ReIntegrate

Closing Conference for ENWHP PH Work Initiative

Tilia Boussios — Wed, 23 Oct 2013 14:47:41 GMT

The conference in Brussels concluded the 9th European Network for Workplace Health Promotion (ENWHP) initiative “Work. Adapted for all. Move Europe”, focussing on promoting healthy work for employees with chronic illness (Public Health and Work, PH Work).

Chronic conditions and diseases have a substantial impact on the labour market and working life. This urges the need for effective job retention and workplace-based return-to-work (RTW) strategies and interventions, as a means of preventing employees with a chronic illness of moving into disability or early retirement. The PH Work project contributes towards the implementation of effective workplace health practices within corporate policies of enterprises in Europe

European Network for Workplace Health promotion (ENWHP) Launches Return to Work Guidelines

Tilia Boussios — Wed, 23 Oct 2013 14:46:14 GMT

The ENWHP has just launched European Guidelines on Return to Work for people with chronic illnesses, including mental health problems. These guidelines are aimed at managers in enterprises and they provide a practical guide to ensuring that the employee has the best possible chance of successfully returning to work. Produced by the PhWork project, the guide is called "Promoting healthy work for workers with chronic illness: A guide to good practice", is easy to read and discusses the following topics:

A good practice guide on chronic illness at work
What is meant by workplace health promotion, return to work and chronic illness in the context of sustainable employment?
What employers can do to promote healthy work
What you can do: A six-step action plan
Recommendations

Study on the Presence, Intensity, and Temporal Changes in Generalized Anxiety Disorder Maintenance Factors in Workers Undergoing Rehabilitation for Persistent Musculoskeletal Pain

Tilia Boussios — Fri, 22 Feb 2013 16:59:53 GMT

Marie-France Coutu, Marie-José Durand, André Marchand, Marie-Élise Labrecque, Djamal Berbiche, Geneviève Cadieux

New study on the Presence, Intensity, and Temporal Changes in Generalized Anxiety Disorder Maintenance Factors in Workers Undergoing Rehabilitation for Persistent Musculoskeletal Pain

Tilia Boussios — Fri, 22 Feb 2013 16:59:11 GMT

The aim of this study was to enhance understanding of the nature of the anxiety symptoms exhibited by workers with a musculoskeletal disorder (MSD) that had resulted in a work absence of more than 12 weeks, during their participation in a work rehabilitation program. The primary objective was to document the presence, intensity, and temporal changes in generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) and its maintenance factors. These factors are intolerance of uncertainty, worries, negative problem orientation, and beliefs about the usefulness of worrying, cognitive avoidance, and depression. In addition, this study sought, on an exploratory basis, to document the relationships between the component factors of a GAD model and the main biopsychosocial factors associated with work disability, as well as their correlations with a return to work. This exploratory study is one of the first to document workers’ GAD-type and kinesiophobia-related anxiety symptoms during a rehabilitation program. Regarding GAD factors, the comparison of this study’s results with empirical and normative data also allowed the researchers to interpret and better understand the difficulties experienced by workers with a work disability.

Mental illness costs economy $51 billion per year in sick days - Companies advised to invest in intervention, support services

Tilia Boussios — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 07:59:00 GMT

For every 1,000 Canadian employees, 145 short-term leaves are taken annually and about 20 of those are related to mental health, the study found. "Only a fraction of disability leaves are due to mental illness yet it costs employers the most. It is crucial that businesses make mental health and wellbeing a priority to prevent disability in the first place," said Carolyn Dewa, lead investigator in the study and CAMH's head of work and well-being research. Dewa's study, which appeared in the summer issue of the Journal of Environmental Medicine, showed that the average short-term physical disability leave is about 33 days. On average employers pay $9,000 for each case. The study found the most common reasons employees take physical disability leave include respiratory illness, muscular skeletal problems, injury and digestive disorders. Depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder are the mental illnesses that appear most in the Canadian workforce, with each case leading to an average 65-day leave and $18,000 bill. About 10 per cent of Canadians in the workforce between 18 and 54 years old suffer from mental health issues. Dewa centred her investigation on an Ontario company with more than 12,400 employees in various cities and rural areas. She said the project was a "mutual collaboration" and the company approached CAMH because it was interested in making sure it had a healthy workplace. Dewa could not identify the company but said it represents 13 per cent of the Ontario resource sector with employees in various levels including maintenance, administration, engineering and technology. The researchers looked at more than 33,900 records from 2003 to 2006 to compile their findings and Dewa said her team's findings reflect the rest of the province. Companies should invest in early intervention strategies, access to support systems to help cope with stress and offer help with medical expenses to keep employees healthy and aware of a good work/life balance, Dewa said. The organization is now examining how strong the connection is between workplace stress and mental health. "We're still trying to figure out how much work contributes to overall stress. Once you walk into the door of your workplace, you don't stop thinking about home and once you get home, you don't stop thinking of work," she said. Another report released Wednesday said that Ontario could spend $7 billion a year in health care and lost productivity, as more than one in 10 Ontarians could be suffering from diabetes by 2020. The Canadian Diabetes Association's study said the illness already costs $4.9 billion annually, mostly in lost productivity and long-term disability claims. Another $1 billion is spent on hospital visits, doctors' fees and medications. © Copyright The Vancouver Sun

