19 research outputs found
Work and family: associations with long-term sick-listing in Swedish women – a case-control study
No full textAbstract Background The number of Swedish women who are long-term sick-listed is high, and twice as high as for men. Also the periods of sickness absence have on average been longer for women than for men. The objective of this study was to investigate the associations between factors in work- and family life and long-term sick-listing in Swedish women. Methods This case-control study included 283 women on long-term sick-listing ≥90 days, and 250 female referents, randomly chosen, living in five counties in Sweden. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses with odds ratios were calculated to estimate the associations between long-term sick-listing and factors related to occupational work and family life. Results Long-term sick-listing in women is associated with self-reported lack of competence for work tasks (OR 2.42 1.23–11.21 log reg), workplace dissatisfaction (OR 1.89 1.14–6.62 log reg), physical workload above capacity (1.78 1.50–5.94), too high mental strain in work tasks (1.61 1.08–5.01 log reg), number of employers during work life (OR 1.39 1.35–4.03 log reg), earlier part-time work (OR 1.39 1.18–4.03 log reg), and lack of influence on working hours (OR 1.35 1.47–3.86 log reg). A younger age at first child, number of children, and main responsibility for own children was also found to be associated with long-term sick-listing. Almost all of the sick-listed women (93%) wanted to return to working life, and 54% reported they could work immediately if adjustments at work or part-time work were possible. Conclusion Factors in work and in family life could be important to consider to prevent women from being long-term sick-listed and promote their opportunities to remain in working life. Measures ought to be taken to improve their mobility in work life and control over decisions and actions regarding theirs lives.</p
Orka jobba till 65?
No full textMånga kvinnor i Sverige närmar sig nu för första gången efter ett långt yrkesliv sin pensionering. De är den första generationen kvinnor i modern tid där de flesta har yrkesarbetat utanför hemmet under en längre period. De har mest jobbat inom vård, skola och omsorg. Undersköterska i äldreomsorg är ett av de allra vanligaste jobben i den här generationen. Det är en yrkesgrupp där arbetssjukdomar och arbetsolyckor är vanliga. Många slutar sina jobb långt före pensionen. En del stannar kvar i jobbet och det är några av de kvinnorna som har intervjuats. Vi ville veta hur de ser på sitt arbete och sitt arbetsliv, hur deras hälsa är och om de tror att de kommer att jobba till 65 år eller möjligen längre. Fokus har varit att i första hand ta reda på vad som är hälsofrämjande. Det är att ha ett salutogent perspektiv och då riktas fokus mot styrkor, resurser och faktorer som bidrar till en god hälsa och välbefinnande.</p
Perspektiv på kvinnors hälsa i arbetslivet
No full textVägen till jämställdhet är lång och än har vi inte nått målet. Den politiska viljan och de sociala normer som styr mäns och kvinnors vardagsliv är ännu inte riktigt i fas. Den könsuppdelade arbetsmarknaden i Sverige betyder lägre löner för kvinnor och mer deltid. Det här skapar ett beroendeförhållande till en partner som har inkomster från ett heltidsarbete eller till bidragsberoende.</p
Job mismatching, unequal opportunities and long-term sickness absence in female white-collar workers in Sweden
No full textAim: To investigate associations between long-term sick-listing and factors at work and in family life. Methods: Associations were investigated in a cross-sectional case-referent study. The study base included women in white-collar jobs, aged 30-55 years, living in three urban areas in Sweden between February 2004 and October 2004. A postal questionnaire was constructed with questions on occupational and family circumstances, and sent to 513 randomly selected female white-collar workers, of whom 233 had ongoing sick-leave of 90 days or more. The response rate was 81% (n = 413). Results: Most of the women in this study were in managerial positions. The unadjusted associations showed that sick-listed women with children showed the highest estimates regarding reported long working hours, bullying, high mental strain, low control and low influence at work, and work-family imbalance. In a regression model, the strongest associations were: experiencing too high mental strain in work tasks (odds ratio (OR) = 2.57, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 2.09-3.15) and low control and influence at work (OR = 2.17, 95% CI = 1.60-2.94). Sick-listed women reported an overall higher dissatisfaction with their workplace and working life. Conclusions: There seems to be a greater tendency for the sick-listed women in this study to experience low control and too high mental strain at work and to live in traditional family relationships with unequal opportunities. The women who were sick-listed were probably less able to cope with work stress and to find a balance between work and family life.</p
(F)Risk i arbetslivet : Om yrkesarbetande kvinnors hälsa, sjukskrivning och arbetsförmåga
No full textDynamic Stress Management : Self-Help through Holistic System Design
