Who benefits from stepwise occupational reintegration provided under the statutory pension insurance scheme

BACKGROUND: Stepwise occupational reintegration (SOR) – since law amendments in April 2004 also provided under the German pension insurance scheme (Deutsche Rentenversicherung, DRV) – is an instrument intended to support insurants on sick-leave in reintegrating into work step by step after long-term illness. In 2008, the effectiveness of SOR regarding return to work was affirmed for the first time in a comprehensive study. However, in view of the growing amount of SOR, the question of differential effects of SOR in special subgroups is raised. METHODS: This paper presents a re-analysis of data collected in the 2008 study. A total of 696 patients after medical rehabilitation were included in the analyses, 348 with SOR provided by the DRV, and a control group of 348 patients without SOR matched on a multitude of different variables using the Propensity Scores. Successful outcome was measured using a combined criterion “Return to work in good health”, that is, patients returning to gainful activity and with sick leave of under 6 weeks and no intention to retire within a one-year follow-period after medical rehabilitation. Differentiating criteria are age gender, rehab indication, periods of sick leave in the year before medical rehabilitation, kind of and access to medical rehabilitation. RESULTS: The data indicate especially good results of SOR for patients with mental disorders (OR=2.49), patients who were requested to participate in medical rehabilitation by a health insurance fund because of long-term sick leave (OR=2.71), and patients with longer periods of sick leave before medical rehabilitation (3 to <6 months: OR=2.41, 6 months and more: OR=2.23). In contrast, there are only minimal effects (statistically not significant) of SOR in patients with medical rehabilitation directly after a hospital stay (“Anschlussheilbehandlung”), patients with cardiac or oncological diseases, and in younger (age 19–34) and older patients (age 55–60). In-depth analyses show that SOR success is more marked in patients with poorer return to work prospects. DISCUSSION: The findings indicate differential effects of SOR after medical rehabilitation for subgroups, effects associated in particular with return to work problems, kind of disease, and age. There is evidence for greater benefits of SOR in groups of patients with a high risk of non-successful reintegration. Hence, SOR opens up new options after medical rehabilitation in patients with especially severe impairments.