Primary health condition: patients diagnosed with a primary gastro intestinal cancer who experience work- related problems. - gastro intestinal cancer - work related problems - occupational support - tailored support - return to work
Conditions
Interventions
Intervention: tailored support for work- related problems
Because work- related problems could differ in severity, the intervention is split into three types of supports namely, support A, support B
clinical history, work, work limitations and health status.
Sponsors
Dutch Cancer Society
(in Dutch: KWF kankerbestrijding)
Eligibility
Inclusion criteria
Inclusion criteria: Patients with a primary diagnosis of GI cancer - Esophagus - Stomach - Liver - Pancreas - Biliary - Small Intestine - Colon - Rectum Age between 18 and 63 years old In paid employment or self-employed at time of diagnosis Patients on sick leave (partly or entirely) as a result of related- work problems due to cancer Treatment with a curative intent Patients with sufficient knowledge of the Dutch language (able to understand, speak, read or write) Written informed consent
Exclusion criteria
Exclusion criteria: Severe mental disorder or other severe co- morbidity Patients who will receive primary cancer treatment at another hospital than hospital of recruitment Patients who visit the hospital for a second opinion
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| The primary outcome parameter in this study is return- to- work (RTW). RTW is defined as time to partial or full RTW, meaning the number of calendar days between first day sick leave and first day at work. The patient must have returned to work (part time or full time) for at least 4 weeks successively. | — |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| -Work ability Work ability will be assessed with the first three questions of the Work Ability Index (WAI), using a 10-point scale. These questions concerns the evaluation of current work ability compared to their life time best and current physical and mental work ability with respect to their job demands. -Work limitations Work limitations will be measured with the Work Limitation Questionnaire (WLQ), using a 5-point scale. This questionnaire evaluates the work disability and productivity (loss) in people with health problems. This questionnaire consists four subscales (25 items); work scheduling, physical demands, mental demands/ social demands and output demands. -Quality of life Quality of life (QoL) will be assessed with the SF-12 (12 items) and the EORTC QLQ-C30 (30 items). We are using two questionnaires to measure QoL; with the SF- 12 we could compare the participants in this study with the normal population and with the QLQ-C30 we could compare the QoL of patients with GI cancer against patients with other cancer diagnosis. These questionnaires provide insight in participants’ health, feelings and the ability to carry out usual activities. -Costs Direct and indirect costs including: Costs to carry out the intervention (payment of the disciplines for the intervention meetings /nurse training) [euro’s] Days of hospital admission [days] Income [euro’s] Work adjustments [e.g. no adjustments/reduction working hours/ other tasks plus open question] | — |
Contacts
Public ContactAnneClaire Zaman
Academic Medical Center / Coronel Institute of Occupational Health Room number K0-114
Outcome results
None listed