Reintegrate User Survey

Tilia Boussios — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 14:30:00 GMT

We need your help to evaluate and improve the Reintegrate website and e-Learning course.
Please take 5 minutes to answer this short survey.

Go to: http://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?formkey=dEJwMkg0Vk9RTVRVM2tBcG42bnk0dGc6MA

If you have any questions about the survey, please send an email to: ambrose[dot]research(at)gmail[dot]com

Promoting Mental Wellbeing through Productive and Healthy Working Conditions: Guidance for Employers

Tilia Boussios — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 12:06:20 GMT

The guidance complements, but does not replace, NICE guidance on workplace promotion of physical activity and smoking cessation and also on depression. The Public Health Interventions Advisory Committee (PHIAC) developed these recommendations on the basis of reviews of the evidence, an economic analysis, expert advice, stakeholder comments and fieldwork. The guidance was developed using the NICE public health intervention process.

Sickies and Long-Term Absence Give Employers a Headache – CBI/AXA Survey

Tilia Boussios — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 12:39:00 GMT

The latest CBI/AXA survey revealed that average absence in the public sector totalled 9 days - 55% higher than the 5.8 day average of the private sector, where absence figures reduced during 2007.In the public sector, the highest absence rates were found in health/social care services (12.6 days) and police and probation services (9.9 days), while education saw lower overall levels (7.5%). Absence is also influenced by other factors including organisation size, region, manual/ non-manual employment, job satisfaction and employee morale. Non-work related stress, anxiety and depression were the most significant causes of long-term absence among non-manual staff. The survey highlights the need for a fresh, proactive approach to managing long-term absence and reducing the uptake of incapacity benefit. The introduction of “fit notes” is invited by employers - helping them to understand what duties an employee can perform and allowing them to make arrangements where possible for an earlier or phased return to work.

How Much Do You Know About Return to Work?

System Administrator — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 11:25:55 GMT

Can you answer any of the following questions with confidence?

The Principles of Return to Work

The principles upon which an effective return to work programmes must be based are not very different from those required for the success of any new work-based health policy initiative. The following are some principles which are considered important in most good practice organisations:

Early Intervention
Worker Involvement
Boardroom and Management Commitment
Integrated Policy Based Approach Platform (e.g. OSH, WHP, HR, Non-Discrimination)
Clear Responsibility and Accountability
Customised and flexible responses
Properly Resourced

Based on the above how would you rate your level of knowledge on a scale of 1 to 10? Where 1 indicates ‘This is new to me’ and 10 represents ‘I am very familiar with this description of good practice’

Business Case

The case for introducing a return to work policy and programme into an organisation must be based on sound business principles. Some of the primary benefits for both the employer and the worker are listed below.

Benefits to the employer:

Productivity and quality maintained
Reduced Absenteeism
Enhanced Staff Morale and loyalty
Decreased Replacement/Training Costs
Reduced early retirement

Benefits to the Absent Worker:

Maintaining his/her ability to work
Income maintained
Self-esteem protected
Improved mental and physical health

These questions assess your level of knowledge regarding return to work so that you can guide yourself through the e-learning material on the website. In all, there are 23 questions assessing your training needs in relation to return to work practices on the website. Answering these allows you to build a comprehensive picture of what areas you need to study.

If you wish to complete the full training needs analysis questionnaire, you will need to register on the site (or log in if you are already registered), proceed to the e-learning area and complete the training needs analysis questionnaire.

What You Will Find

Tilia Boussios — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 10:46:00 GMT

Long-term absence from work due to ill health is on the increase across Europe. This project was designed to identify effective methods and approaches which could be used by professionals to improve their Return to Work records. Reintegrate aims to support the safe and timely return of people to work, who have become ill or injured. Reintegrate helps employers to develop good practice in organisations where absenteeism has become an issue. Individuals who use this website are provided with the appropriate guidelines and resources necessary to reduce absenteeism and improve the organisations overall approach to Return-to-Work. The website incorporates a number of features which are vital for improving your organisation’s Return to Work performance. Once registered, you may avail of all the resources the website has to offer.

