Monique H W Frings-Dresen

University of Amsterdam | UVA · Coronel Institute for Occupational and Environmental Health

We investigated the effect of tactile guided slow deep breathing compared with that of spontaneous breathing on blood oxygen saturation (SpO2), alertness, and hypoxia symptoms during acute hypobaric hypoxia. We also evaluated the usability of this tactile breathing guidance. Twelve male military pilots were exposed to a simulated altitude of 4,572...

We investigated the effect of hypoxia on the reaction time (RT) and response accuracy of pilots performing a visual choice reaction task that corresponded to the scanning of helmet mounted display (HMD) symbology. Eighteen male military pilots performed the task in a hypobaric chamber at two simulated altitudes (92 m and 4572 m) in a single-blinded...

Aandoeningen van de bovenste extremiteit geven vaak beperkingen in werk. Voor behandelend orthopeden is een vragenlijst ontwikkeld (WORQ-UP) met als doel het signaleren van beperkingen. Daarmee kunnen, in overleg met de bedrijfs- of verzekeringsarts, behandelingen worden aangepast aan specifieke werkgerelateerde behoeften van patiënten.

Background Breast cancer survivors can be at high risk of having work-related problems. Previous studies suggest that GPs could discuss work participation with cancer patients and provide guidance. The aim this study is to explore the experiences and expectations of breast cancer survivors with their GPs’ role regarding guidance on work participati...

Purpose To explore views of general practitioners (GPs) and occupational physicians (OPs) on the role of GPs in work guidance of cancer patients. Methods Between 2016 and 2019, two focus groups with GPs (N = 17) and two focus groups with OPs (N = 10) were conducted. Focus group discussions were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim. Transcripts were...

Background: As part of the development of the World Health Organization (WHO)/International Labour Orga- nization (ILO) Joint Estimates of the Work-related Burden of Disease and Injury, WHO and ILO carried out several systematic reviews to determine the prevalence of exposure to selected occupational risk factors. Risk of bias assessment for indivi...

Background: A guideline for occupational health professionals (OHPs) is developed which provides them with knowledge and skills to optimize their guidance to people with a chronic disease. Objective: Developing a training programme to acquire and apply knowledge and skills provided by the guideline, through a bottom-up approach. Methods: First...

Introduction Stress-related disorders are frequently reported in the working population, with varying incidence rates of 13% for psychological distress up to 22% for emotional exhaustion with even higher prevalence rates in specific professions and countries. The objective of this systematic review and meta-analysis is to examine which work-related...

Background: Return to work (RTW) is an important outcome in Total Knee Arthroplasty (TKA). At present, 70-80%of TKA patients return to work within three to six months. Objective: What are patients' perspectives regarding beneficial and limiting factors in RTW after TKA? Methods: Focus groups were formed in accordance with the Consolidated Crit...

Background Both the presence of psychological problems and the absence of an employment contract are related to long-term sickness absence, prolonged work disability and unemployment. Studies researching the effectiveness of return-to-work interventions on these non-permanent workers, including unemployed and temporary agency workers and workers wi...

Purpose To study the longitudinal relationship between interdisciplinary vocational rehabilitation (VR) with and without additional work module on work participation of patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain and sick leave from work. Methods Retrospective longitudinal data retrieved from care as usual in seven VR centers in the Netherlands was...

Background: The World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Labour Organization (ILO) are developing joint estimates of the work-related burden of disease and injury (WHO/ILO Joint Estimates), with contributions from a large network of experts. Evidence from mechanistic data suggests that occupational exposure to ergonomic risk factors ma...

Background: Structured work support needs assessment could facilitate professionals and increase assessment consistency. Objectives: Evaluating usability of the Work Support Needs Assessment Tool and test if professionals' (labour experts, coaches) findings become more consistent after a tool training. The tool includes a 21 item checklist for a...

Background: The World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Labour Organization (ILO) are developing joint estimates of the work-related burden of disease and injury (WHO/ILO Joint Estimates), with contributions from a large network of experts. Evidence from mechanistic and human data suggests that occupational exposure to ergonomic (or...

BACKGROUND: Return to work (RTW) is an important outcome in Total Knee Arthroplasty (TKA). At present, 70-80% of TKA patients return to work within three to six months. OBJECTIVE: What are patients’ perspectives regarding beneficial and limiting factors in RTW after TKA? METHODS: Focus groups were formed in accordance with the Consolidated Criteri...

Background: Work is valued as an important feature in life, however patients diagnosed with cancer can experience work-related problems. We developed a work-related support intervention to support those in need. Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of the performed tailored GIRONA (Gastro Intestinal cancer patie...

