Validation study of a distress screener

Area of Science:

• Occupational Health
• Psychological Assessment
• Clinical Diagnostics

Background:

• Early identification of distress in employees on sick leave is crucial for timely intervention.
• Existing screening tools may require further validation for specific workplace populations.
• The four-dimensional symptom questionnaire (4DSQ) is a comprehensive measure of psychological distress.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a brief screening instrument, the Distress Screener, for identifying distress in employees on sick leave.
• To determine an optimal cut-off point for the Distress Screener.
• To assess the validity and reliability of the Distress Screener against the 4DSQ and medical diagnoses.

Main Methods:

• A study involving 171 sick-listed employees who completed the Distress Screener and the 4DSQ.
• Medical diagnoses were obtained from occupational physicians (OPs).
• Sensitivity, specificity, and correlation analyses were used to assess the optimal cut-off point and validity.

Main Results:

• The optimal cut-off point for the Distress Screener was determined to be a score of 4 or greater.
• High correlations were found between the Distress Screener and the 4DSQ distress subscale (0.82) and for test-retest reliability (0.83).
• The Distress Screener demonstrated comparable sensitivity (0.85) and specificity (0.78) to the 4DSQ distress subscale and was related to medical diagnoses of stress-related complaints.

Conclusions:

• The Distress Screener is a valid and reliable instrument for occupational physicians to quickly screen for distress in employees on sick leave.
• The cut-off point of 4 or greater is effective for the early identification of distress.
• This tool facilitates prompt intervention, potentially improving employee well-being and return-to-work timelines.