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    The Work Ability Index

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    MADIC 2017
    The Work Ability Index (WAI) is a tool used to assess work ability during health examinations and workplace surveys. It is determined based on answers to questions about job demands, health status, and resources. The WAI has been validated and translated into many languages. Research has shown it reliably predicts work disability, retirement, and mortality.

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    The Work Ability Index

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    MADIC 2017
    27 views2 pages
    The Work Ability Index (WAI) is a tool used to assess work ability during health examinations and workplace surveys. It is determined based on answers to questions about job demands, health status, and resources. The WAI has been validated and translated into many languages. Research has shown it reliably predicts work disability, retirement, and mortality.

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    The Work Ability Index (WAI) is a tool used to assess work ability during health examinations and workplace surveys. It is determined based on answers to questions about job demands, health status, and resources. The WAI has been validated and translated into many languages. Research has shown it reliably predicts work disability, retirement, and mortality.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    27 views2 pages

    The Work Ability Index

    Uploaded by

    MADIC 2017
    The Work Ability Index (WAI) is a tool used to assess work ability during health examinations and workplace surveys. It is determined based on answers to questions about job demands, health status, and resources. The WAI has been validated and translated into many languages. Research has shown it reliably predicts work disability, retirement, and mortality.

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    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
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    of 2

    Accelerat ing t he world's research.

    The Work Ability Index (WAI)


    Juhani Ilmarinen

    Occupational Medicine

    Cite this paper Downloaded from Academia.edu 

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    The Work Ability Index (WAI)

    A brief history Radkiewich et al. [3] and test–retest reliability by


    de Zwart et al. [4].
    Our multidisciplinary study group (occupational physiol-
    ogy, psychology, medicine, epidemiology and biostatis-
    tics) started cross-sectional studies among municipal
    employees in 1981. The study participants were followed Key research
    for 16 years [1,2]. Since the beginning, the use of Work
    Besides the Finnish research, there is also a wide spec-
    Ability Index (WAI) both in research and practice has
    trum of international research [7]. The Nurses’ Early
    widened to various countries, and the index has been
    Exit study included 38 000 participants from 10 Euro-
    translated into 24 languages.
    pean countries [3]. In Sweden, Torgén’s study [5] cov-
    ered a random sample of the Swedish working population
    (N 5 3500). A number of large studies have also been
    Description undertaken in China [6].

    The WAI is an instrument used in clinical occupational


    health and research to assess work ability during health Juhani Ilmarinen
    examinations and workplace surveys. The index is deter-
    mined on the basis of the answers to a series of questions
    which take into consideration the demands of work, the
    worker’s health status and resources. The worker com- References
    pletes the questionnaire before the interview with an oc-
    cupational health professional who rates the responses 1. Ilmarinen J (ed.). The aging worker. Scand J Work Environ
    according to the instructions [9]. WAI is a summary mea- Health 1991;17(Suppl. 1): 1–141.
    sure of seven items (range 7–49) (Table 1). 2. Tuomi K (ed.). Eleven-year follow-up of aging workers.
    Scand J Work Environ Health 1997;23(Suppl. 1): 1–71.
    3. Radkiewich P, Widerszal-Bazyl M. Psychometric Properties of
    Work Ability Index in the Light of Comparative Survey Study.
    Validity International Congress Series 1280. The Netherlands:
    Elsevier, 2005; 304–309.
    The validity and reliability of the WAI has been assessed 4. de Zwart B, Frings-Dresen M. Test-retest reliability of the
    in correlation analyses. The WAI and all its items reliably Work Ability Index questionnaire. Occup Med (Lond)
    predicted work disability, retirement and mortality [8]. 2002;52:177–181.
    More recently, the validity of WAI has been studied by 5. Torgén M. Experiences of WAI in a Random Sample of the
    Swedish Working Population. International Congress Series
    1280. The Netherlands: Elsevier 2005; 328–332.
    6. Lin S, Wang Z, Wang M. Work ability of workers in western
    Table 1. Items of the Work Ability Index
    China: reference data. Occup Med (Lond) 2006;56:89–93.
    7. Costa G, Goedhard WJA, Ilmarinen J (eds.). Assessment and
    Items Range
    Promotion of Work Ability, Health and Well-Being of Ageing
    Workers. International Congress Series 1280. The Netherlands:
    1 Current work ability compared with the lifetime best 0–10 Elsevier, 2005; 1–435.
    2 Work ability in relation to the demands of the job 2–10
    8. Ilmarinen J, Tuomi K. Past, present and future of work
    3 Number of current diseases diagnosed by a physician 1–7
    4 Estimated work impairment due to diseases 1–6
    ability. People and Work Research Reports. Finnish Institute
    5 Sick leave during the past year (12 months) 1–5 of Occupational Health, Helsinki 2004;65:1–25.
    6 Own prognosis of work ability 2 years from now 1–7 9. Tuomi K, Ilmarinen J, Jahkola A, Katajarinne L, Tulkki A.
    7 Mental resources 1–4 Work Ability Index. 2nd revised edn. Helsinki: Finnish In-
    stitute of Occupational Health, 1998.

    Ó The Author 2007. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society of Occupational Medicine.
    All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: [email protected]

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