[The Blaufeuer measure for employees with mental stress and simultaneous workplace problems-Is the target group being reached?].

Background: Employees with mental burden and simultaneous workplace problems have an increased risk of chronification and disability pension. To support this group of people, the German Pension Insurance (Deutsche Rentenversicherung Bund) developed the Systemic Integration Management for People with Mental Impairments (SEMpsych) project as part of the rehapro federal program. The Blaufeuer counselling service was implemented in three model regions (Berlin, Cologne, and Nuremberg).

[Evaluation of a basic educational program for patients with rheumatoid arthritis].

Background: A new conceptual framework has enabled the flexible development of rheumatological patient educational programs for different healthcare settings. On this basis, a 5‑h basic training program for patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) was developed to be used in specialized centers. Rheumatologists and psychologists were first trained and then the efficacy of the patient training program was evaluated based on the causal model of patient education.

Beyond Oncology: Question Prompt Lists in Healthcare-A Scoping Review Protocol.

Question prompt lists (QPL) are an instrument to promote patient participation in medical encounters by providing a set of questions patients can use during consultations. QPL have predominantly been examined in oncology. Less is known about their use in other contexts.

[Flexible programs and advanced training for rheumatological patient education].

In two research projects, rheumatological patient education programmes were updated. The first step was to develop an expert consented framework for all rheumatological patient education programmes. From this, curricula and working materials for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and axial spondyloarthritis (AS) were derived and two exemplary patient education manuals developed.

Effects of nationwide implementation of work-related medical rehabilitation in Germany: propensity score matched analysis.

Objectives: Since 2014, the Federal German Pension Insurance has approved several departments to implement work-related medical rehabilitation programmes across Germany. Our cohort study was launched to assess the effects of work-related medical rehabilitation under real-life conditions.

Methods: Participants received either a common or a work-related medical rehabilitation programme.

An instrument for quality assurance in work capacity evaluation: development, evaluation, and inter-rater reliability.

Background: Employees insured in pension insurance, who are incapable of working due to ill health, are entitled to a disability pension. To assess whether an individual meets the medical requirements to be considered as disabled, a work capacity evaluation is conducted. However, there are no official guidelines on how to perform an external quality assurance for this evaluation process.

Evaluation of a self-management patient education programme for fibromyalgia-results of a cluster-RCT in inpatient rehabilitation.

The objective was to evaluate the effectiveness of a self-management patient education programme for fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) as compared with usual care education in inpatient rehabilitation. In a multicentre cluster-randomized controlled trial, 583 inpatients in 3 rehabilitation centres received an advanced self-management patient education programme or usual care education. Patients completed questionnaires at admission, discharge and after 6 and 12 months.

Implementing the German Model of Work-Related Medical Rehabilitation: Did the Delivered Dose of Work-Related Treatment Components Increase?

Objectives: Work-related components are an essential part of rehabilitation programs to support return to work of patients with musculoskeletal disorders. In Germany, a guideline for work-related medical rehabilitation was developed to increase work-related treatment components. In addition, new departments were approved to implement work-related medical rehabilitation programs.

Development and evaluation of a standardized peer-training in the context of peer review for quality assurance in work capacity evaluation.

Background: The German quality assurance programme for evaluating work capacity is based on peer review that evaluates the quality of medical experts' reports. Low reliability is thought to be due to systematic differences among peers. For this purpose, we developed a curriculum for a standardized peer-training (SPT).

Beneficial Effects of Education on Emotional Distress, Self-Management, and Coping in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A Prospective Randomized Controlled Study.

Background: Patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) suffer from various physical as well as psychological impairments, and patient education may help improve their well-being. Therefore, we developed a manualized education program for IBD patients addressing medical and psychological issues. This study aimed to evaluate it in a large controlled trial.

Self-management education for rehabilitation inpatients suffering from inflammatory bowel disease: a cluster-randomized controlled trial.

Although inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) affects patients' psychological well-being, previous educational programs have failed to demonstrate effects on psychosocial outcomes and quality of life. Therefore, we developed a group-based psychoeducational program that combined provision of both medical information and psychological self-management skills, delivered in an interactive manner, and evaluated it in a large, cluster-randomized trial. We assigned 540 rehabilitation inpatients suffering from IBD (mean age 43 years, 66% female) to either the new intervention or a control group comprising the same overall intensity and the same medical information, but only general psychosocial information.

Addressing Work-Related Issues in Medical Rehabilitation: Revision of an Online Information Tool for Healthcare Professionals.

Background. Medical rehabilitation increasingly considers occupational issues as determinants of health and work ability. Information on work-related rehabilitation concepts should therefore be made available to healthcare professionals.

Work-related medical rehabilitation in patients with musculoskeletal disorders: the protocol of a propensity score matched effectiveness study (EVA-WMR, DRKS00009780).

Background: Musculoskeletal disorders are one of the most important causes of work disability. Various rehabilitation services and return-to-work programs have been developed in order to reduce sickness absence and increase sustainable return-to-work. As the effects of conventional medical rehabilitation programs on sickness absence duration were shown to be slight, work-related medical rehabilitation programs have been developed and tested.

