker tasks from light duty to regular duty at the job site to ensure a smooth re-entry into his former position.

 

Employer Profile: Rite-Aid Corporation

Debbie was hired by Rite-Aid Corporation to conduct a functional screening for one of the firm's large 1 distribution plants. This assignment included developing a detailed job analysis of every position at the plant to determine the essential demands of the most strenuous jobs.

 

Debbie next incorporated the most rigorous job demands (along with a brief medical history) into a functional screening examination that all prospective employees had to pass before being hired at the Rite-Aid plant.

 

Through developing and implementing this functional screening exam as a condition of employment, Rite-Aid was able to ensure that every new hire possessed the physical capability to perform any of the jobs at their distribution plant.

"I feel that your therapy group was truly an asset to our management team in reaching our common goal of helping see patients return to good health and work, when they were physically able."

Dr. Joy Howard

Office of Occupational Medicine and Safety, City of Baltimore