Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39110387›Full record

Trial reportJournal of occupational rehabilitation2025

Is a Problem-Solving Intervention with Workplace Involvement for Employees on Sickness Absence Due to Common Mental Disorders More Effective, than Care as Usual, in Reducing Sickness Absence Days? Results of a Cluster-Randomised Controlled Trial in Primary Health Care.

Ida Karlsson, Anna Frantz, Iben Axén, Gunnar Bergström, Ute Bültmann, Anna Finnes, Kristina Holmgren, Lydia Kwak, Elisabeth Björk Brämberg

Registry-linked trialAbstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Journal of occupational rehabilitation, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT03346395 (A Problem Solving Based Intervention in Primary Health Care for Facilitating Return-to-work Among People Suffering From Common Mental Disorders - a Cluster-randomized Trial), which is not on this map. Cited by 5 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

NCT03346395 nacompletednot on this map

A Problem Solving Based Intervention in Primary Health Care for Facilitating Return-to-work Among People Suffering From Common Mental Disorders - a Cluster-randomized Trial

TypeinterventionalSponsorKarolinska InstitutetRan2018 to 2023Enrolled197ConditionsDepression, Anxiety Disorders, Adjustment Disorders, Common Mental DisorderArmsProblem solving based intervention, Care as usual
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

5 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Ida KarlssonInstitute of Environmental Medicine, Unit of Intervention and Implementation Research for Worker Health, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden. Ida.karlsson.1@ki.se.
Anna FrantzInstitute of Environmental Medicine, Unit of Intervention and Implementation Research for Worker Health, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
Iben AxénInstitute of Environmental Medicine, Unit of Intervention and Implementation Research for Worker Health, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
Gunnar BergströmInstitute of Environmental Medicine, Unit of Intervention and Implementation Research for Worker Health, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
Ute BültmannDepartment of Health Sciences, Community and Occupational Medicine, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
Anna FinnesDivision of Psychology, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
Kristina HolmgrenDepartment of Health and Rehabilitation, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden.
Lydia KwakInstitute of Environmental Medicine, Unit of Intervention and Implementation Research for Worker Health, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
Elisabeth Björk BrämbergInstitute of Environmental Medicine, Unit of Intervention and Implementation Research for Worker Health, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.

Funding

Forskningsrådet om Hälsa, Arbetsliv och Välfärd 2016-07415
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeThe aim was to evaluate the effectiveness of a problem-solving intervention with workplace involvement (PSI-WPI) added to care as usual (CAU) in reducing sickness absence days among employees with common mental disorders compared to CAU alone in Swedish primary health care on a monthly basis over 18-months follow-up.

methodsWe conducted a cluster-randomised controlled trial including 197 employees blinded to allocation (85 PSI-WPI and 112 CAU). As sickness absence data was skewed and over-dispersed, generalised estimating equations was used to enable a comparison between the intervention and control group for each month of the follow-up period.

resultsThe median number of sickness absence days over the 18-month follow-up was 78 days, inter-quartile range (IQR) 18-196 for employees receiving PSI-WPI and 64 days, IQR 18-161 for employees receiving CAU. The time x group generalised estimating equations analysis showed no statistically significant difference in sickness absence days per month.

conclusionThe addition of a PSI-WPI to CAU was not more effective in reducing sickness absence days. This may be explained by the primary health care context, lack of specialisation in occupational health and the Swedish social insurance system with specific time limits.

trial registrationThe trial was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov, identifier: NCT03346395 on January 12th, 2018.

Indexed as

AbsenteeismMental DisordersProblem SolvingSick LeaveWorkplaceAdultFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedPrimary Health CareSwedenAdjustment disorderAnxiety disorderDepressionPrimary health careProblem-solving interventionWork-directed intervention

Identifiers

PMID39110387
PMCPMC12361263

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.