A free online resource has been launched to help people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) take greater control of the condition and improve their ability to stay in work.
 
WorkWise has been developed jointly by the National Rheumatoid Arthritis Society (NRAS) and global health-care company Abbott, to help the estimated 690,000 people in the UK who suffer from RA. The chronic and debilitating condition causes swelling and damages the cartilage and bone around joints. It can affect an individual’s ability to carry out everyday tasks, including their work, and it has been estimated that more than a third of people with RA stop work within two years of onset of the disease.
 
According to the Workwise developers, only 20 per cent of RA patients report receiving adequate information and support to enable them to stay in, or seek employment. The new online resource aims to fulfil this need by offering sufferers, their friends and family, health-care professionals and employers highly practical advice in the form of podcasts and presentations from specialists in occupational health, occupational therapy and employment law.
 
The information covers everything from vocational rehabilitation and access to work, to advice on employees’ rights within the provisions of the Equality Act 2010.

 Clare Jacklin, director of external affairs for the NRAS, commented: “Employment is a critical issue for people with RA, who might worry about getting the time off they need to attend medical appointments, or who may be afraid that they will lose their job because of their condition. The costs of not working, or working fewer hours, are high not just for the individual with RA, but for their family, their employers and the economy in general."


She concluded: “The launch of WorkWise online is timely, given the Government’s Welfare to Work policy launch, a principle of which is to ensure that working always pays. For this policy to be successful, both the Government and all those involved in employment, including managers, occupational therapists, health advisors and human-resource managers, need to ensure appropriate support is provided to people with long-term conditions such as RA to allow them to stay in work.”
 
View the WorkWise resource at www.nras.org.uk/workwise
 
Click here for an SHP feature article on arthritis by Dr Chris Ide.