Background: Accumulating evidence suggests that cancer survivors are able to return to work. However, little is known about their work situation 5 years after diagnosis. Objective: To explore fluctuations in employment status and its association with quality of life 2, 3, and 5 years after cancer diagnosis of 65 cancer survivors employed at diag...

Objective To provide an overview of the availability of and process involved in vocational rehabilitation (VR) services for people with acquired brain injury (ABI) provided in Dutch rehabilitation institutions. Methods A survey on the availability and characteristics of the VR intervention process for people with ABI was conducted in all Dutch reh...

Purpose: To explore the usefulness and feasibility of a comprehensive vocational rehabilitation (C-VR) program and less comprehensive (LC-VR) program for workers on sick leave due to chronic musculoskeletal pain, from the perspective of patients, professionals, and managers. Materials and methods: Semi-structured interviews were held with patients,...

Background Cancer survivors’ perspectives on a successful return to work (RTW) may not be captured in the common measure of RTW, namely time until RTW.Objective The purpose of this study was therefore to develop an RTW outcome measure that reflects employed cancer survivors’ perspectives, with items that could be influenced by an employer, i.e. the...

The objective of this study is to assess how occupational physicians (OPs) and insurance physicians (IPs) can best obtain information concerning cognitions and perceptions from employees with a chronic disease. In total, 155 OPs and 56 IPs have completed a questionnaire about obtaining information concerning these factors. In addition, focus group...

Abstract Background Employers express a need for support to facilitate the return to work (RTW) process of employees with cancer. We have developed the MiLES intervention, an online toolbox targeting employers during the RTW of employees with cancer. To evaluate the MiLES intervention, we propose the design of a pilot randomised controlled trial (R...

Stress can affect work ability. The aim of this study was to identify how this pathway is mediated over time in young adults. Participants of the Work Ability in Young Adults cohort were selected. A theoretical framework was built, which lead to a statistical model. Selected dimensions of mediators were recovery, work demands affecting private life...

Purpose To perform a process evaluation of a tailored work-related support intervention for patients diagnosed with gastrointestinal cancer. Methods The intervention comprised three tailored psychosocial work-related support meetings. To outline the process evaluation of this intervention, we used six key components: recruitment, context, reach, d...

Purpose Implementation of return to work (RTW) programs for cancer survivors has proved to be challenging. The purpose of our study was to gather experiences about barriers to and facilitators of implementing RTW programs for cancer survivors in four European countries. Methods Separate multidisciplinary focus groups were held in Belgium (n = 8), t...

Purpose Three out of ten patients do not return to work after total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Patient expectations are suggested to play a key role. What are patients’ expectations regarding the ability to perform work-related knee-demanding activities 6 months after TKA compared to their preoperative status? Methods A multi-center cross-sectional s...

Background: Occupational stress-related disorders are complex to diagnose and prevent, due to their multifactorial origin. We developed an e-learning programme aimed at supporting occupational physicians when diagnosing and preventing occupational stress-related disorders. In order to explore the extent to which a developed e-learning prototype wa...

Purpose The purpose of this study was to improve the measurement of participation. Research questions were as follows: (1) What constitutes participation according to adults? (2) Do they mention participation subdomains that are not covered in the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) item bank “Ability to Participate in...

BACKGROUND: In the treatment of Lateral Epicondylitis (LE) no single intervention concerning injection therapies has been proven to be the most effective with regard to pain reduction. In this trial 3 injection therapies (perforation with application of autologous blood, perforation with application of dextrose and perforation only) will be compare...

Sciatica impacts on the ability to work and may lead to a reduced return to work. This study reviewed and summarised prognostic factors of work participation in patients who received conservative or surgical treatment for clinically diagnosed sciatica. We searched MEDLINE, CINAHL, EMBASE and PsycINFO until January 2018. Cohort studies, using a meas...

Background: This randomized controlled trial (RCT) evaluates the effectiveness of a self-management toolbox designed to maintain work ability and vitality in coach drivers over their peak season. Methods: The intervention group received a self-management intervention providing advice aimed at increasing work ability and vitality. These suggestions...

Background Although overuse wrist injuries can have serious consequences, young athletes often do not immediately report their injury to a physician. This qualitative study aimed to identify symptoms and limitations related to overuse wrist injuries that young athletes consider important and to compare those with sports physicians’ opinions, in ord...

INTRODUCTION: A flight is composed of many flight performance aspects. However, not all of these aspects are equally important for the success and safety of a flight. When investigating the influence of a stressor on flight performance, it is important to understand not only which flight performance aspects are important for the success and the saf...

