Each patient with musculoskeletal disease spends 45 days a year in the Valencian Community.

– during the day Dr. Juan Ángel Jover has presented a program of early intervention which has proven to reduce healthcare costs by half

– the research was carried out in the Hospital Clínico San Carlos of Madrid and the next dates are It will repeat the experience in the Hospital Universitario La Fe

Valencia, 2011-December Diseases Musculoskeletal, also called rheumatic or locomotor, composed by a group of over 200 diseases including rheumatoid arthritis, are the main cause of low temporary disability in Spain. In the Valencian Community each of these patients collects an average of 45 days a year, a figure which cost labour of 138 million euros in the community, according to the health and work study (1).

With the aim of stimulating discussion among experts and contribute to improving the preventive and therapeutic monitoring of these diseases, Medical Economics, in collaboration with Fundación Abbott, has organized the day social and occupational health: quality of life in the patient musculoskeletal ”, which has been chaired by Manuela García RebollRegional Secretary of the Department of health; and Joaquín bathroom Girones, Director-General of the Ministry of education, training and employment work.

Pilot project in the University Hospital of the Fe

Dr. Juan Ángel Jover, Chief of Rheumatology service at the Hospital Clínico San Carlos in Madrid, has presented during the day the early intervention program in patients referred to as musculoskeletal (IT-I 2011 – failure Temporal-Enfermedades musculoskeletal 2011), which has already proven to be capable of reducing healthcare costs by half and has succeeded in reducing sick days 40%. After this successful investigation, this program is intended to extend to other communities. The first one will be Valencia, being the Hospital Universitario La Fe chosen Center. The experience also be carried out in other communities, such as Galicia and Cantabria.

Management of the patient from baja since Rheumatology

The novelty of this program is the management of this type of patients by the rheumatologist from the day in which primary care physician issuing the lower part. This experience has already carried out in Hospital Clínico San Carlos in Madrid with the above mentioned results and is susceptible to implement at national level in the different autonomous communities.

According to the health and work, the cost that represent these pathologies is for each Valencian active an annual expenditure of € 56,95, a figure below the Spanish average (75,65 €) but more than other communities, such as Catalonia (49 euros).

The day of Medical Economics has also had a round table in which took part personalities health and labour: Ana María García, of the Department. Preventive medicine and public health at the University of Valencia and researcher of the ISTS (CCOO); José Andrés Román, Chief of the Rheumatology service at the Hospital Universitario La Fe; Antonio Sancho, regional director of Asepeyo; Juan Alegre, labour inspector of the community and Francisco Fornés, head of health labour of the Local police of the City Council of Valencia.

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