National Institute of Psychosocial Factors and Health (IPM)

Abstract

"Det finns bruk för alla" is a public health initiative that aims at counteracting the adverse effects of unemployment in general and health-related unemployment in particular. The idea, partly based on Danish models, is to stimulate and facilitate grass roots initiatives to create supportive environments for the unemployed, people on long-term sick leave or otherwise outside the active labour force. Project leaders, recruited from the target groups and educated in an ideological framework, form working groups around activities such as social service, environmental work or handicraft. Though the main purpose is the empowerment and improved psychosocial health of the participants, new areas of work are by necessity explored since competition with existing enterprises is not allowed.The project has been followed for three years with longitudinal, retrospective and qualitative methods. As of writing, the available data point to inter alia:· a high percentage of satisfied participants (80%)· increased self-confidence in addition to social support as some of the main reasons behind their satisfaction significant improvement in self-rated psychosocial health during participation and after a six month follow-up period· considerably increased employment rate for women in the project· examples of successful rehabilitation of very difficult cases of chronic ill-health To the conference, physiological data (e.g. metabolic and immune parameters) will also be available, along with a comparison of this project with other work experience schemes in the area.Implementing the relatively radical ambitions of the project has, however, been an arduous process due to both external obstacles and intrinsic difficulties. Taking this into account, the overall results seem to be highly positive. The difficulties per se, along with the various solutions that have been developed within the project, may also be of considerable practical value for the planning of similar project, and will therefore be discussed.

Keywords

Unemployment, Empowerment, Supportive environments, Evaluation

Contact

IPM/Forskningsstation

Institution

National Institute of Psychosocial Factors and Health (IPM); IPM/Forskningsstation

Address

Mössebergsparken 2

City

SE-521 32 Falköping

Country

Sweden

E-mail

Hugo.Westerlund@ipm.ki.se

Phone

+ 46 515-711035

Fax

+ 46 515-711082