Fatigue and mental health problems in the working population: descriptives and associations with consulting a physician

by Andrea, Helene.

Objectives To examine how health problems and psychosocial work characteristics are associated with having visited or not having visited the General Practitioner (GP) in relation to work. Methods Baseline self-report data of the Maastricht Cohort Study about fatigue at work were used to gather information about fatigue (Checklist Individual Strength), presence of at least one long-term disease, likelihood of having a mental illness (General Health Questionnaire), and psychosocial work characteristics (psychological job demands, decision latitude and social support at work, as measured with the Job Content Questionnaire). The cohort participants indicated having visited (VISITORS) or not having visited (NON-VISITORS) the GP in relation to work. Differences between these groups were measured using multivariate logistic regression analyses. Results When compared to VISITORS and taking into account the influence of sociodemographic characteristics and mutual associations between reported health problems and psychosocial work characteristics, a lower percentage of NON-