Long-term Sick Leave Research Articles

Physical leisure-time activities and long-term sick leave: a 15-month prospective study of nurses' aides.

The objective of the study was to determine the relationship between physical leisure-time activities and the occurrence of long-term sick leaves in nurses' aides. Of 5563 Norwegian nurses' aides who were not on sick leave when they completed a questionnaire in 1999, 4744 (85.3%) completed a second questionnaire 15 months later. Brisk walks (odds ratio [OR], 0.78; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.63 to 0.98), aerobics or gymnastics (OR, 0.71; 95% CI, 0.49 to 1.02), and other physical leisure activities (OR, 0.81; 95% CI, 0.66 to 1.00) for 20 minutes or more at least once a week predicted fewer long-term sick leaves (> 14 days), after adjustments for baseline health complaints, demographic and familial characteristics, former and current smoking, and work factors. In conclusion, regular physical leisure-time activity may be associated with a reduced risk of long-term sickness absence in nurses' aides.

Risk factors for disability pension among unemployed women on long-term sick-leave.

In 1996 some 520,000 people (13% of Sweden's working force) were either long-term sick-listed or on disability pensions. To reintroduce sick and injured people to the workforce, vocational rehabilitation has received increasing emphasis. Unemployed women seem particularly difficult to rehabilitate. One explanation could be that unemployed women have more complex problems than others; another could concern the selection of cases for vocational rehabilitation programmes. The primary aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that unemployed women on sick-leave have more severe problems than others. A second purpose was to investigate whether the manner of selection for vocational rehabilitation programmes is different for unemployed women than for others. The study analysed 364 registered long-term sick-leave cases (90 days or more) initiated during 1992-1994 in the city of Stockholm, Sweden. Our hypothesis was supported by the study. Unemployed women were exposed to more risk factors than unemployed men or employed men and women. Regarding the selection of cases for rehabilitation, no difference was present between unemployed women and others. A finding, however not statistically significant, was that people in vocational rehabilitation, regardless of sex and employment status, were less exposed to risk factors than people not undergoing rehabilitation.

Vocational rehabilitation and future sick-leave

The aim of the present pretest-posttest study was to examine and compare the impact of vocational rehabilitation on future sick-leave for employed and unemployed people, respectively, on long-term sick-leave. The study is based on 416 registered long-term sick-leave cases that were initiated during 1992–94 in the city of Stockholm, and that became objects for vocational rehabilitation. The hypotheses were (1) that the number of sick-days and levels of benefit for both employed and unemployed would be less after rehabilitation than before and (2) that rehabilitation would affect employed people more than unemployed people. The hypotheses are supported in that both employed and unemployed have less sick-days and lower levels of benefits after vocational rehabilitation than before and that unemployed people have more sick-days and higher levels of benefits than employed people after rehabilitation. However, since unemployed people also have more sick-days before rehabilitation, the proportional decrease is about the same. Another finding was that men, especially among the unemployed improved more than women.

The unemployed sick-listed and their vocational rehabilitation.

The unemployed on long-term sick-leave are many and difficult to rehabilitate. The likelihood that a period of sick leave will result in a temporary disability pension is about three times greater for the unemployed than for those with jobs. The aim of this current study was to examine the vocational rehabilitation process of the unemployed on long-term sick-leave. The study was based on 118 matched cases on long-term sick-leave, 59 employed and 59 unemployed. Data were collected at seven social insurance offices in rural areas of Jämtland, Sweden. Our hypothesis was that the unemployed were disregarded in vocational rehabilitation. The results partly confirm this. Unemployed people's potential need for rehabilitation is not investigated to the same extent as employed people's. Also the unemployed have to wait longer for an investigation. Against our hypothesis, however, no difference exists between the employed and the unemployed in rehabilitation impulse, rehabilitation plan or rehabilitation allowance. Nor do the unemployed, except for those awaiting investigation, wait longer than the employed. The major result of the study is, instead, that vocational rehabilitation in general, regardless of employment status, seems beset with problems. Rehabilitation activities seem far too few and initiated unnecessarily late. Neither the employer nor the social insurance office seem to be fulfilling their statutory duties.