Objective: Person-related factors influencing work participation of employees with health problems are important. However, the best method to obtain information about them according to occupational physicians (OPs) and insurance physicians (IPs), is unknown. Methods: Questionnaires in which OPs and IPs rated the importance of and described methods...

Introduction Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a highly prevalent disease with reported prevalence up to 12%. Although smoking is one of the main factors in causing COPD, evidence from systematic reviews grows that also occupational exposures contribute. To examine whether work-related risk factors are associated with chronic pulmonar...

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess test-retest reliability, agreement, and responsiveness of questionnaires on productivity loss (iPCQ-VR) and healthcare utilization (TiCP-VR) for sick-listed workers with chronic musculoskeletal pain who were referred to vocational rehabilitation. Methods Test-retest reliability and agreement was ass...

Background Assessment of prognosis of work functioning is a challenging aspect of work disability evaluations. To gain insight into this process, we conducted a qualitative study to determine the aspects considered and the difficulties, needs and potential solutions affecting the prognosis assessment by physicians performing disability evaluations....

Purpose: To study the feasibility (limited efficacy, acceptability, and implementation) of a training program for insurance physicians. Methods: Limited efficacy was evaluated over time (T0–T2) by conducting knowledge question tests using realistic case scenarios, analyzed by non-parametric Friedman and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests. Acceptability was...

The implementation and use of ergonomic measures is dependent on behavioural changes of both employers and employees. In these stakeholder-groups different barriers could emerge with respect to using ergonomic measures. Participatory strategies – guided by professional ergonomic consultants – are thought to stimulate behavioural change of the stake...

Various interventions to prevent occupational injuries in the construction industry have been proposed and studied. This continuing updated Cochrane review systematically summarizes the most current scientific evidence on the effectiveness of interventions to prevent injuries associated with construction work. Search terms that covered the concepts...

Het Nederlands Centrum voor Beroepsziekten (NCvB) heeft een beroepsziekteregistratierichtlijn ontwikkeld voor Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). Uit systematisch literatuuronderzoek komt naar voren dat blootstelling aan schadelijke stoffen op het werk kan bijdragen aan het ontstaan of verergeren van COPD. Werknemers die zijn blootgesteld...

Background: The World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Labour Organization (ILO) are developing a joint methodology for estimating the national and global work-related burden of disease and injury (WHO/ILO joint methodology), with contributions from a large network of experts. In this paper, we present the protocol for two systemati...

To improve the use of ergonomics tools by construction workers, the effect of two guidance strategies – a face-to-face strategy (F2F) and an e-guidance strategy (EG) – of a participatory ergonomics intervention was studied. Twelve construction companies were randomly assigned to the F2F group or the EG group. The primary outcome measure, the percen...

Background: Upper extremity musculoskeletal disorders (UEMSD) is reported worldwide as the second-largest occupational musculoskeletal disorder in agriculture. Objective: The objective of the study is to identify facilitators and barriers for employers and workers for implementing interventions to reduce work-related risk factors associated with...

Background To evaluate whether a training programme is a feasible approach to facilitate occupational health professionals’ (OHPs) use of knowledge and skills provided by a guideline. Methods Feasibility was evaluated by researching three aspects: ‘acceptability’, ‘implementation’ and ‘limited efficacy’. Statements on acceptability and implementat...

Objective: To investigate the differences in return to work (RTW), participants' satisfaction, and costs of early versus late vocational rehabilitation after acquired brain injury (ABI). Design: Longitudinal, prospective study. Setting: Two Dutch rehabilitation centres that implemented either the Early Vocational Rehabilitation (EVR) or the Late...

Background The Pain Disability Index (PDI) is a widely-used instrument to measure pain-related disability. The aim of this study was to assess the responsiveness and interpretation of change score of the PDI in patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain (CMP) at discharge of vocational rehabilitation. Methods Retrospective data of patients with CMP...

To assess the responsiveness and interpretability of the Quality of Working Life Questionnaire for Cancer Survivors (QWLQ‐CS). A cohort study was conducted in which 130 (self‐)employed cancer survivors completed the QWLQ‐CS at baseline and 107 at follow‐up and six single‐item external anchors to measure change. Cancer survivors were diagnosed betwe...

Objective: Clinicians need to know whether lumbosacral radiculopathy syndrome (LRS) can be attributed to work. This review describes what work-related risk factors are associated with LRS. Methods: A systematic review was performed in PubMed and Embase. Inclusion criteria were that LRS was diagnosed by a clinician and workers exposed to work-rel...

