TY - JOUR
T1 - Advantages and disadvantages of an objective selection process for early intervention in employees at risk for sickness absence
AU - Duijts, Saskia F.A.
AU - Kant, Ijmert
AU - Swaen, Gerard M.H.
PY - 2007
Y1 - 2007
N2 - Background. It is unclear if objective selection of employees, for an intervention to prevent sickness absence, is more effective than subjective 'personal enlistment'. We hypothesize that objectively selected employees are 'at risk' for sickness absence and eligible to participate in the intervention program. Methods. The dispatch of 8603 screening instruments forms the starting point of the objective selection process. Different stages of this process, throughout which employees either dropped out or were excluded, were described and compared with the subjective selection process. Characteristics of ineligible and ultimately selected employees, for a randomized trial, were described and quantified using sickness absence data. Results. Overall response rate on the screening instrument was 42.0%. Response bias was found for the parameters sex and age, but not for sickness absence. Sickness absence was higher in the 'at risk' (N = 212) group (42%) compared to the 'not at risk' (N = 2503) group (25%) (OR 2.17 CI 1.63-2.89; p = 0.000). The selection process ended with the successful inclusion of 151 eligible, i.e. 2% of the approached employees in the trial. Conclusion. The study shows that objective selection of employees for early intervention is effective. Despite methodological and practical problems, selected employees are actually those at risk for sickness absence, who will probably benefit more from the intervention program than others.
AB - Background. It is unclear if objective selection of employees, for an intervention to prevent sickness absence, is more effective than subjective 'personal enlistment'. We hypothesize that objectively selected employees are 'at risk' for sickness absence and eligible to participate in the intervention program. Methods. The dispatch of 8603 screening instruments forms the starting point of the objective selection process. Different stages of this process, throughout which employees either dropped out or were excluded, were described and compared with the subjective selection process. Characteristics of ineligible and ultimately selected employees, for a randomized trial, were described and quantified using sickness absence data. Results. Overall response rate on the screening instrument was 42.0%. Response bias was found for the parameters sex and age, but not for sickness absence. Sickness absence was higher in the 'at risk' (N = 212) group (42%) compared to the 'not at risk' (N = 2503) group (25%) (OR 2.17 CI 1.63-2.89; p = 0.000). The selection process ended with the successful inclusion of 151 eligible, i.e. 2% of the approached employees in the trial. Conclusion. The study shows that objective selection of employees for early intervention is effective. Despite methodological and practical problems, selected employees are actually those at risk for sickness absence, who will probably benefit more from the intervention program than others.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=34248572508&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-7-67
DO - https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-7-67
M3 - Article
C2 - 17474980
SN - 1471-2458
VL - 7
JO - BMC public health
JF - BMC public health
M1 - 67
ER -