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Handbook of Work Disability pp 335–355Cite as

Workplace Interventions

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Abstract

Workplace interventions are applied to facilitate return to work (RTW) after a worker has been on sick leave, by reducing barriers to RTW and collaboration with key stakeholders. They might include changes in workplace or equipment design, changes in the work organization including working relationships, the job situation, or the environmental conditions, etc. This chapter presents the current scientific knowledge about the effectiveness of workplace interventions and some of the challenges to implement them at the personal and workplace level. Eight randomized controlled trials are discussed including sick-listed workers with musculoskeletal disorders and mental health problems. The results indicate that workplace interventions are effective for sick-listed workers with musculoskeletal disorders in order to facilitate a RTW.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    A forest plot displays effect estimates and confidence intervals for both individual studies and meta-analyses. Each study is represented by a block at the point estimate of intervention effect with a horizontal line extending either side of the block. The area of the block indicates the weight assigned to that study in the meta-analysis, while the horizontal line depicts the 95% confidence interval. The confidence interval depicts the range of intervention effects compatible with the study’s result and indicates whether each was individually statistically significant. Studies with larger weight (larger size of block and usually those with narrower confidence intervals) dominate the calculation of the pooled result.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Prevention and Health Services Research, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, 1, 3720 BA, Bilthoven, The Netherlands

    Sandra H. van Oostrom Ph.D.

  2. Department of Public and Occupational Health, EMGO Institute for Health and Care Research, VU University Medical Center, Van der Boechorststraat 7, 1081 BT, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    Cécile R. L. Boot Ph.D.

Authors
  1. Sandra H. van Oostrom Ph.D.
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  2. Cécile R. L. Boot Ph.D.
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Sandra H. van Oostrom Ph.D. .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Toronto, College Street 155, Toronto, M5T 3M7, Ontario, Canada

    Patrick Loisel

  2. EMGO Institute for Health and Care Resea, Department of Public and Occupational He, VU University Medical Center, AMC-UMCG-UWV-VUmc, Amsterdam, NL-1081 BT, Netherlands

    Johannes R. Anema

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van Oostrom, S.H., Boot, C.R.L. (2013). Workplace Interventions. In: Loisel, P., Anema, J. (eds) Handbook of Work Disability. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6214-9_21

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6214-9_21

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