Public Health Department, Liège University, Liège, Belgium.
BMC Public Health. 2013 Apr 8;13:305. doi: 10.1186/1471-2458-13-305.
Public authorities in European countries are paying increasing attention to the promotion of work ability throughout working life and the best method to monitor work ability in populations of workers is becoming a significant question. The present study aims to compare the assessment of work ability based on the use of the Work Ability Index (WAI), a 7-item questionnaire, with another one based on the use of WAI's first item, which consists in the worker's self-assessment of his/her current work ability level as opposed to his/her lifetime best, this single question being termed "Work Ability score" (WAS).
Using a database created by an occupational health service, the study intends to answer the following questions: could the assessment of work ability be based on a single-item measure and which are the variables significantly associated with self-reported work ability among those systematically recorded by the occupational physician during health examinations? A logistic regression model was used in order to estimate the probability of observing "poor" or "moderate" WAI levels depending on age, gender, body mass index, smoking status, position held, firm size and diseases reported by the worker in a population of workers aged 40 to 65 and examined between January 2006 and June 2010 (n=12389).
The convergent validity between WAS and WAI was statistically significant (rs=0.63). In the multivariable model, age (p<0.001), reported diseases (OR=1.13, 95%CI [1.11-1.15]) and holding a position mostly characterized by physical activity (OR=1.67, 95%CI [1.49-1.87]) increased the probability of reporting moderate or poor work ability. A work position characterized by the predominance of mental activity (OR=0.71, 95%CI [0.61-0.84]) had a favourable impact on work ability. These relations were observed regardless of the work ability measurement tool used.
The convergent validity and the similarity in results between WAI and WAS observed in a large population of employed workers should thus foster the use of WAS for systematic screening of work ability. Ageing, overweight, decline in health status, holding a mostly physical job and working in a large-sized firm increase the risk of presenting moderate or poor work ability.
欧洲国家的公共当局越来越关注整个工作生涯中的工作能力提升，以及监测工人群体工作能力的最佳方法正在成为一个重要问题。本研究旨在比较基于使用工作能力指数（WAI）的工作能力评估，这是一个 7 项问卷，与另一个基于使用 WAI 的第一项的工作能力评估，该评估由工人对其当前工作能力水平与他/她一生最佳水平的自我评估组成，这个单一问题被称为“工作能力得分”（WAS）。
使用由职业健康服务机构创建的数据库，该研究旨在回答以下问题：能否基于单项措施评估工作能力，以及在职业医生在健康检查期间系统记录的那些变量中，哪些变量与自我报告的工作能力显著相关？使用逻辑回归模型来估计根据年龄、性别、体重指数、吸烟状况、职位、公司规模和工人报告的疾病，观察到“较差”或“中等”WAI 水平的概率，该研究对象为 2006 年 1 月至 2010 年 6 月期间接受检查的年龄在 40 至 65 岁之间的工人（n=12389）。
WAS 与 WAI 之间的收敛效度具有统计学意义（rs=0.63）。在多变量模型中，年龄（p<0.001）、报告的疾病（OR=1.13，95%CI [1.11-1.15]）和主要从事体力活动的职位（OR=1.67，95%CI [1.49-1.87]）增加了报告中等或较差工作能力的概率。以脑力活动为主的工作职位（OR=0.71，95%CI [0.61-0.84]）对工作能力有积极影响。这些关系在使用不同的工作能力测量工具时都观察到。
在一个大型就业工人群体中观察到的 WAI 和 WAS 之间的收敛效度和结果相似性，因此应该促进使用 WAS 进行工作能力的系统筛查。年龄增长、超重、健康状况下降、从事体力劳动工作和在大型公司工作会增加表现出中等或较差工作能力的风险。
