Process evaluation of the ‘Grip on Health’ intervention in general and occupational health practice

Background. For working patients with a lower socioeconomic position, health complaints often result from a combination of problems on multiple life domains. To prevent long-term health complaints and absence from work, it is crucial for general and occupational health professionals to adopt a broad perspective on health and to collaborate when...

Associations of within-individual changes in working conditions, health behaviour and BMI with work ability and self-rated health: a fixed effects analysis among Dutch workers

Objectives: This study assessed the associations of (1) within-individual improvements and (2) within-individual deteriorations in working conditions, health behaviour and body mass index (BMI) with changes in work ability and self-rated health among workers. Design: Prospective cohort study. Setting: The Netherlands. Participants: Persons in...

The HEAT-SHIELD project — Perspectives from an inter-sectoral approach to occupational heat stress

Objectives: To provide perspectives from the HEAT-SHIELD project (www.heat-shield.eu): a multi-national, inter-sectoral, and cross-disciplinary initiative, incorporating twenty European research institutions, as well as occupational health and industrial partners, on solutions to combat negative health and productivity effects caused by working...

Safety professionals in the Netherlands

The origin of occupational safety, as an area of main interest of the government, the industry, the unions, and scientists starts in the Netherlands at the end of the 19th century. Roughly in the same period occupational medicine becomes a separate domain. Only just after World War II are safety professionals organised in associations. Starting...

Medico-legal reasoning in disability assessment: A focus group and validation study

Background. Decisions on disability pensions are based, among others, on medical reports. The way these medical assessments are performed is largely unclear. The aim of the study was to determine which grounds are used by social insurance physicians (SIPs) in these assessments and to determine if the identification of these grounds can help...

Weinig veranderingen in kwaliteit van sociaal-medische begeleiding en tevredenheid bij patiënten met arbeidsverzuim, na samenwerkingsprojecten voor huis- en bedrijfsartsen [Limited change in the quality of the social medical guidance and in the satisfaction of sick-listed patients, after collaborative projects between general practitioners and occupational physicians]

Objective. To evaluate whether regional projects for collaboration between general practitioners (GPs) and occupational physicians (OPs) improved the quality of their social medical guidance (SMG) and the satisfaction of their patients. Design. Evaluation study with before and after measurements with respect to the same GPs and OPs. Method....

Patient satisfaction with occupational health physicians, development of a questionnaire

Aims: To develop a questionnaire that measures specific aspects of patient satisfaction with occupational health physicians. Methods: General patient satisfaction questionnaires, a literature survey, and interviews with patients were used. An initial questionnaire was distributed among sick listed patients (n = 432) of occupational physicians (n...

Validation of performance indicators for rehabilitation of workers with mental health problems

Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate content validity and predictive validity of 11 performance indicators for the rehabilitation of workers with mental health problems. Research Design and Subjects: Content validity was assessed by experts who evaluated the validity of the performance indicators in 2 Delphi rounds. Predictive...

Dutch musculoskeletal questionnaire: Description and basic qualities

The article describes the Dutch Musculoskeletal Questionnaire (DMQ) for the analysis of musculoskeletal workload and associated potential hazardous working conditions as well as musculoskeletal symptoms in worker populations. Its qualities are explored using a database of 1,575 workers in various occupations who completed the questionnaire. The...

De waarde van aanstellingskeuringen (The value of preplacement medical examinations)

In dit artikel wordt een overzicht gegeven van de doelstellingen en de praktijk t.a.v. aanstellingskeurigen in Nederland. Ingegaan wordt op : de situatie in Nederland in de praktijk (300000 à 350000 aanstellingskeuringen per jaar met een afkeuringspercentage van 2) ; medische geschiktheid als selectie - criterium ; en de kwaliteit van de...