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Study Design.

Prospective cohort study.

Objective.

To determine if a job-specific pre-employment functional assessment (PEFA) predicts musculoskeletal injury risk in healthy mineworkers.

Summary of Background Data.

Traditional methods of pre-employment screening, including radiography and medical screenings, are not valid predictors of occupational musculoskeletal injury risk. Short-form job-specific functional capacity evaluations are increasing in popularity, despite limited evidence of their ability to predict injury risk in healthy workers.

Methods.

Participants were recruited from an Australian coal mine between 2002 and 2009 as part of the hiring process. At baseline, participants were screened with the JobFit System PEFA, and classified as PEFA 1 if they met job demands and PEFA> 1, if not. Males who completed the PEFA and were employed were included. Injury data from company records were coded for …