Researchers at Imperial College London are spearheading a national pilot aimed at revolutionizing the way we approach work and health. With soaring levels of economic inactivity due to ill health in the UK, the team at The Self-Care Academic Research Unit has joined forces with occupational health clinicians and experts from the Department for Work and Pensions. Together, they are implementing a pioneering study that embeds job centre work coaches and disability employment advisors within GP surgeries. Dr Lara Shemtob, Academic Clinical Fellow in General Practice and Occupational Health Physician at Imperial College London writes more about this exciting initiative, the EMBED study, below.
Researchers at Imperial College London are working on a solution to the high levels of economic inactivity due to ill health in the UK. Together, with occupational health clinicians and a team at the Department for Work and Pensions, researchers at The Self-Care Academic Research Unit (SCARU) are delivering and evaluating a pilot study that places job centre work coaches and disability employment advisors in GP surgeries, where people’s work and health needs can be addressed together.
‘This project represents a watershed for work and health in the UK, and a first step to universal access to occupational health.’ - Dr Shriti Pattani, National Expert in Occupational Health & Wellbeing and Honorary Senior Lecturer, Imperial College, London
This topic is high on the policy agenda as levels of economic inactivity due to ill health continue to rise. The challenge of helping people work through ill health will only get more prevalent as the population ages. This could have significant consequences on public sector services in the next future with less people contributing to government revenues through work, and instead becoming more reliant on state support.
The pilot is innovative in delivering timely, place-based joined up care to people with long term health conditions affecting their ability to work. By bringing work coach and disability employment advisor expertise into GP surgeries, the new model leverages the expertise of non-clinical staff to deliver the first tier of support to people who are not working or at risk of falling out of work due to ill health, referred by their GP teams. Preliminary results demonstrate that this is effective and diverts pressure away from healthcare professionals in primary care, where demand is currently very high. People living through ill health can be retained by and even return to the labour market using this model of care, with only the more complex cases requiring specialist input from healthcare professionals.
‘Providing work & health support is key to addressing the social determinants of health and this is now more important than ever in the current economic climate. The EMBED study interrogates the impact of local joined-up care for people navigating issues at the work/health interface.’- Dr Austen El-Osta, Director of Self-Care Academic Research Unit (SCARU)
The longer someone takes sickness absence, the less likely they are to ever return to work. After just four weeks off sick, there is already a 20% chance someone will never return to work. This is why timely intervention is so important. There is currently a gap in the UK healthcare landscape for work and health support, which, less than 50% of employed people can access if offered through their organisation. The people at the lower end of the socioeconomic ladder, such as those in insecure employment on zero hours contracts, or who have been out of work for some time due to ill health, are least likely to have access to health and work support. This pilot has the potential to level the playing field when it comes to work and health, delivering support to the most vulnerable workers and helping get people back to work and stay in work, with positive impact for their health and the economy.