Asiointiprosessi ja palvelukokemus erikoissairaanhoidossa : sydänpotilaan näkökulma

Opinnäytetyön tarkoituksena oli selvittää asiointiprosessin vaiheet erikoissairaanhoidossa asiakkaiden näkökulmasta ja millaisen palvelukokemuksen he ovat asioinnista saaneet. Tavoitteena oli saada tietoa asiointiprosessin vaiheista ja palvelukokemukseen vaikuttavista tekijöistä sekä samalla kerätä mahdollisia kehittämisideoita. Tämä opinnäytetyö kuuluu projektiin potilaan ja omaisen asiointiprosessi erikoissairaanhoidossa, jota tehdään yhteistyössä HUS-Servisin kanssa. HUS-Servisin tavoitteena on kehittää tukipalveluitaan esimerkiksi aulapalveluita. Opinnäytetyö toteutettiin laadullisena tutkimuksena haastattelemalla yhdeksää Helsingin ja Uudenmaan sairaanhoitopiirissä asioinutta henkilöä. Haastattelut toteutettiin yksilöteemahaastatteluina ja ne nauhoitettiin. Myöhemmin nauhoitukset kirjoitettiin auki sana sanalta ja aineisto analysoitiin aineistolähtöisesti. Tuloksista ilmenee asiointiprosessin vaiheet asiakkaiden näkökulmasta ja heidän palvelukokemuksiaan asiointiprosessista. Asiakkaat toivat ilmi myös kehittämisideoita. Asiointiprosessista muodostettiin kaksi pääluokkaa: hoidon kulku ja tukipalvelut. Hoidon kulkuun liittyvät vaiheet olivat: hoidon alku, hoito, hoitoon tulo ja poistuminen, koti (hoitopolun osana) ja kontrollit. Tukipalveluihin liittyvät vaiheet olivat: opasteet ja info, odotustilat, puhelinpalvelut ja asiakirjapalvelut. Palvelukokemuksen osalta tuloksista muodostettiin kaksi pääluokkaa: hoitotyön osat ja hoidosta riippumattomat tekijät. Palvelukokemukseen vaikuttavat hoitotyön osat olivat: henkilökunta, hoito ja ohjaus sekä oma asennoituminen. Hoidosta riippumattomia tekijöitä olivat: odotusaika, fyysiset tilat, organisaatio, prosessin sujuvuus ja muut vaikuttavat tekijät. Johtopäätöksenä voidaan todeta, että potilaiden näkökulmasta asiointiprosessi jatkuu kotona, mutta näyttäytyy erilaisena kuin sairaalassa. Näyttää siltä, että asiakkaat kaipaavat tukea erityisesti tässä asiointiprosessin vaiheessa. Hoidolla ja hoitohenkilökunnalla on suuri merkitys palvelukokemuksen muotoutumiseen. Aineistosta nousi myös kehittämisideoita, joita voidaan hyödyntää asiointiprosessin kehittämisessä asiakaslähtöisemmäksi.The purpose of this study was to describe the phases of the service process in special health care from patients’ point of view and how patients experienced them. The aim was to get information on the phases of the service process, the factors that impacted service experience and development ideas. This study was part of the project patient’s and next- of-kin’s service process in special health care made in collaboration with HUS-Servis, Finland. This study was conducted using qualitative methods. Data for this study was collected by interviewing nine persons who received special health care in the Helsinki and Uusimaa Hospital District, Finland. We interviewed them individually using semi-structured questions. The interviews were taped and transcribed. After that the data was analyzed with the method of inductive content analysis. The results showed that, from patients’ point of view, the service process contained the following: the beginning of treatment, treatment, how to get to the treatment and how to get home, home (as part of the care pathway), follows-up, directions and information, waiting rooms, phone services and medical records services. Factors that impacted service experience were as follows: staff, treatment and guidance, own attitude, waiting time, physical settings, organization, smoothness of the process and other impacting factors. As a conclusion, from patients’ point of view, service process continues at home, but it appears in a different way than at the hospital. It seems that patients need support particularly at this phase of the process. The treatment that patients get and the nursing staff have a big impact on patients’ service experience. Some development ideas, such as integrating health care and special health care, may be used to make the service process’ more customer-oriented

