One in five Belgian employees will postpone doctor’s visit

The most important reason for that delayed care is the lack of care offer: the too long waiting list, not getting an appointment or not taking care in the area of ​​the place of residence. Yet there is also a second, much less well -known, reason for the delay: not getting leave at work.

Of the group that postpons care, 17 percent do that because it is not possible to take leave. That makes Belgium the European leader after Spain. Employees with unhealthy working conditions in particular miss medical care more often. Employees who work with chemical products, often have to lift heavy loads or work near heavy vibrating machines, run a third to 2.6 times more risk of missing out on a doctor’s visit, specifically because they cannot take off.

The so -called “double health inequality” of that group of employees has an impact on the problem of long -term sick. For example, a third of the long-term sick people fell out due to muscle and skeleton disorders. It is the most common work -related health complaint, with a budgetary cost of 5 billion euros. The researchers ask for more legal leave options for a necessary doctor’s visit or medical treatment during working hours.