Andersen MF, Nielsen KM, Brinkmann S. Meta-synthesis of qualitative research on return to work among employees with common mental disorders. Scand J Work Environ Health. 2012;38(2):93-104. doi:10.5271/sjweh.3257Objectives The purpose of this study was to investigate which opportunities and obstacles employees with common mental disorders (CMD) experience in relation to return to work (RTW) and how they perceive the process of returning to work. In addition, the study explores what characterizes an optimal RTW intervention and points to possible ways to improve future interventions for employees with CMD.Methods A systematic literature search was conducted, and eight qualitative studies of medium or high quality published between 1995-2011 were included in this systematic review. The eight studies were synthesized using the meta-ethnographic method.Results This meta-synthesis found that employees with CMD identify a number of obstacles to and facilitators of returning to work related to their own personality, social support at the workplace, and the social and rehabilitation systems. The employees found it difficult to decide when they were ready to resume work and experienced difficulties implementing RTW solutions at the workplace. ConclusionsThis study reveals that the RTW process should be seen as a continuous and coherent one where experiences of the past and present and anticipation of the future are dynamically interrelated and affect the success or failure of RTW. The meta-synthesis also illuminates insufficient coordination between the social and rehabilitation systems and suggests how an optimal RTW intervention could be designed.
Purpose Long-term sick leave due to common mental disorders (CMD) is an increasing problem in many countries. Recent reviews indicate that return to work (RTW) interventions have limited effect on reducing sickness absence among this group of sick-listed. The aims of this study were to investigate how sick-listed persons with CMD experienced participating in an RTW intervention and how workability assessments and RTW activities influenced their RTW-process, and to examine the working mechanisms of the intervention. The gained knowledge can help improve future RTW intervention design and implementation. Methods In-depth interviews were conducted with 17 participants on sick leave due to CMD who participated in an RTW intervention. Interviews were conducted at three time points with each participant. Principles of interpretative phenomenological analyses guided the analysis. Results The workability assessment consultations and RTW activities such as psychoeducative group sessions and individual sessions with psychologist could result in both motivation and frustration depending on the extent to which the RTW professionals practiced what we have termed an individual approach to the sicklisted person. Conclusions The individual approach seems necessary for the realization of the positive potential in the RTW intervention. However, the fact that RTW professionals are both the facilitators and the controllers of the sick-listed persons' RTW process is an inherent paradox in the intervention, which can impede the necessary establishment of a high-quality relationship between the sicklisted persons and RTW professionals.
ObjectiveDepressive symptoms are associated with sickness absence, work disability and unemployment, but little is known about worklife expectancy (WLE). This study investigates the impact of depressive symptoms on the WLE of a large sample of Danish employees.MethodsWe used occupational health survey data of 11 967 Danish employees from 2010 and linked them with register data on salary and transfer payments from 2010 to 2015. Depressive symptoms were self-reported using the Major Depression Inventory. We used multistate data and a life table approach with Cox proportional hazard modelling to estimate the WLE of employees, expressed by time in work, unemployment and sickness absence. Separate analyses were conducted for sex and employees with a voluntary early retirement pension scheme. Using age as time axis, we used inverse probability weights to account for differences in educational level, sector, body mass index, smoking habits and loss of employment during sickness absence.ResultsThe WLE of employees reporting depressive symptoms was shorter compared with those not reporting depressive symptoms; that is, the expected time in unemployment and sickness absence was longer, while the expected time in work was shorter. The shorter WLE was most pronounced in women; for example, a 40-year-old woman with depressive symptoms can expect 3.3 years less in work, 0.8 years more in unemployment and 0.7 years more in sickness absence. Employees with a voluntary early retirement pension scheme showed an even lower WLE.ConclusionsOur study showed a meaningful impact of depressive symptoms on the WLE of Danish employees using a multistate framework.
Although widely recommended, the implementation of a multidisciplinary, coordinated and tailored approach in RTW-management is not an easy task. Evaluating the implementation of the Danish RTW program in 21 municipalities showed that especially the establishment of well-functioning interdisciplinary RTW-teams, early assessment and more frequent cooperation with employers was challenging. A better understanding of these challenges is needed to improve implementation. Affiliation:
This study investigates whether increasing levels of job autonomy are linearly associated with improved psychological well-being, or whether the association is non-linear with higher levels of job autonomy being negatively associated with psychological well-being. The study is based on a survey in 4,340 individuals. After six months a follow-up survey was conducted. Associations were analysed using spline models in cross-sectional and prospective analyses of the full study population. We stratified the study population in four types of work for further cross-sectional analyses. The cross-sectional analysis of the full study population indicated a non-linear relationship as the association attenuated but remained positive at all levels of job autonomy. The prospective analysis indicated a positive linear association. The stratified cross-sectional analyses indicated a linear association in three of the four types of work and a non-linear but positive association among respondents in client-related work. Findings are supported in sensitivity analyses using alternative outcomes: vigour, job satisfaction and work stress. We conclude that job autonomy is positively associated with psychological well-being. Findings have relevance for job redesign by indicating that higher levels of job autonomy are beneficial for the psychological well-being of workers -especially among workers with low levels of job autonomy.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
customersupport@researchsolutions.com
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.