The progress and outcomes of black and minority ethnic (BME) nurses through the Nursing and Midwifery Council's "Fitness to Practise" process: Final report

BACKGROUND This is the first investigation of the relationship between ethnicity and regulation of the nursing profession conducted internationally. The study was commissioned by the Nursing and Midwifery Council which is the regulator of the professions in the UK. AIMS OF THE STUDY “To establish whether the progress and outcomes of Black and minority ethnic (BME) nurses in relation to fitness to practice, from the point of referral to the point of case closure, is different from that of White nurses and midwives (N&M); and whether we can from the data account for any differences identified” (Call for research, NMC 2015). The study was designed to investigate whether BME N&M nurses are more likely to be referred and whether they were more likely to progress through the stages of the Fitness to Practise (FtP) process (screening, investigation or adjudication) and whether they were more likely to receive a severe penalty at the end of the process. DATA The NMC made available a copy of the register which had socio-demographic information on 681,258 nurses and midwives between April 2012 and December 2014 as well as data on referrals from April 2012 to December 2014 which totalled 5,851. Over that period the total number of cases that went to adjudication was 946. VARIABLES The main independent variable is ethnicity which we divided into Black, Asian, White, Other and Unknown. The latter category accounted for 40% of all referrals. The outcomes studied were rates of referral, the imposition of interim orders (where the referred individual is not allowed to work, progression through screening, investigation, adjudication and final outcome, which was dichotomised into “can work” or “cannot work”. The regression models also controlled for: age, gender, source of referral (9 categories), region of qualification (Africa, Asia, Europe, Other, UK), country of referral (4 counties of the UK) and whether or not the individual referred had a representative, such as a Union. METHODS OF ANALYSIS Descriptive statistics, cross-tabulation analysis, logistic regression and ordinal logistic regression FINDINGS Descriptive statistics showed that BME nurses are more likely to be referred than white nurses and to progress through the FtP process. Having trained in Africa is also a risk factor for referral. Older N&M and males are more likely to be referred. Most referrals come from employers but members of the public are also an important source of referral. Inferential statistics show that relative to Whites, being Asian, Black or of Unknown ethnicity is associated with progressing through FtP process. However, when “source of referral” is entered into the regression model only the “Unknown ethnicity” category remains significantly more likely to progress than White N&M. Males are more likely to progress through the FtP process but age, though positive, is not significant. There were few significant differences among the countries of the UK. The imposition of interim orders did not vary by ethnicity. The presence of a representative seems to reflect the stage of the FtP process rather than being a factor that contributes to the outcome. Finally, at adjudication, being Asian or Black is associated with a less severe penalty than White. Only those of Unknown ethnicity are more likely than Whites to get a severe penalty. These results are not altered by controlling for the source of referral. STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF THE STUDY The strengths include: the fact that this is the first study of its kind, the datasets analysed are large and the statistics are appropriate. Weakness include the fact that in 40% cases the ethnicity of the referred individual is not known. Some of the registered N&M may not be working which means that their risk of being referred to the NMC is low which could be a threat to the comparison of different ethnic groups. The administrative data which we analysed did not provide information about the specialty (e.g. mental health, maternity), job setting (care home, acute hospital) or level of seniority (staff nurse or Director of Nursing of the individuals referred were not amenable to analysis. RECOMMENDATIONS The analysis reported here could be enhanced in the future if the information on ethnicity, the setting in which the referred individual is working and their grade is made available. Some jobs may simply carry a higher risk of referral to the NMC and BME nurses may disproportionately occupy those positions. The main finding, which is that the relationship between ethnicity and FtP is mediated by referral by the employer, directs our attention to the need for further research to understand how the working environment leads to an over-representation of BME nurses in the FtP process. Within the NMC, further research needs to be conducted to understand why White nurses are more likely to be given a severe penalty at adjudication even though they are underrepresented in referrals and less likely to progress through the process. With the introduction of the NMC code and revalidation, the collection of data by the NMC and the FtP process will undoubtedly change. At the same time, the NHS has introduced policies to directly affect the working environment of BME nurses and midwives. This means that this study should be repeated to take account of these changes in the wider environment