Prostate cancer patients' quality of life assessments across the primary treatment trajectory: 'True' change or response shift?

Background Self-report questionnaires are widely used to assess changes in quality of life (QoL) during the course of cancer treatment. However, comparing baseline scores to follow-up scores is only justified if patients' internal measurement standards have not changed over time, that is, no response shift occurred. We aimed to examine response shift in terms of reconceptualization, reprioritization and recalibration among prostate cancer patients.

Evaluation of a self-management patient education program for patients with fibromyalgia syndrome: study protocol of a cluster randomized controlled trial.

Background: Fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) is a complex chronic condition that makes high demands on patients' self-management skills. Thus, patient education is considered an important component of multimodal therapy, although evidence regarding its effectiveness is scarce. The main objective of this study is to assess the effectiveness of an advanced self-management patient education program for patients with FMS as compared to usual care in the context of inpatient rehabilitation.

[Quality Assurance in Sociomedical Evaluation by Peer Review: A Pilot Project of the German Statutory Pension Insurance].

Background: The sociomedical evaluation by the German Pension Insurance serves the purpose of determining entitlement to disability pensions. A quality assurance concept for the sociomedical evaluation was developed, which is based on a peer Review process. Peer review is an established process of external quality assurance in health care.

[The 'ideal therapy process': testing a new approach for assessing process quality in inpatient parent-child facilities].

Instruments for external quality assurance in inpatient parent-child rehabilitation and prevention facilities were developed in 2 projects. For the assessment of process quality, we sought an alternative test to the peer review procedure which also places a stronger emphasis on patient perspectives. The aim was to define an "ideal process" as a standard, to develop quantifiable criteria, and to test a multimethod approach which involves different data levels.

[Psychosocial patient education groups focusing on work-related issues - results of a survey of German medical rehabilitation centers].

Introduction: Psychosocial patient education programs focusing on work-related issues are a core element in the German statutory pension insurance's profile of requirements (POR) regarding inpatient vocationally oriented medical rehabilitation (VOMR).

Aim: This study aims at analyzing the prevalence of patient education programs focusing on work-related issues in German rehabilitation centers with regard to their content and quality.Data were collected in a national survey on the current state of patient education within medical rehabilitation programs in Germany in 1473 inpatient and outpatient medical rehabilitation centers.

[External quality assurance in inpatient medical rehabilitation and prevention centers for mothers, fathers and children: development of instruments for assessing structural quality].

Aim Of The Study: As required by German law, inpatient institutions offering prevention and rehabilitation measures for mothers, fathers and children are obliged to implement external quality assurance measures. In 2 pilot projects funded by the German federal association of health insurance funds, external quality assurance procedures for in-hospital prevention and rehabilitation of mothers and fathers were analyzed with the aim of developing a set of instruments for the description of structural characteristics in this area of health care and to evaluate its appropriateness. Concerning structure-related quality, the project included a) designing and evaluating a questionnaire, b) the definition of assessment criteria for subsequent comparative data analyses, and c) the description and documentation of the current state in the field of rehabilitation and prevention for mothers, fathers and children.

[External quality assurance in inpatient medical rehabilitation and prevention centers for mothers, fathers and children: comparative outcome quality analyses across rehabilitation/prevention centers].

To date, there are no programs for external quality assurance for inpatient prevention and rehabilitation programs for mothers, fathers and children. Instruments for outcome quality assessment were evaluated with the goal of determining their ability to document differences between prevention/rehabilitation centers in quality-relevant outcome parameters. Referring to the ICF, relevant outcome variables were specified and operationalized using established questionnaires.

[Development of methods and instruments for external quality assurance in inpatient parent-child rehabilitation and prevention].

Objective: There so far is no standardized program for external quality assurance in inpatient parent-child prevention and rehabilitation in Germany. Therefore, instruments and methods of external quality assurance were developed and evaluated on behalf of the federal-level health insurance institutions.

Methods: On the level of structure quality, a modular questionnaire for assessing structural features of rehabilitation/prevention centers, basic and allocation criteria as well as a checklist for visitations were developed.

[Vocational orientation in medical rehabilitation: development of a practice handbook and a homepage as user-oriented media for rehabilitative practice].

Vocational orientation in medical rehabilitation has become an important issue in rehabilitation science and practice in Germany. Although a variety of vocationally oriented interventions has been developed in recent years, there is still a lack of consensus with regard to the definition of specific types of interventions as well as relevant criteria (e. g.

Current state of vocationally oriented medical rehabilitation--a German perspective.

The aim of this paper is to outline a current trend in inpatient medical rehabilitation in Germany, i.e. vocationally oriented medical rehabilitation (VOMR).

[Evaluation of an indicator-based screening procedure for identifying quality problems in medical rehabilitation of the German statutory accident insurance].

In the context of medical rehabilitation quality assurance, the use of screening procedures aims at specifically screening for rehabilitative cases that might be affected by quality problems. These may then be subjected to more elaborate quality management procedures. In the study presented, a criteria-based screening checklist designed to tap potential quality problems among rehabilitative cases in the German statutory accident insurance medical rehabilitation system was evaluated regarding its validity and suitability for routine use.