The chronically ill in the labour market - are they hierarchically sorted by education?

Background: The chronically ill as a group has on average lower probability of employment compared to the general population, a situation that has persisted over time in many countries. Previous studies have shown that the prevalence of chronic diseases is higher among those with lower levels of education. We aim to quantify the double burden of low education and chronic illness comparing the differential probabilities of employment between the chronically ill with lower, medium, and high levels of education and how their employment rates develop over time.

Worker and workplace determinants of employment exit: a register study.

Background: Workers with chronic illness are in higher risk of unemployment. This article investigated the worker and workplace characteristics associated with labour market inclusion for workers with a diagnosed chronic illness.

Methods: Linked employer-employee register data covering all Norwegian employers and employees each month from February 2015 to December 2019 were merged with patient data from specialist healthcare (136 196 observations (job spells); 70 923 individual workers).

(I can't get no) satisfaction: A comparative study of healthcare recommodification in Europe, 2010-18.

European health reforms during the last decades have strengthened patient rights and introduced choice, competition and financial incentives in a sector that has typically been state-directed and centrally controlled. The marketisation of health care has also drawn out profit and introduced private provision. The main argument behind this trend is that market competition will improve service quality and deliver health services more efficiently.

Promoting labour market inclusion of the chronically ill: a scoping review of Scandinavian countries' efforts.

Objectives: This article is a scoping review of efforts in labour market inclusion of the chronically ill in the Scandinavian countries, a research area that has received much political as well as research attention in recent years. The aim of the review was to identify promising strategies and the need for further research.

Methods: Six electronic databases were searched for literature published between 2015 and 2020.

Medical innovations can reduce social inequalities in health: an analysis of blood pressure and medication in the HUNT study.

This paper examines whether the use of blood pressure medication has an influence on social inequalities in blood pressure levels. In Norway, cardiovascular disease has for decades been associated with high mortality and social inequalities. High blood pressure is an important risk factor in this aspect, and prescription drugs have been established as a standard treatment of hypertension.

Educational inequalities in high- vs. low-preventable health conditions: Exploring the fundamental cause theory.

Aim: To explore variations in educational gradients or gaps between high- and low-preventable health conditions.

Background: This is one of the first European studies to test whether the association between socioeconomic status and morbidity is stronger for 10 high- than three low-preventable health conditions, by gender across 20 countries.

Data And Methods: The 2014 European Social Survey included questions on 11 health conditions experienced over the last 12 months, cancer at any age, and symptoms of depression during the last week.

Educational inequalities in mortality amenable to healthcare. A comparison of European healthcare systems.

Background: Educational inequalities in health and mortality in European countries have often been studied in the context of welfare regimes or political systems. We argue that the healthcare system is the national level feature most directly linkable to mortality amenable to healthcare. In this article, we ask to what extent the strength of educational differences in mortality amenable to healthcare vary among European countries and between European healthcare system types.

Is a Decentralised Health Policy Associated With Better Self-rated Health and Health Services Evaluation? A Comparative Study of European Countries.

Background: While decentralisation has come to be a major policy strategy in many healthcare systems, there is still insufficient evidence about its impact. Most studies have been of developing countries, and they have provided mixed results. This study is the first to test the relevance of political decentralisation across European countries, thus meeting the demand for more studies of decentralisation in developed countries, and building on an indicator of decentralisation reflecting the allocation of authority for both health policy tasks and health policy areas.

Innovative technologies and social inequalities in health: A scoping review of the literature.

The aim of this study was to systematically review the range, nature, and extent of current research activity exploring the influence of innovative health-related technologies on social inequalities in health, with specific focus on a deeper understanding of the variables used to measure this connection and the pathways leading to the (re)production of inequalities. A review process was conducted, based on scoping review techniques, searching literature published from January 1, 1996 to November 25, 2016 using MEDLINE, Scopus, and ISI web of science. Search, sorting, and data extraction processes were conducted by a team of researchers and experts using a dynamic, reflexive examination process.

Public evaluation of health services across 21 European countries: The role of culture.

Aims: This work examined the role of cultural values in understanding people's satisfaction with health services across Europe.

Methods: We used multilevel linear regression analysis on the seventh round of the European Social Survey from 2014, including c. 40,000 respondents from 21 countries.

Rethinking the relationship between socio-economic status and health: Making the case for sociological theory in health inequality research.

Aim: The aim of this study is to analyse previous explanations of social inequality in health and argue for a closer integration of sociological theory into future empirical research.

Methods: We examine cultural-behavioural, materialist, psychosocial and life-course approaches, in addition to fundamental cause theory. Giddens' structuration theory and a neo-materialist approach, inspired by Bruno Latour, Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari, are proposed as ways of rethinking the causal relationship between socio-economic status and health.