Resource assessment for potato biorefinery : side stream potential in Northern Ostrobothnia

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Case study : relationship conflict in a non-governmental organization

The purpose of this bachelor’s thesis is to study what are leaders’ ways of handling relationship conflict in a non-governmental organization and leaders’, employees’ and volunteers’ experiences about them. The intention is to find out how the managers handle relationship conflict in non-governmental organizations, how do the experiences of management of relationship conflict differ between employees and leaders and how does non-governmental organization as a workplace affect the solving of relationship conflicts. To answer the research questions, a theoretical framework was built to form a foundation for empirical research. The theoretical framework is a summarization of different academic findings related to the theories of conflict and types and practices of handling conflicts. The empirical research uses qualitative data collection method of semi-structured interviews. The analyzation and review of previous literature and new empirical data are in separate sections. Then they are reflected with each other to cumulate findings together. The analysis of theoretical and empirical analysis exposed that a non-governmental organization poses difficulties for conflict resolution because of constant change inherent to the organization. Other findings are that the employees and managers don’t always see the conflict management in the same way and that there have been multiple conflict management practices in use in the organization.Tämän kandidaatintyön tavoite on tutkia mitkä ovat johtajien tavat hoitaa ihmissuhdekonflikteja voittoa tavoittelemattomassa yhdistyksessä ja mitkä ovat johtajien, työntekijöiden ja vapaaehtoisten kokemukset niistä. Tavoittena on selvittää kuinka johtajat käsittelevät ihmissuhdekonflikteja voittoa tavoittelemattomissa yhdistyksissä, kuinka johdon ja työntekijöiden kokemukset ihmissuhdekonfliktien hoitamisesta eroavat toisistaan ja kuinka voittoa tavoittelematon yhdistys työpaikkana vaikuttaa ihmissuhdekonfliktien ratkaisemiseen. Jotta tutkimuskysymyksiin voidaan vastata, laadittiin teoreettinen viitekehys empiirisen tutkimuksen pohjaksi. Teoreettinen viitekehys on yhteenveto eri tieteellisistä tutkimuksista liittyen konfliktiteoriaan, konfliktien käsittelyn tyyppeihin ja käytäntöihin. Empiirinen tutkimus toteutettiin laadullisena tutkimuksena semi-strukturoituja haastatteluja metodina käyttäen. Aikaisemman kirjallisuuden käsittely ja uuden datan analyysi ovat erillisissä kappaleissaan. Erillisten tarkastelujen ja analyysin jälkeen niitä heijastetaan toisiinsa. Teoreettisen ja empiirisen tutkimusaineiston perusteella kävi ilmi että voittoa tavoittelematon yhdistys asettaa haasteita konfliktien ratkaisemiselle organisaatiomalliin liittyvän jatkuvan muutoksen takia. Muita havaintoja ovat mm. että työntekijät ja johtajat eivät aina ole samaa mieltä siitä miten konflikteja tulisi hoitaa ja että organisaatio on käyttänyt monia konfliktien ratkaisun välineitä

