Newswise — SAN FRANCISCO — A diagnosis of arthritis in a baby boomer doesn’t mean that person should exit the workforce. Two studies, presented this week at the American College of Rheumatology Annual Meeting in San Francisco, show this growing group often returns to work after retirement and takes little advantage of workplace accommodations for their disease.
Arthritis is a term for more than 100 diseases and conditions. Typically arthritis is a shortened word used for osteoarthritis, but it is sometimes used when describing inflammatory rheumatic diseases like rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis.
Canadian researchers recently completed two studies of 631 people with osteoarthritis and/or an inflammatory rheumatic disease to learn about their retirement patterns as well as their use of workplace accommodations.
“We realized that, despite an aging workforce in many countries, there were few studies with workers living with arthritis that had examined existing workplace policies and accommodations, whether workers with arthritis used them or found them helpful in sustaining work, and what the retirement plans were in this group,” explains lead investigator in the studies, Monique A.M. Gignac, PhD; associate scientific director & senior scientist, Institute for Work and Health; professor, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto. “This information is not only helpful to people living with arthritis and their physicians, but is also critical for employers who want to retain older workers and who need information about the potential value of current workplace practices.”
The participants were predominately female with an average age of 59, and 70 percent suffered from osteoarthritis. All participants were currently employed, spoke English or French and had some form or arthritis and no other disabling disease.
Through an online or phone survey, the researchers obtained demographic information (age, gender, education); work context (job sector, hours, physical work); workplace practices (health benefits, flexible hours, special equipment/adaptations, modified duties, altered work schedules, work-at-home arrangements); job outcomes (absenteeism, productivity loss, job disruptions) health information (pain, fatigue); planned retirement age and expectations; plans for returning to work after retirement (bridge employment); and work context (job sector, hours, physical work, self-employment). Then, they compared the responses of these participants to 538 additional participants who were considered healthy and had no chronic, disabling conditions.
The two groups were similar in many demographic and work context factors as well as in availability of workplace policies to manage work and health. Those with arthritis reported significantly poorer health in regards to pain, fatigue and workplace activity limitation. Yet, there were few differences in their reports of needing or using workplace policies when compared to the group with no health issues as well as policy use and job outcomes – with the exception that more people with arthritis reported needing and using modified job duties and special or adapted equipment. “Fewer than one in five people with arthritis needed modified job duties or special or adapted equipment. Job modifications were often limiting the amount of walking a person did at work or giving people opportunities to stretch or take a break more frequently. Special equipment included an ergonomic chair, built-up keyboard or thick grip tools. Often these accommodations can be given to workers at little financial expense or loss to productivity,” explains Dr. Gignac. Interestingly, all participants (both with and without arthritis) who had unmet accommodation needs at work reported greater work stress, health variability, productivity loss and job disruptions. Unmet needs in those with arthritis also was related to greater fatigue and workplace activity limitations. Conversely, the researchers found that respondents whose needs were exceeded at work had the lowest levels of fatigue, activity limitations, productivity loss and job disruptions.
“Most people in the study reported that their accommodation needs were met,” says Dr. Gignac. “But, we were especially intrigued by the finding that people who used some accommodations prior to needing them reported fewer health and workplace problems. We need additional research, but the findings suggest potential benefits, not only to using workplace practices in response to periods of exacerbated symptoms, but also to a proactive approach to using accommodations. This might even help individuals anticipate and avoid difficulties from occurring.” Dr. Gignac’s team also looked at looked at retirement among this group of participants. “There is concern with the belief that an aging workforce results in lost skills and high burden on pension programs,” she notes. “This has resulted in the dissolution of mandatory retirement in many countries and an expectation that older adults will work longer, including in bridge employment (retiring from a main career but continuing to work in a new job/capacity).”
Participants with arthritis in this study reported significantly poorer health, but they didn’t plan to retire any earlier than those who were considered healthy; both groups planned to retire around the age of 65. However, when considering retirement, health factors were significant motivators for the participants with arthritis. But, that didn’t necessarily correlate with a lack of desire to work full or part time after retirement, and some reported retiring early and returning to work.
Finally, the researchers found that those considered to be healthy who were working in bridge employment were either self-employed or working at companies with fewer than 50 people, while those with arthritis were more likely to take contract or part-time work – often due to financial needs.
“These studies highlight the value that people with arthritis place on employment and their desire to remain productive with age,” Dr. Gingnac concludes. “Many study participants were able to remain employed with only modest needs for existing workplace accommodations. This is potentially good news for workers with arthritis and their employers. It suggests that aging workers with chronic conditions like arthritis can continue working, get the accommodations they need and not be a drain on workplace resources. This allows employers to retain skilled workers. The findings also suggest that giving up work may not be the end of an individual’s working life. Many study participants were able to transition to new jobs with scheduling demands that enabled them to keep working.”
About the American College of RheumatologyHeadquartered in Atlanta, Ga., the American College of Rheumatology is an international medical society representing over 9,400 rheumatologists and rheumatology health professionals with a mission to Advance Rheumatology! In doing so, the ACR offers education, research, advocacy and practice management support to help its members continue their innovative work and provide quality patient care. Rheumatologists are experts in the diagnosis, management and treatment of more than 100 different types of arthritis and rheumatic diseases. For more information, visit www.rheumatology.org.
About the ACR/ARHP Annual MeetingThe ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting is the premier meeting in rheumatology. For more information about the meeting, visit www.acrannualmeeting.org/ or join the conversation on Twitter by using the official #ACR15 hashtag.
ACR Abstracts 3265 & 3266 www.acrabstracts.org/
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