@article{ref1,
title="Economic burden of work injuries and diseases: a framework and application in five European Union countries",
journal="BMC public health",
year="2021",
author="van Bree, Thijmen and van Emmerik, Martijn and Porsch, Lukas and Jung, Young and Michaelsen, Frithjof and Tompa, Emile and van den Heuvel, Swenneke and Mofidi, Amirabbas",
volume="21",
number="1",
pages="e49-e49",
abstract="BACKGROUND: Estimates of the economic burden of work injuries and diseases can help policymakers prioritize occupational health and safety policies and interventions in  order to best allocate scarce resources. Several attempts have been made to estimate  these economic burdens at the national level, but most have not included a  comprehensive list of cost components, and none have attempted to implement a  standard approach across several countries. The aim of our study is to develop a  framework for estimating the economic burden of work injuries and diseases and  implement it for selected European Union countries. <br><br>METHODS: We develop an incidence  cost framework using a bottom-up approach to estimate the societal burden of work  injuries and diseases and implement it for five European Union countries. Three  broad categories of costs are considered-direct healthcare, indirect productivity  and intangible health-related quality of life costs. We begin with data on newly  diagnosed work injuries and diseases from calendar year 2015. We consider lifetime  costs for cases across all categories and incurred by all stakeholders. Sensitivity  analysis is undertaken for key parameters. <br><br>RESULTS: Indirect costs are the largest  part of the economic burden, then direct costs and intangible costs. As a percentage  of GDP, the highest overall costs are for Poland (10.4%), then Italy (6.7%), The  Netherlands (3.6%), Germany (3.3%) and Finland (2.7%). The Netherlands has the  highest per case costs (€75,342), then Italy (€58,411), Germany (€44,919), Finland  (€43,069) and Poland (€38,918). Costs per working-age population are highest for  Italy (€4956), then The Netherlands (€2930), Poland (€2793), Germany (€2527) and  Finland (€2331). <br><br>CONCLUSIONS: Our framework serves as a template for estimating the  economic burden of work injuries and diseases across countries in the European Union  and elsewhere. <br><br>RESULTS can assist policymakers with identifying health and safety  priority areas based on the magnitude of components, particularly when stratified by  key characteristics such as industry, injury/disease, age and sex. Case costing can  serve as an input into the economic evaluation of prevention initiatives. Comparisons across countries provide insights into the relevant performance of  health and safety systems.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="1471-2458",
doi="10.1186/s12889-020-10050-7",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12889-020-10050-7"
}