High Power Operational Amplifier Stability in Piezo Driving Circuits

Tämän insinöörityön tarkoitus oli varmistaa Vaisalan ultaäänellä toimivan tuulianturin toiminta toisen lähteen operaatiovahvistimilla pietsojen käyttövirtapiirissä. Tuotteen pitkän elinkaaren vuoksi ennakoiva toisen lähteen komponenttien löytäminen on tärkeää jatkuvan tuotannon takaamiseksi. Insinöörityössä tutkittiin ratkaisuja piirille valituissa potentiaalisissa toisen lähteen operaatiovahvistimissa kohdatulle epävakaudelle. Epävakauden ymmärtämiseksi suoritettiin ensin simulointi ja testaus. Operaatiovahvistimien tekniset tiedot käytiin huolellisesti läpi, mutta kriittisiä eroja ei löytynyt alkuperäisen operaatiovahvistimen ja toisen lähteen operaatiovahvistimen välillä, mitkä selittäisivät eron toiminnassa. Potentiaalisia vaihtoehtoja toisen lähteen operaatiovahvistimille tutkittiin, mutta vaadittavia ominaisuuksia vastaavia ei ollut saatavilla. Useita kompensaatiokeinoja testattiin, mutta ne eivät tuottaneet hyväksyttäviä tuloksia. Myös syöttöjännitettä muutettiin, mutta sekään ei tuottanut parannusta. Viimeiseksi eri muuntajaa testattiin alkuperäisen muuntajan paikalle. Toisen lähteen operaatiovahvistin osoittautui vakaaksi tämän uuden muuntajan kanssa. Alkuperäisen operaatiovahvistimen kanssa signaalissa oli kuitenkin merkittäviä piikkejä, todennäköisesti maadoitusongelmien takia, minkä vuoksi se tarvitsee lisää testausta. Epävakaus johtui todennäköisesti siitä, ettei alkuperäinen muuntaja toiminut ihanteellisesti piirin käyttötaajuudella, sillä se oli suunniteltu korkeammalle taajuudelle. Uudella muuntajalla oli myös pienempi käämityssuhde, mikä vähensi operaatiovahvistimen kuormitusta. Ratkaisu tarvitsee vielä lisätestausta sen toiminnan varmistamiseksi tuotteen koko lämpötila-alueella.This study was carried out to ensure the proper operation of Vaisala’s ultrasonic wind sensor with second source operational amplifiers in the piezo driver circuit. Due to the long lifecycle of the product, proactive second sourcing is important to ensure continuation of supply. The thesis work investigated solutions for instability encountered in the potential second source operational amplifiers that were picked out for this application. Simulation and testing were first done to better understand the instability. The operational amplifier datasheets were looked through thoroughly, but no critical differences were found to explain the disparity in operation between the original operational amplifier and the second source. Potential alternative second source operational amplifiers were investigated, but none that matched the required characteristics were available. Multiple compensation techniques were then tested, but none yielded acceptable results. The supply voltage was also modified, but this did not provide improvement. Finally, a different transformer was tested in place of the initial transformer. The second source operational amplifier proved to be stable with this new transformer. The original operational amplifier, however, had significant peaking, likely due to grounding issues, and needs to be further tested. The instability was most likely caused by the initial transformer not working ideally at the operating frequency due to being designed for a higher frequency. The new transformer also had a smaller winding ratio, which reduced the heaviness of the load on the operational amplifier. The solution will need further testing to verify operation over the temperature range of the product

