Abstract

Problems with mental health are a major issue for public health and work-life balance. In a quasi-experimental setting, we investigated the possibility of reducing subsequent sickness absence (SA) due to mental disorders among younger Finnish workers. Using register data from the Social Insurance Institution of Finland and the City of Helsinki, this study looked at employees of the City of Helsinki who were between the ages of 18 and 39. During a one-year follow-up, we compared the comparison group's SA days due to mental disorders (ICD-10, F-diagnosed sickness allowances) to those in the treatment group, who had at least one OHP appointment for work ability support. Employees who were diagnosed with SA between 2008 and 2017 comprised the full sample (n = 2286, 84% women). Participants were matched based on age, sex, occupational class, education, previous SA, occupational health primary care visits, and psychotropic medication to account for systematic differences between the treatment and comparison groups. 1351 people participated in the weighted and matched sample. During the follow-up year, the mean number of SA days due to mental disorders in the weighted matched sample was 11.4 (95 percent CI, 6.4–16.5) for those who were treated (n = 238) and 20.2 (95 percent CI, 17.0–23.4) for the comparison group. The treatment group (n = 288) had an average of (11.1, 6.7–15.4) days, while the comparison group had an average of (18.9, 16.7–21.1). According to the findings of this quasi-experimental study, seeing an OHP to support work ability reduces SA caused by mental disorders.