In The Netherlands, occupational physicians are obligated to report occupational diseases (ODs) to the Netherlands Center for Occupational Diseases (NCOD). Evidence-based occupational disease guidelines have been developed for musculoskeletal disorders. At the moment, the NCOD has 23 guidelines for work-related musculoskeletal disorders. The aim of...

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0161749.].

Supplementary dataset. This file includes the data underlying Table 2. (XLSX)

Purpose and methods Cancer survivors have a higher risk of adverse work outcomes such as not being able to return to work (RTW). The process of returning to work is complex as a result of the diverse stakeholders and numerous factors involved related to the employee diagnosed with cancer, the work environment, health care system, and the legal syst...

Purpose: The objective of this systematic review was to explore and provide systematically assessed information about the association between person-related factors and work participation of people with health problems. The research question was: what is the association between selected person-related factors and work participation of workers with...

Sinds haar benoeming tot afdelingshoofd van het Coronel Instituut voor Arbeid en Gezondheid bij het AMC in september 2017 maakte Judith Sluiter er een gewoonte van de medewerkers van de afdeling aan het einde van de week een afdelingsinformatiemail met wetenswaardigheden en ontwikkelingen te sturen. De vlak na Pasen gestuurde afdelingsinformatiemai...

Objectives: Objectives were to: (1) longitudinally assess transitions in employment status of employees with and without chronic disease; and (2) assess predictors of exit from paid employment. Methods: Transitions in employment status at 1- and 2-year follow-up were assessed in a longitudinal cohort study of employees aged 15-63 years. Generali...

Background: The benefits and risks of performing popular wrist-loading sports at a young age have not been investigated systematically. We aimed to evaluate positive and negative long-term wrist-related health effects of sports performance requiring repetitive wrist loading during youth. Methods: Six databases were searched for cohort and cross-...

Objective: A 17-item questionnaire, the Work-Related Questionnaire for the UPper extremity (WORQ-UP) was tested for dimensionality of the items (factor analysis) and internal consistency. Design: Cross-sectional study SETTING: Outpatient clinic PARTICIPANTS: All new referral patients (either from a general physician or other hospital), that visi...

Background: To assess the factorial structure, internal consistency, construct validity and reproducibility of the Quality of Working Life Questionnaire for Cancer Survivors (QWLQ-CS). Methods: An Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) was performed on QWLQ-CS data from a sample of employed cancer survivors to establish the final number of items and...

Dit literatuuronderzoek geeft een overzicht van de huidige beschikbare kennis op het gebied van terugkeer naar werk na een beroerte met betrekking tot de beoordeling van functionele mogelijkheden, prognostische factoren, interventies en het patiëntenperspectief. Richtlijnen, protocollen en wetenschappelijke literatuur (uit 2005-2016) zijn meegenome...

Purpose: The aim of this study is to develop a patient-reported outcome measure (PROM) that identifies work-related limitations among patients with upper extremity musculoskeletal disorders in order to enhance work-directed care in daily orthopaedic practice, and to assess its content validity. Methods: The questionnaire was developed following...

Aim is the development of a work-related support intervention, tailored to the severity of work-related problems of patients diagnosed with gastrointestinal (GI) cancer treated with curative intent. Two methods were used: (1) Work-related problems were identified from the literature and submitted to an expert panel during a modified Delphi study. E...

Background Chronic work-related stress is quite prevalent in the working population and is in some cases accompanied by long-term sick leave. These stress complaints highly impact employees and are costly due to lost productivity and medical expenses. A new treatment platform with light therapy plus Pulsed Electro Magnetic Fields (PEMF) in combinat...

Recent heeft het Coronel Instituut de richtlijn ‘Chronisch Ziek en Werk’ ontwikkeld. Aanleiding van deze richtlijn is dat werk(zoek)enden met een chronische ziekte vaak tegen dezelfde moeilijkheden aanlopen en dezelfde oplossingen hebben in het behouden van of terugkeren naar werk. De methode van ontwikkeling volgde de stappen van de evidence-based...

OBJECTIVES: To study the incidence, diagnostics, treatment, anatomical region and return to play of non-acute groin injuries among professional footballers in the Netherlands. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. METHODS: Medical staff members of all Dutch professional football clubs, recording prospectively injury occurrence of all professional footb...

Objective To examine the association between work-related physical risk factors and clinically assessed specific soft tissue shoulder disorders like supraspinatus tendinitis and impingement. Methods Medline and Embase were searched from 2009 until 24 march 2016 and references were added of a systematic review on this topic describing studies publi...