Improved enrichment cultivation of selected food-contaminating bacteria

AbstractThe aim of this work was to assess and improve the enrichment cultivation of food-contaminating bacteria prior to detection by means of RNA-based sandwich hybridization assay (SHA). The examples of beer-spoiling lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and food-borne Salmonella Typhimurium were selected based on their relevance in Finnish food industry. Also universal challenges affecting on the selection of the enrichment cultivation procedure are discussed, including some potential possibilities for improved enrichment cultivation. The results of this study may therefore be used for the assessment of the efficiency of bacterial cultivation in other applications. The evaluation of the enrichment cultivation procedures prior to SHA lead to following conclusions: i) the enrichment cultivation procedure is necessary prior to rRNA-based SHA, and it directly influences the accuracy of SHA; ii) the improvement of the enrichment cultivation may allow faster recovery and growth of bacteria; iii) the improved recovery of bacteria can be achieved by reducing environmental stress factors in the enrichment culture; and iv) the growth of bacteria may be accelerated by assuring the selectivity of medium and allowing accessibility to growth factors. Several growth factors were studied by means of full factorial design and response surface modeling. Measured cell densities, as well as predicted lag-times and maximum growth rates in the bacterial cultures were used as responses. The results show that small shifts in the cultivation conditions extend the lag-time and decrease the growth rate of both LAB and Salmonella. Besides adjusting the temperature and pH, the growth of LAB was facilitated by reducing osmotic and oxidative stresses in the enrichment medium. In this study, a novel enzyme controlled glucose delivery system was used for the first time in the enrichment cultivation of food-contaminating bacteria. The glucose delivery system improved the growth of LAB in single strain cultures and in actual brewing process samples. The recovery of injured Salmonella was also enhanced by using the glucose delivery system together with selective siderophore ferrioxamine E, both in terms of reduced lag-times and increased growth rates. Based on the SHA, the adjusted BPW broth enhanced the molecular detection of heat-injured Salmonella in meat. Academic dissertation to be presented, with the assent of the Faculty of Technology of the University of Oulu, for public defence in Auditorium IT115, Linnanmaa, on 26 November 2010, at 12 noonAbstract The aim of this work was to assess and improve the enrichment cultivation of food-contaminating bacteria prior to detection by means of RNA-based sandwich hybridization assay (SHA). The examples of beer-spoiling lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and food-borne Salmonella Typhimurium were selected based on their relevance in Finnish food industry. Also universal challenges affecting on the selection of the enrichment cultivation procedure are discussed, including some potential possibilities for improved enrichment cultivation. The results of this study may therefore be used for the assessment of the efficiency of bacterial cultivation in other applications. The evaluation of the enrichment cultivation procedures prior to SHA lead to following conclusions: i) the enrichment cultivation procedure is necessary prior to rRNA-based SHA, and it directly influences the accuracy of SHA; ii) the improvement of the enrichment cultivation may allow faster recovery and growth of bacteria; iii) the improved recovery of bacteria can be achieved by reducing environmental stress factors in the enrichment culture; and iv) the growth of bacteria may be accelerated by assuring the selectivity of medium and allowing accessibility to growth factors. Several growth factors were studied by means of full factorial design and response surface modeling. Measured cell densities, as well as predicted lag-times and maximum growth rates in the bacterial cultures were used as responses. The results show that small shifts in the cultivation conditions extend the lag-time and decrease the growth rate of both LAB and Salmonella. Besides adjusting the temperature and pH, the growth of LAB was facilitated by reducing osmotic and oxidative stresses in the enrichment medium. In this study, a novel enzyme controlled glucose delivery system was used for the first time in the enrichment cultivation of food-contaminating bacteria. The glucose delivery system improved the growth of LAB in single strain cultures and in actual brewing process samples. The recovery of injured Salmonella was also enhanced by using the glucose delivery system together with selective siderophore ferrioxamine E, both in terms of reduced lag-times and increased growth rates. Based on the SHA, the adjusted BPW broth enhanced the molecular detection of heat-injured Salmonella in meat

Workplace policy and management practices to improve the health of employees Evidence Review 3

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has been asked by the Department of Health to develop guidance on management practices to improve the health of employees, with a particular emphasis on the role of line managers and organisational context. The guidance will cover support for managers, their training, and awareness of employee health issues including managing sickness absence, as well as policies and the organisational context. The Institute for Employment Studies (IES) in partnership with The Work Foundation (TWF) and Lancaster University have been contracted to undertake a series of evidence reviews of relevant effectiveness and qualitative studies and an economic analysis to support the production of this guidance. This report presents the third of these evidence reviews and is a qualitative review of non-intervention studies which explore the workplace factors that facilitate or constrain the ability of line managers to enhance the well-being of the people they manage. The first review examined the evidence on the effectiveness of interventions taken by supervisors that could enhance the well-being of the people they manage and the second examined the evidence on the effectiveness of organisational interventions that aim to support line managers to enhance the well-being of the people they manage

Enzyme aided low temperature evaporation for concentration of active proteins from potato fruit juice

