Spine Care Survey

With over 80% of Americans likely to experience significant back pain at some point in their lives, and over half of all working Americans proven to have experienced back pain during the course of one year, it is evident that our communities are facing a silent epidemic. The impact of neck pain is only slightly less (30-60% lifetime incidence) and, individually, just as devastating. Many Americans have come to merely accept their reality, struggling with the negative impacts that chronic or recurrent back and/or neck pain has on their employment and quality of life. 

 

In the Southern Tier alone, an estimated 20.8% of the population was treated for backpain during a study in 2013, for a total cost of $111 million in spine care. Employers are especially impacted by back and neck pain as spine care costs (direct costs) are often their number one health care expense coupled with the indirect costs (lost productivity, disability) that are estimated at 3-5x the direct health care costs. Back and neck pain is not caused by any one thing. It is an interplay of internal (lifestyle choices and awareness) and external (work/home/leisure environments) factors. The ‘silent epidemic’ that triggers so much needless human suffering, lost productivity and expense can be most efficiently addressed by modifying these internal and external factors. It takes a community approach: to come together with consistent education on lifestyle modifications and in-the-moment decision making at the individual level coupled with a community emphasis on healthy work environment and eliminating barriers to quality care.

 

The following survey will take you through a brief set of questions regarding back and neck pain in general and its impact on the workplace. Some questions may ask you for personal information regarding your experiences; you may skip these questions if you do not feel comfortable responding. Please note all responses are anonymous.