Therapeutic Work as a Facilitator for Return to Paid Work in Cancer Survivors.
Purpose The increase of flexible employment in European labour markets has contributed to workers' risk of job loss. For sick-listed workers with chronic illnesses, such as cancer, and especially those without an employment contract, participation in therapeutic work may be an important step towards paid employment. The purpose of this study was to determine the role of therapeutic employment as facilitator for return to paid work, in a cohort of sick-listed cancer survivors (CSs) with and without an employment contract. Methods In this longitudinal study, data were used from a cohort of Dutch CSs (N = 192), who applied for disability benefits after 2 years of sick leave. The primary outcome measure was return to paid work after 1 year. Logistic regression analysis was applied. Results Of the participating CSs (mean age 50.7 years, 33 % male), 69 % had an employment contract at baseline. CSs without an employment contract participated significantly less in therapeutic work (p < 0.001) and were less likely to return to paid work after 1 year (p = 0.001), than those with a contract. Participation in therapeutic work significantly increased the chance of return to paid work after 1 year (OR 6.97; 95 % CI 2.94-16.51), adjusted for age, gender, level of work disability and having an employment contract. Conclusions Participation in therapeutic work could be an important facilitator for return to paid work in sick-listed CSs. The effectiveness of therapeutic work as a means to return to paid employment for sick-listed workers should be studied in an experimental setting.
Department of Public and Occupational Health, EMGO + Institute for Health and Care Research, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.|Dutch Research Center for Insurance Medicine, AMC-UMCG-UWV-VUmc, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
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MP
van Egmond
Department of Public and Occupational Health, EMGO + Institute for Health and Care Research, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.|Department of Psychosocial Research and Epidemiology, The Netherlands Cancer Institute, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
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SF
Duijts
Department of Public and Occupational Health, EMGO + Institute for Health and Care Research, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.|Dutch Research Center for Insurance Medicine, AMC-UMCG-UWV-VUmc, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.|Dutch Social Security Agency, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
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van Muijen
Department of Public and Occupational Health, EMGO + Institute for Health and Care Research, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.|Dutch Research Center for Insurance Medicine, AMC-UMCG-UWV-VUmc, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
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AJ
van der Beek
Department of Public and Occupational Health, EMGO + Institute for Health and Care Research, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. h.anema@vumc.nl.|Dutch Research Center for Insurance Medicine, AMC-UMCG-UWV-VUmc, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. h.anema@vumc.nl.
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JR
Anema
D000073116:Cancer Survivors / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004651:Employment / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D009426:Netherlands; D009788:Occupational Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D062707:Return to Work / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D018582:Sick Leave / Q000706:statistics & numerical data
Cancer survivors; Employment; Longitudinal studies; Sick leave; Work