AbstractExtraction of starch from potato leads to formation of potato fruit juice (PFJ), which consists of proteins, fibers, starch and water. PFJ contains 1% – 3% [w/w] of proteins, including protease inhibitors that are potentially valuable for various applications, and could thus bring added value to the potato industry. The use of proteins of PFJ in bioactive form is limited by lack of benign and cost-efficient concentration technologies. The present approach combines a previously introduced low-temperature mechanical vapor compression evaporation technology with option to enzymatic viscosity management in case of high-viscosity fluids. In pilot-scale evaporation, an increase of solid content from 10% to 40% was achieved without major technical challenges. The proposed method offers a low-energy means for the concentration potato industry wastewater and reclamation of valuable proteins in active form.Abstract Extraction of starch from potato leads to formation of potato fruit juice (PFJ), which consists of proteins, fibers, starch and water. PFJ contains 1% – 3% [w/w] of proteins, including protease inhibitors that are potentially valuable for various applications, and could thus bring added value to the potato industry. The use of proteins of PFJ in bioactive form is limited by lack of benign and cost-efficient concentration technologies. The present approach combines a previously introduced low-temperature mechanical vapor compression evaporation technology with option to enzymatic viscosity management in case of high-viscosity fluids. In pilot-scale evaporation, an increase of solid content from 10% to 40% was achieved without major technical challenges. The proposed method offers a low-energy means for the concentration potato industry wastewater and reclamation of valuable proteins in active form

Cancer survivors at work : Work-related problems and factors associated with their employment, work ability and social support from the work community

