Effect of the Danish return-to-work program on long-term sickness absence: results from a randomized controlled trial in three municipalities

Effect of the Danish return-to-work program on long-term sickness absence: results from a randomized controlled trial in three municipalities

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the Danish return-to-work (RTW) program on long-term sickness absence in a randomized controlled trial in three municipalities. METHODS: The intervention group comprised 1948 participants while the control group comprised 1157 participa...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Otto Melchior Poulsen, Birgit Aust, Jakob Bue Bjorner, Reiner Rugulies, Jørgen V Hansen, Torill Tverborgvik, Glen Winzor, Ole Steen Mortensen, Trine Helverskov, Palle Ørbæk, Maj Britt D Nielsen
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nordic Association of Occupational Safety and Health (NOROSH) 2014-01-01
Series:Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health
Subjects:
multidisciplinary
randomized controlled trial
work resumption
long-term sickness absence
effect evaluation
return-to-work program
coordinated case management
sickness absence
return to work
denmark
intervention
Online Access: https://www.sjweh.fi/show_abstract.php?abstract_id=3383
Description
Summary:OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the Danish return-to-work (RTW) program on long-term sickness absence in a randomized controlled trial in three municipalities. METHODS: The intervention group comprised 1948 participants while the control group comprised 1157 participant receiving ordinary sickness benefit management (OSM). Study participants were working-age adults receiving long-term (≥8 weeks or more) benefits, included regardless of reason for sickness absence or employment status. Each beneficiary was followed-up for a maximum period of 52 weeks. Cox proportional hazards model was used to estimate hazard ratios (HR) for return to work (RTW) with 95% confidence intervals (95% CI). RESULTS: The intervention effect differed significantly between the municipalities (P=0.00005). In one municipality (M2) the intervention resulted in a statistically significant increased rate of recovery from long-term sickness absence (HR 1.51, 95% CI 1.31–1.74). In the other two municipalities, the intervention did not show a statistically significant effect (HR_M1 1.12, 95% CI 0.97–1.29, and HR_M3 0.80, 95% CI 0.63–1.03, respectively). Adjustment for a series of possible confounders only marginally altered the estimated HR. CONCLUSION: The effect of the intervention differed substantially between the three municipalities, indicating that that contextual factors are of major importance for success or failure of this complex intervention.
ISSN:0355-3140
1795-990X

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