358 / Journal of Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation and Prevention 2011;31:358-364 www.jcrpjournal.com Copyright © 2011 Wolters Kluwer Health | Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. Unauthorized reproduction of this article is prohibited. ■ PURPOSE: To better understand social influences on work recovery, we studied the association between work status, work adjustment (WA), job demands, and social support (employer, family, physician) for return to work in cardiac rehabilitation (CR) patients. ■ METHODS: Multiple cross-sectional design with questionnaire data col- lected from patients (72% working; age = 57  10.7 years) either at program entry (n = 126) or 6 to 12 months (n = 88) of CR exposure. Work adjustment was assessed by utilizing a visual analogue scale (WA VAS). Perceived social support from the employer, family, and physician was assessed using 5-point Likert scales. Physical demands (PD) and psychological job demands, and job control, were assessed utilizing the Job Content Questionnaire. ■ RESULTS: Working patients expressed higher levels of employer support (4.2  1.2 vs 3.6  1.4, P  .04) and lower PD (7.9  3.4 vs 10.5  4.0, P  .001) than those not working. Employer support was posi- tively correlated with WA VAS (R = 0.34, P  .002). High PD were negatively correlated with WA VAS (R =-0.31, P  .002). Weaker relationships were observed between family support and physician support and the dependent measures. ■ CONCLUSIONS: Findings suggest that CR patients view their employer as a significant source of social support for return to work. Efforts to foster support from employers are an important consideration for the functional rehabilitation of these workers. The nature of the support- ive relationship requires further investigation to determine the salient aspects that impact on work adjustment. Work Adjustment in Cardiovascular Disease JOB CHARACTERISTICS AND SOCIAL SUPPORT Fergal T. O’Hagan, PhD; Scott G. Thomas, PhD Author Affiliations: Department of Psychology, Trent University, Peterborough (Dr O’Hagan) and Faculty of Physical Education and Health, University of Toronto, Toronto (Dr Thomas), Ontario, Canada. The authors declare no conflicts of interest. Correspondence: Fergal T. O’Hagan, PhD, Department of Psychology, Trent University, Peterborough, ON K9J 7B8, Canada (fergalohagan@trentu.ca). DOI: 10.1097/HCR.0b013e318228a2ff K E Y W O R D S cardiac illness cardiac rehabilitation job characteristics return to work social support Clinical encounters following the onset of cardiac ill- ness focus on lifestyle modification and risk factor reduction to avert and/or minimize further problems. For many patients, disability and return-to-work (RTW) issues are also present. Fifty percent of myocardial infarctions occur in individuals younger than 65 years and two-thirds survive a cardiac event. 1 Twenty percent to 40% of workers do not return to work 2,3 and, among those who do, studies have reported a decrease in BRIEF REPORT work involvement. 4,5 Work may be a desired and/or necessary activity for the patient and has the potential to be psychologically 6 and economically 7 beneficial. To effectively intervene, the cardiac rehabilitation (CR) professional needs to understand the factors influenc- ing RTW and work adjustment following disabling car- diovascular illness. Social support, job characteristics, and their interaction may have particular relevance and have received minimal research attention.