As Governments Take Steps To Maintain Employment Levels, A New European Study Considers The Socio-economic Impacts Of Unemployment

Main Category: Public Health
Article Date: 14 Jan 2009 - 0:00 PDT

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A groundbreaking study is launched today in 24 countries across Europe to understand how certain chronic health conditions affect people's ability to work and make contributions to society. The study will also consider the impact on public welfare systems of supporting significant numbers of people who are unable to participate in labour markets.

The study, called "Fit for Work," is led by The Work Foundation, a UK-based not-for-profit research and consultancy organisation. It will assess the prevalence and impact of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs), such as rheumatoid arthritis, chronic lower back pain and injuries to joints, muscles and tendons. It will examine how these conditions affect a person's daily life and what cost they place upon societies as a whole.

"We are concerned that MSDs have a serious, negative impact on the EU workforce - but not as much is understood about them as about many other workplace conditions, such as stress," says Stephen Bevan, managing director of the The Work Foundation. "In these recessionary times, it is more vital than ever that those who can work should be able to work and that welfare systems do not bear potentially huge unnecessary costs. Our fear is that because not enough is known about these conditions and how to treat them that thousands of people with musculoskeletal conditions are being unnecessarily excluded from work at a huge economic and social cost to Europe. We are undertaking this study to better understand how earlier diagnosis and medical intervention can have a positive impact on health and economic outcomes in the EU over the coming years."

According to Maarten de Wit, EULAR Vice President, representing People with Arthritis/Rheumatism in Europe: "Governments, healthcare professionals and patient organisations need to work together to improve the treatment, prevention and rehabilitation of musculoskeletal disease to enable people to stay in work and reduce the burden of rheumatic diseases on the individual and society."

The study was initiated this month and will run until April 2009. Data will be collected from 24 countries by The Work Foundation researchers with the support of national partners in each country. The Work Foundation aims to report its key findings to employment and health policy-makers at a presentation in Brussels on 15 April 2009.

For more information, visit http://www.fitforworkeurope.eu

About Musculoskeletal Disorders

Musculoskeletal disorders is an umbrella term covering over 200 conditions that affect the muscles, joints, tendons, ligaments, peripheral nerves and supporting blood vessels, causing pain and functional impairment to sufferers (Punnett et al, 2004).

About The Work Foundation

The Work Foundation is a not-for-profit organisation that through research, consultancy and advocacy aims to improve the quality of working life. Working with both public sector and private sector organisations, it offers a distinctive mix of practical consultancy, robust research and campaigning on policy issues. It also runs a major programme of research and consultancy around Health and Wellbeing issues.

About the Fit for Work initiative

The Work Foundation's Fit for Work project is supported by a research grant from Abbott, a global, broad-based healthcare company. Fit for Work reports are produced independently by The Work Foundation, with full editorial control resting with The Work Foundation alone.

Fit for Work initiative