The site provides links to sources of specific and general information about Return to Work. Here you will find useful website links; a bibliography containing a multitude of useful documents, all concerning Return to Work practice; Information and examples of projects carried out on Absenteeism and RTW issues; Key policy documents and the Reintegrate library.

One of the main resources provided by the Reintegrate website is the e-learning environment, which incorporates some invaluable functions. There are three main themes in the e-learning environment:

1. An E-learning Course, which Contains 21 Modules Organised into Five Main Areas

Four of these areas are concerned with building a Return-to-Work system in your organisation. The following section is concerned with what you need to do when an employee goes absent so that they return to work in a safe, efficient and healthy manner. Finally, the National Context section provides you with useful information relevant to your own country, which indicates how Return-to-Work systems operate and the benefits of incorporating these systems in the workplace.

The course does not necessarily have to be completed in one sitting, the individual may return to the course modules when convenient. The areas you have covered previously will be marked for you upon your return.

2. The Individual Training Needs Analysis Questionnaire

This is a self-assessment inventory which is designed to allow you to explore your own knowledge and skills in the area of return to work. The questionnaire is aimed at work based professionals or managers who wish to introduce more proactive and effective strategies into the organisation. The individual is asked twenty questions, each of which is concerned with Return-to-Work. The individual is asked to rate his/her level of knowledge for each of the questions. When you complete this questionnaire, you will obtain a personal profile. This profile indicates to you areas where your knowledge is relatively strong or weak. It also points to areas of the e-learning material which will help you address your weaknesses.

3. The Organisational Practice Questionnaire

The Organisational questionnaire asks you to assess your organisation with regard to the quality of its current Return-to-Work systems and practices. In this questionnaire, detailed questions are incorporated into twelve key areas concerned with Return-to-Work issues. Upon completion of the questionnaire, you obtain an organisational profile. This profile indicates to you areas where policy or practice could be improved. It also points to useful sources of information for improving return to work practices and policies. Additionally, you may save your responses to the questions and use these as a guide for your own personal E-learning programme.

4. The Cost-Benefit Calculator

This useful tool enables you to estimate the costs of absenteeism in your organisation. These particular costs are on the increase and preventative approaches can only be introduced following an investigation of your own organisation’s absence figures and costs. This tool will identify what the costs are, and once a problem is identified, you can avail of all the resources on the website which will help you deal effectively with absenteeism and identify new approaches to Return-to-Work issues.

5. The Quizzes – Test Tour knowledge of RTW

The e-learning section also allows you to test your knowledge of RTW policy and practice following completion of the e-learning material

6. Corporate Profiles

You can register with the Re-integrate site as a corporate user, i.e. you can allow access and track progress of groups of staff in your organisation as they progress through the e-learning material. Corporate profiles are available for the training needs analysis questionnaire, the organisational practice questionnaire and in relation to the quizzes on individual knowledge of RTW.

What We Do

Nikos Vaslamatzis — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 09:06:00 GMT

Long-term absence from work due to ill health is on the increase across Europe. This project was designed to identify effective methods and approaches which could be used by professionals to improve their Return to Work records. Reintegrate aims to support the safe and timely return of people to work, who have become ill or injured. Reintegrate helps employers to develop good practice in organisations where absenteeism has become an issue.
Reintegrate deals with the most effective and ethical methods and approaches to Return-to-Work which can be used by professionals to promote workplace health and reduce absenteeism.

The project aim is to return people to work who have become absent because of illness or injury, by providing support to employers so that they may develop good practice for timely and appropriate Return-to-Work.

The Reintegrate website provides support through an integrated e-learning environment which includes guidelines, reports and literature advising Return-to-Work structures. In addition, an e-learning course is available, whereby professionals can learn more about how to implement a Return-to-Work system in the organisation and reduce absenteeism figures. Other tools are available to assess one’s own (and the organisations) knowledge of Return-to-Work issues/practices.

Together, these useful tools constitute an e-learning environment which seeks to promote health in the workplace, while reducing absenteeism and costs for employers.

