[Professional practices and perceptions about job retention systems for the chronically ill: a qualitative study in...

Continued employment of people with health problems that reduce their ability to work is a major social issue. The French measures to optimize job retention are characterized by a multiplicity of participants, and their efficacy depends largely on the capacity of these different participants to work together. The objective of this study was to document the perceived role, attitudes and practices of participants involved in these job retention measures and of general practitioners, as well as their difficulties in this domain.

In 2009, 15 semi-directive interviews were conducted in the region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (PACA) of occupational physicians, general practitioners, and other participants involved in the occupational reclassification of workers no longer completely fit for their job. The data collected were analyzed from a thematic perspective.

The different groups of professionals questioned agreed on the primacy of the role of the occupational physician, on the importance of early consideration of each worker's case, and on the need to work together as partners to optimize the prospects of job retention. This study nonetheless showed numerous communication difficulties between the various professionals: although informal exchanges have developed over time, the efficacy of the system seems to be limited by a lack of clarity about the role of each institution, divergences of opinions on some key points including the role of the physicians caring for the patient, and, more largely, lack of information about the tools for job retention.

The distribution of homogeneous knowledge, the development of multidisciplinary collaborative practices and the pooling of the lessons of experience between the different groups of participants are essential for the success of job retention procedures.