Due to the improved prognosis of many forms of cancer, an increasing number of cancer survivors are willing to return to work after their treatment. It is generally believed, however, that people with cancer are either unemployed, stay at home, or retire more often than people without cancer. This study investigated the problems that cancer survivors experience on the labour market, as well as the disease-related, sociodemographic and psychosocial factors at work that are associated with the employment and work ability of cancer survivors. The impact of cancer on employment was studied combining the data of Finnish Cancer Registry and census data of the years 1985, 1990, 1995 or 1997 of Statistics Finland. There were two data sets containing 46 312 and 12 542 people with cancer. The results showed that cancer survivors were slightly less often employed than their referents. Two to three years after the diagnosis the employment rate of the cancer survivors was 9% lower than that of their referents (64% vs. 73%), whereas the employment rate was the same before the diagnosis (78%). The employment rate varied greatly according to the cancer type and education. The probability of being employed was greater in the lower than in the higher educational groups. People with cancer were less often employed than people without cancer mainly because of their higher retirement rate (34% vs. 27%). As well as employment, retirement varied by cancer type. The risk of retirement was twofold for people having cancer of the nervous system or people with leukaemia compared to their referents, whereas people with skin cancer, for example, did not have an increased risk of retirement. The aim of the questionnaire study was to investigate whether the work ability of cancer survivors differs from that of people without cancer and whether cancer had impaired their work ability. There were 591 cancer survivors and 757 referents in the data. Even though current work ability of cancer survivors did not differ between the survivors and their referents, 26% of cancer survivors reported that their physical work ability, and 19% that their mental work ability had deteriorated due to cancer. The survivors who had other diseases or had had chemotherapy, most often reported impaired work ability, whereas survivors with a strong commitment to their work organization, or a good social climate at work, reported impairment less frequently. The aim of the other questionnaire study containing 640 people with the history of cancer was to examine extent of social support that cancer survivors needed, and had received from their work community. The cancer survivors had received most support from their co-workers, and they hoped for more support especially from the occupational health care personnel (39% of women and 29% of men). More support was especially needed by men who had lymphoma, had received chemotherapy or had a low education level. The results of this study show that the majority of the survivors are able to return to work. There is, however, a group of cancer survivors who leave work life early, have impaired work ability due to their illness, and suffer from lack of support from their work place and the occupational health services. Treatment-related, as well as sociodemographic factors play an important role in survivors' work-related problems, and presumably their possibilities to continue working.Useat syöpään sairastuneet ovat halukkaita palaamaan työelämään sairautensa jälkeen, mutta on mahdollista, että he kohtaavat fyysisiä ja sosiaalisia ongelmia työelämässä sairautensa seurauksena. Tutkimuksessa selvitettiin syövän vaikutusta työllisyyteen, työkykyyn ja työelämästä saatuun tukeen ja sen tarpeeseen. Syövän vaikutusta työllisyyteen selvitettiin rekistereiden avulla. Tutkimusaineistoista ensimmäisessä oli 46,312 ja toisessa 12,542 työikäistä syöpään sairastunutta ja sama määrä syöpää sairastamattomia vertailuhenkilöitä. Tulosten mukaan syövällä on jonkin verran vaikutusta työllisyyteen. Työllisyys oli 2 3 vuotta sairastumisen jälkeen 64 %, kun se syöpää sairastamattoman vertailuryhmän keskuudessa oli 73 %. Työllisyysprosentti oli ennen sairastumista kummassakin ryhmässä yhtä suuri (78 %). Työllisyys vaihteli koulutuksen ja syöpätyypin mukaan. Korkeasti koulutetut olivat todennäköisemmin töissä kuin alemman koulutustaustan omaavat. Syöpään sairastuneet olivat vertailuhenkilöitä useammin eläkkeellä (34 % syöpään sairastuneista ja 27 % vertailuhenkilöistä). Eri syöpää sairastavien väliset erot eläköitymisessä olivat kuitenkin suuret. Leukemiaan ja keskushermostosyöpään sairastuneilla oli kaksinkertainen riski jäädä eläkkeelle vertailuhenkilöihin nähden, kun esimerkiksi melanoomaa sairastaneiden ja heidän vertailuhenkilöidensä välillä ei havaittu eroja eläkkeelle siirtymisessä. Kyselytutkimuksen kaksi aineistoa käsitti 640 syöpään sairastunutta ensimmäisessä, ja 591 syöpään sairastunutta ja 757 vertailuhenkilöä toisessa aineistossa. Ensimmäisessä kyselytutkimuksessa selvitettiin syöpään sairastuneiden saamaa ja toivomaa emotionaalista ja käytännön tukea työtovereilta, esimiehiltä ja työterveyshuollosta. Lisää tukea toivottiin erityisesti työterveyshuollosta (39 % naisista ja 29 % miehistä). Eniten lisätukea toivoivat lymfoomaa sairastaneet tai kemoterapiaa saaneet sekä vain peruskoulun käyneet miehet. Toisessa kyselyaineistoon perustuvassa tutkimuksessa selvitettiin syövän vaikutusta työkykyyn ja lisäksi sitä, oliko työkyky huononnut syövän vuoksi. Syöpään sairastuneiden yleinen työkyky ei poikennut syöpää sairastamattomien vertailuhenkilöiden työkyvystä. Kuitenkin 26 % raportoivat fyysisen työkykynsä ja 19 % henkisen työkykynsä huononneen syövän vuoksi. Syöpään sairastuneet, joilla oli useita muita sairauksia tai olivat saaneet kemoterapiaa kokivat useimmin työkykynsä huononneen kun taas sairastuneet, jotka olivat sitoutuneita työpaikkaansa ja jotka kokivat työilmapiirinsä hyväksi, harvemmin raportoivat huononemista. Tutkimuksen tulokset osoittavat, että suurin osa syöpään sairastuneista palaa työelämään. Kuitenkin on olemassa joukko sairastuneita, jotka siirtyvät varhain eläkkeelle, kokevat työkyvyn huononemista eivätkä saa riittävästi sosiaalista tukea työelämässä. Sairauteen liittyvät tekijät, kuten syöpätyyppi, samoin kuin sosiodemograafiset tekijät kuten esimerkiksi koulutus ja ammatti, ovat merkittävimpiä sairastuneiden työelämän ongelmiin vaikuttavia tekijöitä. Hoitoihin liittyviin tekijöihin, samoin kuin työpaikan voimavaratekijöiden vaikutukseen syöpään sairastuneiden työhön paluussa tulisi kiinnittää tulevaisuudessa enemmän huomiota