Screening for the risk on long-term sickness absence.

Area of Science:

• Occupational Health
• Public Health
• Psychosocial Medicine

Background:

• Long-term sickness absence is a growing public health concern in Europe.
• Physicians assess re-integration possibilities within two months of sickness absence.
• A need exists for efficient triage tools to manage increasing sickness absence cases.

Purpose of the Study:

• To validate a screening tool for identifying individuals at high risk of long-term sickness absence.
• To support physicians in guiding patients back to work effectively.
• To differentiate between individuals who can return to work independently and those requiring support.

Main Methods:

• Comprehensive validation process including theoretical construct validation (face, content validity).
• Empirical construct validation encompassing concurrence, factorial, predictive, hypothesis testing, and known-group validity.
• Development of a screening instrument to aid physicians in return-to-work assessments.

Main Results:

• The study validated a screening tool designed to predict long-term sickness absence risk.
• The tool assists physicians in focusing resources on high-risk individuals.
• Validation confirmed the instrument's utility in occupational health and sickness funding organizations.

Conclusions:

• The validated screening tool is crucial for preventing long-term sickness absence.
• It enables targeted return-to-work support, optimizing physician efforts.
• Findings may illuminate the link between the biopsychosocial model and sick leave duration.