Psychological distress and employment status. Effects of a group learning programme for patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain

Abstract

Seventy-seven patients participated in a group intervention programme counselled by the occupational health service personnel in a randomized controlled trial. The educational programme was inspired by personal construct theory that calls attention to the human capacity to redefine and reconstruct the meaning of any situation or symptom. A significant reduction in psychological distress was obtained at treatment completion and at 1-year follow-up. At follow-up a significant group 6 work status interaction effect was found, and also a mean reduction of distress among both working and non-working participants in the intervention group, whereas in the control group only those who received disability benefits reported a reduction in psychological distress. Distress at baseline significantly predicted work status at follow-up. An intervention programme such as the one applied in this study may reduce distress and help patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain to remain in their jobs.

The efficacy of personal construct therapy: A comprehensive review

“…In addition, when a client was assigned to an alternate 1 Standard care refers to a form of treatment that did not include an active psychological component and was customarily administered for the population of interest or the particular setting where the study took place. For example, in one study of a PCT treatment for patients with musculoskeletal pain (Haugli, Steen, Laerum, Nygard, & Finset, 2003), participants in the control group met with a physician and adhered to whatever treatment suggestions he or she made, which was standard protocol for patients with this problem.…”

What Facilitates Return to Work? Patients Experiences 3 Years After Occupational Rehabilitation

“…Co morbidity impedes RTW and increase the risk of permanent disability [17–19]. Psychological distress and low self-estimated expectancy of RTW predicts a poor outcome [20, 21]. The causes of long-term sick leave are individual and complex, and involve biological, psychological and social factors [22].…”

“…The interventions focus on diminishing the limitations identified during the assessment, building self-confidence and training in stress management. Cognitive approaches like awareness, coping strategies [23] and increased mindfulness [21, 24], as well as physical activities, are found to enhance RTW in individuals with musculoskeletal or psychological problems [25, 26]. Studies also show that brief interventions including a thorough medical examination, providing explanations of the patient’s complaints and encouragement to stay active have been of importance for a successful RTW [27, 28].…”

The Efficacy of Personal Construct Therapy as a Function of the Type and Severity of the Presenting Problem

“…This category includes problems such as caring for someone with AIDS (Viney, Crooks, & Walker, 1995) or surviving childhood incest (Alexander, Neimeyer, Follette, Moore, & Harter, 1989). Studies that dealt with physical problems and aging worked with individuals who were potentially distressed but primarily identified as having some sort of physical problem such as chronic musculoskeletal pain (Haugli, Steen, Laerum, Nygard, & Finset, 2003) or medical hospitalization (Viney, Clarke, Bunn, & Benjamin, 1985a, 1985b. Problems categorized as "anxiety and fear" involved worry directed at some specific object (e.g., snakes; Lira, Nay, McCullough, & Etkin, 1975) or life situation (e.g., public speaking; Karst & Trexler, 1970).…”

“…Standard care refers to a form of treatment that did not include an active psychological component and was customarily administered for the population of interest or the particular setting in which the study took place. For example, in one study of a PCT treatment for patients with musculoskeletal pain (Haugli et al, 2003), participants in the control group met with a physician and adhered to whatever treatment suggestions he or she made, which was standard protocol for patients with this problem. 2.…”