Return-to-work, disabilities and occupational health in the age of COVID-19

We have read with great interest the two editorials by Burdorf et al: “The COVID-19 pandemic: one year later – an occupational perspective” (1) and “The COVID-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic: consequences for occupational health” (2). The authors highlight the importance of the societal consequences of the outbreak and changes in the world of work to manage occupa tional health. The key points identified – such as individual socio­economic factors, psychological effects and occupations with highest risk of contamination – modify return-to-work approaches. It is estimated that around 800 million people of working age worldwide were living with disabilit ies before the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. In early January 2021, the cumulative COVID-19 hospitalisation rate reached 207.4/100 000 (18–49-year-olds) and 505.7/100 000 (50–64-year-olds), respectively, in the United States (3). In France, the hospitalisation rate was 411.5/100 000 across all ages (4). A recent cohort study of working-age men who were hospitalised for COVID-19 highlighted the long-term health consequences of such a disease (5). The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic creates new challenges for occupational health, shifting attention away from return-to-work after health problems to resuming work during an outbreak, dealing with lockdown, and taking special account of workers with vulnerabilities (6, 7). We recommend considering three different aspects of occupational medicine during a pandemic. Firstly, for most worker...
Source: Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment and Health - Category: Occupational Health Tags: Letter to the Editor Source Type: research