No full textDifferent kinds of applications for self-help are available on the Internet today. Some aim to intervene with users' life patterns such as negative stress exposure. It is not always an easy task to manage stressful life situations and to develop and maintain healthy living. It involves learning how to balance perceived demands from working and personal life, and to question underlying thoughts and beliefs. E-health communities can assist in this process through continuous interactions between community members. However, previous studies have shown that combining knowledge of health experts and the experiences of peers can create a good synergy. The question is how these findings can be applied to the area of stress management. In this chapter, the authors present a web-based self-help system for stress management based on a holistic view of actors and their different types of support. The system offers the user information in the form of research and real life stories, practical exercises (both text- and video-based), and the opportunity to interact with health experts and peers, all in an integrated way.</p
Stress Intervention Online : Designing for Self-help through Multiple Help
No full textE-health has undergone many changes during theyears. One is the development of web-based self-help services forpatients and citizens with health concerns. This paper presentsdesign ideas for a stress management web-based system thattakes the development of self-help services further. The aim ofthe system is to help people with mild to intermediate levels ofstress problems change patterns of behavior and take control oftheir stressful life situations. The system includes not only selfhelpthrough individual work with stress-related issues, but italso complements the individual efforts with help from peers andmedical professionals. The system then becomes a platform forcombining multiple help online. The system design ideas haveresulted from research studies and practical experiences of stressmanagement and web-based self-help systems. The paper also presents a couple of scenarios to illustrate in what ways the system usage can be characterized by multiple help online and aholistic approach to stress intervention.</p
Stressmanagment 2.0 : A Holistic Approach to Self-management Online
No full textThe last years have put stress management on the agenda of healthcare. Intense lifestyles with job and domestic demands let people experience high levels of stress and to react strongly to different stressors. Long-term sickness and absence from work can be a consequence of too high stress exposure during a long period of time. This negative trend can be counteracted if we allow a combination of actions to support people who experience stressful lives. Different online programs are available for people with stress symptoms. However, there is a lack of conceptual understanding and a holistic approach to learning online for this group of people. In this article, we present a holistic and integrated approach to ‘stress management 2.0’ that considers several areas: stress management, self-management, informatics and continuous learning through communication and feedback. The approach is based on findings from previous research studies of web based solutions for learning new lifestyles, stress management and results from clinical trials. At the end of the article, we present some design principles to be used for developing systems in accordance with ‘stress management 2.0’ from a holistic view. </p
Understanding long-term sick leave in female white-collar workers with burnout and stress-related diagnoses: a qualitative study
No full textBackground: Sick leave rates in Sweden have been significant since the end of the 1990s. In this paper we focus on individual female white-collar workers and explore various factors and setting-based sources of ill health in working life and in private life, in order to understand impaired work ability, leading ultimately to long-term sick leave. Methods: A qualitative methodology was chosen, and thematic, open-ended interviews were carried out with 16 women. The interviewees were strategically selected from a cohort of 300 women in full-time white-collar jobs in high-level positions, living in three urban areas in Sweden, and on long-term sick leave >= 90 days. A qualitative content analysis was carried out. Results: The informants in the study were generally well educated, but a few had surprisingly little formal education considering their salary level and position on the labour market. The women were in professional positions more commonly held by men, either as specialists with some degree of managerial role or as executives with managerial responsibilities. Both external and internal stressors were identified. The analysis indicated that being in these gender-typed jobs could have induced sex discrimination and role conflicts. The women expressed strong agreement regarding success in working life, but emphasised the lack of competence matching in their present jobs. They also lacked the sense of having a rewarding job, saw leadership as weak, and disliked their present workplace and colleagues. Impaired health may have hindered them from changing jobs; conversely, their locked-in positions could have resulted in deterioration in their health status. The women displayed personal overcommitment, both at work and in private life, and had difficulties in setting limits. Conclusions: Factors in working life, as well as in private life, played an important role in the informants' deteriorated health and long-term sick leave. Job and workplace mismatching, problems in connection with company profitability, and poor leadership contributed to stress-related symptoms, resulting in reduced working capacity. On the basis of these findings, attention should be paid to identification of early indicators of exhaustion, and measures should be taken in work settings and in working life as a whole to promote retained work ability.</p
