"How could I even think of a job?" : ambiguities in working life in a group of female patients with undefined musculoskeletal pain

Objective - To explore the meaning of working life for a group of women sick-listed because of undefined, musculoskeletal pain disorders. Design - Repeated thematic interviews, analysed qualitatively according to grounded theory. Setting and participants - Twenty female patients, impaired by biomedi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Scandinavian Journal of Primary Health Care
Main Authors: Johansson, Eva, Hamberg, Katarina, Lindgren, Gerd, Westman, Göran
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Umeå universitet, Allmänmedicin 1997
Subjects:
Adult
Attitude
Family
Female
Humans
Middle Aged
Motivation
Musculoskeletal Diseases/*psychology
Pain/*psychology
Sick Leave
Sick Role
Sweden
Women
Working/*psychology
General Practice
Allmänmedicin
Northern Sweden
Online Access:http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-113797
https://doi.org/10.3109/02813439709035022
Description
Summary:Objective - To explore the meaning of working life for a group of women sick-listed because of undefined, musculoskeletal pain disorders. Design - Repeated thematic interviews, analysed qualitatively according to grounded theory. Setting and participants - Twenty female patients, impaired by biomedically undefined pain and musculoskeletal disorders, were successively recruited at an urban primary health care centre in northern Sweden. Main findings - There were discrepancies between work aspirations and work experiences concerning economic maintenance, social interaction, and personal recognition. The women had low-income jobs in fields threatened by redundancy, such as cleaning, care, and service. Family considerations had a strong impact on organization and priorities in paid work. In a situation of pain and sick leave, family orientation strengthened and work aspirations declined. Social and personal recognition was sought in the unpaid ’duties at home, and economic refuge in ‘the state as supporter’. Implications - To understand women with undefined musculoskeletal pain as patients, we must also understand their aspirations and experiences as workers, mothers, and spouses. ‘Family considerations’, ’diminishing paid work’, and ’the state as supporter’ are important concepts for understanding the women’s sick role process.

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