Article

The aim was to explore experiences of capacity to work in persons
working while depressed and anxious in order to identify the essence of the
phenomenon capacity to work. METHOD: Four focus groups were conducted with 17
participants employed within the regular job market. Illness experiences ranged
from symptoms to clinical diagnoses. A phenomenological approach was employed.
RESULTS: The phenomenon of capacity to work was distinguished by nine
constituents related to task, time, context and social interactions. The
phenomenon encompassed a lost familiarity with one's ordinary work performance,
the use of a working facade and adoption of new time-consuming work practices.
Feelings of exposure in interpersonal encounters, disruption of work place order,
lost "refueling" and a trade-off of between work capacity and leisure-time
activities was also identified. The reduced capacity was pointed out as
invisible, this invisibility was considered troublesome. CONCLUSIONS: A complex
and comprehensive concept emerged, not earlier described in work capacity
studies. Rehabilitation processes would benefit from deeper knowledge of the
individual's capacity to work in order to make efficient adjustments at work.
Results can have particular relevance both in clinical and occupational health
practice, as well as in the workplaces, in supporting re-entering workers after
sickness absence. Implications for Rehabilitation The reduced capacity to work
due to depression and anxiety is not always understandable or observable for
others, therefore, the rehabilitation process would benefit from increased
knowledge and understanding of the difficulties afflicted individuals experience
at work. Identifying tasks that contribute to "refueling" at work might enhance
the success of the rehabilitation. Rehabilitation programs could be tailored to
better address the inabilities that impact on the capacity to work when depressed
and anxious.

Langue : ANGLAIS