title: Supervisors' Strategies to Facilitate Work Functioning among Employees with Musculoskeletal Complaints: A Focus Group Study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To explore what strategies the supervisors found beneficial to prevent or reduce sickness absence among employees with musculoskeletal complaints.
  
  
  METHODS
  Five focus groups were conducted and 26 supervisors from health and social sector participated. Commonly used strategies to prevent sickness absence and interdisciplinary cooperation in this work were discussed in the focus groups. Systematic text condensation was used to analyse the data.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The supervisors described five strategies for sick leave management: (1) promoting well-being and a healthy working environment, (2) providing early support and adjustments, (3) making employees more responsible, (4) using confrontational strategies in relation to employees on long-term sick leave, and (5) cooperation with general practitioners (GPs).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Strategies of promoting a healthy working environment and facilitating early return to work were utilised in the follow-up of employees with musculoskeletal complaints. Supportive strategies were found most useful especially in the early phases, while finding a balance between being supportive, on one side, and confronting the employee, on the other, was endeavoured in cases of recurrent or long-term sick leave. Further, the supervisors requested a closer cooperation with the GPs, which they believed would facilitate return to work.
authors.affiliation: Department of Global Public Health and Primary Care, Physiotherapy Research Group, University of Bergen, P.O. Box 7800, 5020 Bergen, Norway.
authors.forename: Tove
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ask
authors.affiliation: Department of Global Public Health and Primary Care, Physiotherapy Research Group, University of Bergen, P.O. Box 7800, 5020 Bergen, Norway ; Department of Occupational Therapy, Physiotherapy and Radiography, Faculty of Health and Social Sciences, Bergen University College, P.O. Box 7030, 5020 Bergen, Norway.
authors.forename: Liv Heide
authors.initials: LH
authors.lastname: Magnussen
mesh_terms: D003142:Communication; D003376:Counseling; D005260:Female; D017144:Focus Groups; D058005:General Practitioners / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D009140:Musculoskeletal Diseases / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology*; D016272:Occupational Health; D018582:Sick Leave / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D000078329:Workforce; D017132:Workplace / Q000523:psychology*