Äldre i arbetslivet

Den demografiska utvecklingen innebär att vi lever längre och den äldre befolkningen ökar samtidigt som personer i arbetsför ålder blir färre. Det innebär en ökad press på socialförsäkringssystemet när en större andel av befolkningen kommer att leva fler år som pensionär samtidigt som en allt mindre ande arbetar och bidrar med skattemedel. Det innebär att vi måste arbeta längre och därför höjs nu pensionsåldern. Men en höjd pensionsålder innebär inte per automatik att fler kan och vill arbeta längre. Det behövs åtgärder för ett hållbart arbetsliv

Child Sexual Abuse: Crimes, Victims, Offender Characteristics, and Recidivism

Background: Epidemiological research on child sexual abuse relies on health care surveys, anonymized population surveys, and criminal statistics, each with its methodological limitations. This study aims at compensating for these limitations by combining a population-based cohort from a large, representative region of Sweden and a clinic-referred group from the whole of Sweden. Subjects and Methods: For all 196 individuals in the Västra Götaland region who were convicted of child sexual abuse between 1993 and 1997, basic crime data, including relationships between victims and offenders, were collected. For all 185 individuals who were referred for a major forensic investigation for child sexual abuse during the same period, data covering mental health problems, including pedophilia according to the DSM-IV, were collected, as were sociodemographic and crime characteristics. For both study groups, the number of reconvictions for sexual and violent reoffending, as well as other criminality, was assessed. Results: Girls were the victims in 85% of all cases of sentenced child sexual abuse, boys in 12%, and both sexes in 3%. Crimes were overall severe, with sexual penetration as the most common act. In most cases, the offenders were well known to the children. The crimes committed by total strangers, 27% of all cases, were most often hands-off in nature. Only 8% of all offenders were referred for a pre-trial forensic psychiatric investigation, and the sentences were mild in many cases. Immigrant offenders were at significantly increased risk for severe sentences, even after controlling for severity of crimes and criminal histories. The relapse frequency in the two study groups was quite low, ranging from 10% to 14% for sexual recidivism and approximately 12% for violent recidivism. Conclusion: Sentenced child sexual abuse most often involves a severe sexual crime against a girl and is committed by a male relative or a male family friend. Compared to international studies, the relapse risk in sexual crimes was low, given the long follow-up period, but highest among offenders with extrafamilial victims compared to those with intrafamilial victims

Occupational therapy and stress-related exhaustion - a scoping review

BackgroundSick leave due to long-term stress is increasing in Finland and other Western countries. Occupational therapists might contribute to the prevention of and/or recovery from stress-related exhaustion.Aims/ObjectivesTo describe what is known about occupational therapy for stress-related exhaustion.Material and MethodsA five-step scoping review included papers published in six databases from 2000 to 2022. Extracted data was summarized to show the occupational therapy contribution within the literature.ResultsThere were 29 papers meeting the inclusion criteria, of which a limited number described preventive interventions. Most articles described recovery-oriented occupational therapy with group interventions. The occupational therapists contributed with prevention measures, mostly targeting recovery in multi-professional interventions in terms of stress reduction or return-to-work.ConclusionsOccupational therapy involving stress management both prevents stress and supports recovery from stress-related exhaustion. Occupational therapists internationally use craft, nature activities or gardening as stress management measures.SignificanceOccupational therapy appears to be a potential treatment option for stress-related exhaustion internationally in conditions that could also work in Finland, for example in occupational healthcare.Peer reviewe

The childhood-onset neuropsychiatric background to adulthood psychopathic traits and personality disorders

Childhood conduct disorder (CD) and adult psychopathic traits according to the Psychopathy Checklist Revised (PCL-R) were the closest psychiatric covariates to repeated violent crimes and aggression among offenders under forensic psychiatric investigation in Sweden. As psychopathy is not included in the present psychiatric diagnostic systems, we compared total and factor PCL-R scores to Axis I disorders, including childhood-onset neuropsychiatric disorders, and to Axis II personality disorders, to establish the convergence of psychopathic traits with other psychiatric diagnoses, and to identify possible unique features. Psychopathic traits were positively correlated with bipolar mood disorder and negatively with unipolar depression. The total PCL-R scores as well as the Factor 2 (unemotionality) and Factor 3 (behavioral dyscontrol) scores were significantly correlated with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, Asperger's syndrome/high-functioning autistic traits, CD, substance abuse, and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition Cluster B personality disorders. The interpersonal Factor 1 showed none of these correlations and may capture features that are specific to psychopathy, distinguishing core psychopathy from other diagnostic definitions

A participatory evaluation of the health promotion programme “more healthy years of life” programme among senior citizens in Sweden

Background: Older adults have, in general, been sparsely involved in development and evaluation of programmes intended to promote their health. Aim: To describe older adults’ reflections on and involvement in the development and evaluation of a health promotion programme. Material and Method: Ten older persons participated in a health promotion programme (HPP) focusing on activity during four sessions. After each HPP session, focus group discussions were held, analysed through qualitative content analysis. Results: The main theme; “Being involved adds value and new experiences to life“, were built from sub-themes; “From sceptical individual to engaged group member”, “From beholder to active co-creator”, and “From individual knowledge recipient to collective knowledge sharer”. Conclusions: Having a leader with a gerontological competence was mentioned as important, as well as to integrate existential topics into the HPP. Social inclusion together with the possibility to influence the HPP had a positive effect on the participants and provided a sense of belonging. Significance: Several contributions to the development of the HPP were given, that would not have been captured without the reflections and involvement of the participants. However, more and larger studies are needed to develop strategies that enable older adult’s involvement in the development of HHP

A scoping review of the incentives for a prolonged work life after pensionable age and the importance of “bridge employment”

Background: With a growing share of older people in almost every population, discussions are being held worldwide about how to guarantee welfare in the immediate future. Different solutions are suggested, but in this article the focus is on the need to keep older employees active in the labor market for a prolonged time. Objective: The aim was to find out and describe the incentives at three system levels for older people 1) wanting, 2) being able, and 3) being allowed to work. Material: The literature search embraced articles from the databases Scopus, PsycInfo, Cinahl, AgeLine and Business Source Premier, from May 2004 until May 2016. After the removal of 507 duplicates, the selection and analysis started with the 1331 articles that met the search criteria. Of these, 58 articles corresponded with the research questions. Method: The design was a ‘scoping review’ of the research area bridge employment and prolonged work life. Results: The results show that most investigations are conducted on individual-level predictors, research on organizational-level predictors is more scattered, and societal-level predictor information is scarce. Conclusions: Attitudes and behavior according to a prolonged work life could be summarized as dependent on good health, a financial gain in combination with flexible alternative working conditions