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WMR-PRIME

Work-related medical rehabilitation in patients with mental disorders

Mental disorders and participation

Healthy participation in working life means success and enjoyment in everyday working life. Stress and psychosomatic illness can make it difficult to participate in this important part of life. Work related medical rehabilitation (WMR) can support people return to work and help them to keep our jobs.

In a three-year study, WMR was further developed in a psychosomatic treatment setting and the effectiveness of this rehabilitation strategy was tested. Based on this, in a two-year follow-up study we are working to agree on practice recommendations for the implementation of WMR.

Click here for the published articles and practice recommendations.

Clinic visits – WMR-Prime team on site at the clinics

From May to September 2024, visits were conducted over several days at the three participating clinics. During these visits, there was direct exchange with the implementation managers, clinic management, staff, and the rehabilitants on-site. „In the clinics, there is a comprehensive psychotherapeutic offering, which is flexibly adapted to the needs of the rehabilitants,” said Stefanie Freytag, the responsible staff member. She described the atmosphere in the clinics as always friendly and appreciative. She looks forward to further collaboration and thanked the clinics for their commitment.

Online implementation workshops in June/July 2024

The focus of the two-day online implementation workshops, held on two separate occasions, was on planning the implementation of practical recommendations work-related medical rehabilitation in psychosomatic rehabilitation (WMR) in the participating clinics. Workshop leader M.Sc. Stefanie Freytag, a research associate at Nordhausen University of Applied Sciences, welcomed a total of four implementation managers from the participating clinics to the event. After a welcome address by Prof. Dr. Markus Bassler and Prof. Dr. Matthias Bethge, project leaders of the study centers, the research staff introduced themselves. The specialist lectures on change-/project management were followed by intensive discussions. The clinic-specific approaches to implementing the …

Delphi rounds and practice recommendations

At the start of the project, the WMR-PRIME working group formulated 119 proposals for possible practice recommendations. Between March 14, 2024 and March 29, 2024, the proposals were agreed in a Delphi round of anonymous online voting by clinical staff, scientists, pension insurance providers employees and people who had been treated in The recommendations evaluated in the first vote were revised by the WMR-PRIME working group. They were offered to the participants of the first Delphi round for voting again in a second Delphi round between 29.04.2024 and 10.05.2024. Of the 119 recommendations submitted in the second round, two were …

Start of the WMR-PRIME project

After the successful completion of the WMR-P project at the end of 2023, the follow-up project WMR-PRIME was applied for and approved for funding after a positive assessment. The WMR-PRIME project will start at the beginning of 2024 and consists of three work packages: Work package 1 consists of a two-stage Delphi process from which practice recommendations will emerge. Work package 2 includes the implementation of the developed practice recommendations in three rehabilitation facilities. Work package 3 comprises a questionnaire survey with people treated in WMR before and after the implementation of the practice recommendations. We look forward to the …

Progress in our research – A big thank you to everyone involved!

We are pleased to announce that data collection in both, the qualitative and quantitative research fields has been successfully completed! We are in the final stage of the analysis phase and we will soon be able to present the results of our work. Our dedicated teams are already working on publications that will share the findings of this important research. These publications will not only deepen our understanding, but will also act as the basis for a follow-up project. Special thanks go to all those involved who have contributed to this success – from rehabilitation centers to the patients and …

The interviews have been completed

All four interview rounds were successfully completed. The third interview phase took place online in March/April 2022. The employees, team leaders and medical directors were interviewed for the second time. The focus was on changes since the first meeting and the current status. The final interview phase was conducted in September/October 2022. Here, patients were interviewed for the third time. As the period of rehabilitation had already been a whole year for the rehabilitants, the joy of seeing them again, even if only online this time, was all the greater. Some even reported that they were still in contact with …

Final spurt in recruitment

Recruitment of project participants will continue until 31 March 2022. By January, 1,500 patients had already been recruited for the study – a good result! As of now, the target of 1,800 participants can therefore be achieved. We would like to take this opportunity to thank all current and future participants. We would also like to thank the documentation assistants employed in the clinics for the study, without whose work it would not have been possible to work this successful.

The second round of interviews

In December 2021 and January 2022, patients who wanted to and were able to continue taking part in the interviews were interviewed for the second time. The motto of these interviews was: “How are you doing three months after rehabilitation ?” and “If you look back at the rehabilitation process…”. This time, the interviews could not take place in person due to the coronavirus, but were again conducted as online focus groups. With a little preparation and consultation, this was no problem at all. The conversations were very pleasant, stimulating, funny but also emotional. We would like to thank you very …

Second advisory board meeting online on 17 November 2021

The second advisory board meeting took place on 17 November 2021, this time online due to coronavirus. The meeting took place in a very pleasant atmosphere with many stimulating and informative discussions. After a brief welcome, the effects of the pandemic and the status of the focus groups were briefly presented. The five participating rehabilitation centers then reported on their experiences and individual circumstances. After the final presentation of the recruitment status and the sample, the meeting flowed smoothly into a very constructive and informative discussion. All participants can be seen on the screenshot. Similar to the first advisory board …