Overcoming Challenges

Tilia Boussios — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 11:43:55 GMT

Marketing and Persuasion

Tilia Boussios — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 11:43:47 GMT

Communication Policy

Tilia Boussios — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 11:43:19 GMT

The Role of Equality and Non-Discrimination Policies in Return to Work

Tilia Boussios — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 11:43:11 GMT

The Role of Human Resources in Return to Work

Tilia Boussios — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 11:43:05 GMT

The Role of Workplace Health in Return to Work

Tilia Boussios — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 11:43:01 GMT

Return to Work Policy

Tilia Boussios — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 11:42:57 GMT

Building and Maintaining Capacity

Ioannis Cherouvim — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 11:30:57 GMT

E-Learning Quiz

Tilia Boussios — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 10:42:00 GMT

Individual Users

Welcome to the Re-integrate Quiz

The questions below are designed to test your knowledge of Return To Work policies and practices. When you have finished either all of the Re-Integrate training modules (or a subset of them) you can complete the quiz below for each training module.

Please Note: that you must indicate in each training module that you have completed it, before being allowed access to the quiz.

Your responses to the quiz will be saved as you take each part so that you can build up a profile of your RTW knowledge over time.

Corporate Administrators

Here you, the Corporate Administrator, can obtain a profile of the knowledge of your staff in relation to RTW. You can do this for your organisation as a whole or specific sites or units within your organisation. All you need to do is to select which parts of your organisation you want to obtain a report on and click the View Report button.

Cost Calculator

Tilia Boussios — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 17:25:31 GMT

Welcome to the Absenteeism Costs Calculator.

The Calculator allows you to make a good estimate of the costs of sickness related absenteeism in your organisation. You will be asked 23 questions about your organisation and on the basis of your answers, you will receive information about:

The total costs per annum to your organisation
The total costs per employee
The total costs per absent employee
The percentage of turnover spent on absenteeism

The questions you are asked are concerned with:

Background information
Your absenteeism rate
Replacement of staff
Overtime costs
Sick pay costs
Insurance costs
Opportunity costs
Medical costs

You may not have the answers to all of these questions at hand, but at minimum, you must answer the questions on Background Information and Your Absenteeism Rate for the calculator to work. The more questions you can answer and the more accurately you can answer them, the better the estimate of the true costs of absenteeism will be.

Please note: that you are asked to provide percentages as answers to some questions. For these questions, you must enter the percentage rather than a proportion. For example, if you wish to enter twenty percent as your answer, you should enter ‘20’ and not ‘0.2’

System Maintenance/Monitoring

Argyro Kazaki — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 15:05:00 GMT

Organisational Questionnaire

System Administrator — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 11:43:54 GMT

Individual Users

Welcome to the organisational questionnaire. This questionnaire asks you to assess your organisation with regard to the quality of its return-to-work systems and practices. In particular, detailed questions are asked in the questionnaire about important areas in which you would like to learn more.

If you complete the questionnaire, you will obtain an organisational profile. This profile indicates to you areas where policy or practice can be improved. It also points to useful sources of information for approving return to work practices and policies.

Your responses to the questionnaire will automatically be saved so that you can use it as a guide for your own personal e-learning program. If you would like to answers again you will need to reset your questionnaire by clicking the Reset Questionnaire button at the bottom of the page.

For more information on areas associated with the Organisatioal Questionnaire please refer to the Reintegrate E-Learning Course or contact the National Institute of Disability Management and Research. Alternatively you can contact your local International Disability Standards Council Member. The Irish Member is Rehab Group, Employment Services, Access Ability Services.

Corporate Administrators

Here you, the Corporate Administrator, can obtain a profile of the knowledge of your staff in relation to your current organisational practice of RTW. You can do this for your organisation as a whole or specific sites or units within your organisation. All you need to do is to select which parts of your organisation you want to obtain a report on and click the View Report button.

Training Needs Analysis Questionnaire

Tilia Boussios — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 11:43:00 GMT

Individual Users

Welcome to the Training Needs Analysis Questionnaire. This questionnaire assesses your level of knowledge about return-to-work systems and practices. In particular, it asks you detailed questions about important areas about which you would like to learn more.

If you complete the questionnaire, you will obtain a personal profile. This profile indicates to you areas where your knowledge is relatively strong or weak. It also points to areas of the e-learning material which will help you address your weaknesses.

Corporate Administrators

Here you, the Corporate Administrator, can obtain a profile of the training needs of your staff as they complete the Training Needs Analysis Questionnaire. You can do this for your organisation as a whole or specific sites or units within your organisation. All you need to do is to select which parts of your organisation you want to obtain a report on and click the View Report button.

