English version - Fit for Work Europe

Executive summary
drug therapies can reduce the severity, impact or progression of the condition; a delay
in diagnosis or treatment can make recovery, job retention or rehabilitation much more
difficult. Clinicians should work more closely with occupational physicians to ensure
that clinical treatment is complemented by appropriate workplace interventions and
vocational rehabilitation.
• Occupational physicians should look beyond legal compliance in maintaining the
health and well-being of employees and tailor vocational rehabilitation to individual
worker needs. When reviewing the safety of workplaces, they should acknowledge not
only the physical, but also the psychological impact of work on health in both manual
and non-manual jobs.
• Employers can change the way in which the work environment is organised (including
simple changes to physical layout or to working time arrangements) to help prevent
MSDs from getting worse and to help people with MSD to stay in, or return to, work.
They need to do this in a way which preserves job quality, avoids excessive or
damaging job demands and takes heed of ergonomic good practice. Employers must
recognise that work environment and working conditions can impact the health of both
manual and non-manual workers. Employers should explore successful examples of
the participatory approach and gain from employees’ first-hand experience to improve
working conditions and work environments.
The evidence presented in this report illustrates that a large proportion of working age people
in Japan are, or will be, directly affected by musculoskeletal conditions (MSDs) in the coming
years. This can have very significant social and economic consequences for these individuals
and their families, it can impede the productive capacity of the total workforce and parts of
Japanese industry and it can draw heavily on the resources of both the health system and the
benefits regime.
We have found important clinical, epidemiological, psychological and economic evidence
and expert opinion on the nature, extent and consequences of the MSD problem in Japan.
However, there still seems to be a lack of coherence or ‘joined-up’ thinking and action which
focuses on extending the working lives of MSD patients. While the number of advocates of
the biopsychosocial model as it applies to all MSDs is growing, its principles are yet to be fully
embraced.
Fit For Work? Musculoskeletal Disorders and the Japanese Labour Market 9