E-Learning

System Administrator — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 11:35:32 GMT

Welcome to the e-learning component of REINTEGRATE. Here you’ll find material which will enable you to build a return to work system for your workplace and which will then help you to actively manage in most effective way possible the return to work process for an individual who has become absent.

There are a number of ways to access the e-learning material on this site. You can do so by:

Completing the training needs analysis questionnaire – this questionnaire assesses your level of knowledge about return to work processes. Depending upon your answers, you will be guided toward specific modules of the training course.

Completing the organisational questionnaire – This questionnaire assesses your organization’s practices in relation to return to work. Depending upon your answers you’ll be guided to a range of sources of support for improving organizational practice.

Entering the e-learning course –this will give you an overview of the entire training course and will enable you to choose your own path through the material.

The menu on the left hand side of the screen enables you to select your method of entry to the e-learning material.

Partners

Tilia Boussios — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 13:52:05 GMT

Coordinator

Work Reseach Centre WRC
3 Sundrive Road, Dublin 12 - IRELAND
Tel.: +353 1 4927042
Dr. Richard Wynne - Director

Partners

Irish Business and Employers Confederation - IBEC
Confederation House
84/86 Lower Baggot Street - Dublin 2 - IRELAND
Tel.: +353 605 1500
Frank Cunnen

European Platform for Rehabilitation - EPR
EPR Rue de Spa, 15, Brussels - BELGIUM
Tel: +32 2 7365444
Jan Spooren - Director
Nadege Jibassia - Assistant

EWORX S.A. - EWX
66 Jean Moreas, 15231 Halandri, Athens, GREECE
Tel.: +30 210 6148380
Tilia Boussios - Senior Consultant

National Institute for Disability Management and Research - NIDMAR
30 Shamrock Street, Suite 202
Victoria, BC V8X 2V1 CANADA
Tel: +1 250 386-4388
Wolfgang Zimmerman - Executive Director

Contact

System Administrator — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 09:19:01 GMT

If you would like more information about the Reintegrate Project - Please use the Form below to contact the Project Coordinator - Dr Richard Wynne.

Members Administration

Tilia Boussios — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 15:59:00 GMT

There are two types of Member Account. The first is an Individual Account, where you can register with Re-integrate in order to gain access to the e-learning material contained within the site. With the Individual Account, you can assess your progress in relation to:

Your training needs
Your knowledge of organisational RTW practice
Your level of knowledge of RTW policy and practice

The second is an Organisational Account. This enables you to set up a corporate account for your organisation. This means that you can track the progress of individual members employed by your organisation as they move through the e-learning materials. With the Organisational Account, you can at a group level monitor the progress of staff in relation to:

Their training needs
Their knowledge of organisational RTW practice
The level of knowledge they have of RTW policy and practice

Registering for an organisational account gives you access to this information in a secure and confidential way. You can then actively manage the entire learning process for the nominated staff in your organisation.

About Reintegrate

Tilia Boussios — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 15:48:54 GMT

There is increasing evidence that longer term absenteeism due to ill health is a major and rising problem in many sectors. Features of this trend include the ageing of the workforce, an increased proportion of absence being due to mental health problems and high rates of early retirements due to ill health.

Longer term absence (more than 20 days) typically accounts for about half of all absence and carries significant costs for employers and employees. It may be due to occupational causes (accidents and occupational diseases, but typically more than 70% is due to non-occupational causes.

More responsive approaches on the part of employers and worker representatives can significantly impact on the workability and employment of ill and injured workers. RE-INTEGRATE supports employers in encouraging employees to return to work in a safe and timely manner, thereby reducing costs to the employer and employee and minimising the impacts of absenteeism on the organisation.

RE-INTEGRATE provides a set of tools to improve employer practice in return to work - needs assessment, costs assessment, organisational practice assessment and knowledge assessment. These are provided via a face to face training course and within an e-learning environment.

RE-INTEGRATE can be used by individuals who want to improve their skills and knowledge of return to work practices or by organisations, who wish to improve their corporate performance in return to work.

RE-INTEGRATE is of value to any person involved in managing return to work practices. However, it should be especially useful to Human Resource Staff, line managers and trade unionists. RE-INTEGRATE will also be of use to people who provide services in relation to return to work. These include occupational health personnel, rehabilitation professionals and others.

Welcome to the Re-Integrate Website

Tilia Boussios — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 15:39:00 GMT

Reintegrate aims to return people to work who have become absent because of illness or injury. It supports employers in developing
good practice for timely and appropriate
return to work.

Reintegrate provides information, methods & training for HR and other Managers on
the return to work process.