Introduction/background/objectives:

Although the bibliography is not scarce, the topic is not much discussed. In addition, there are several definitions that can hinder the interpretation, analysis and approach of the problem.

The purpose of this review is to summarize the most relevant information on the topic, to enable professionals that exercise in Occupational Health teams to be more qualified.

Methodology:

This is a Bibliographic Review, carried out in November 2020, in the databases “CINALH plus with full text, Medline with full text, Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Cochrane Methodology Register, Nursing and Allied Health Collection: comprehensive, MedicLatina and RCAAP”.

Content:

Presenteeism is an increasingly problem. It consists in the fact that the employee appears at the workplace, even if he is ill; not fulfilling all their tasks and/or not performing them properly. However, it is a complex phenomenon and not just the opposite of being absent due to illness.

The concept was first introduced in the 1990s, a time of high unemployment/decrease in the number of jobs, with an increase in temporary contracts and public and private restructuring.

In the face of illness, workers choose absenteeism or presenteeism. The decision depends on the pathology, the level of disability, the ease with which it frees itself from responsibilities and how others have previously behaved to disease. Going to work can be therapeutic (more likely to be distracted from symptoms) and boost self-esteem. The decision to work or be absent, in addition to direct medical issues and functional limitations, may also depend on economic, cultural, moral and/or social factors.

Presenteeism goes more unnoticed than absenteeism and is more difficult to quantify itself, as well as the decrease in productivity associated. There is no Gold Standard method for its evaluation, although there are several instruments, validated and not, to quantify it.

Some strategies are outlined that could mitigate the problem.

Discussion and Conclusions:

The concept of Presenteeism has diverse definitions and, at times, almost antipodes, that difficult to list the possible consequences and choose strategies. The term can mean both appearing at the workplace, even when there is a medical issue that would justify being absent, being less productive, due to the commitment to the institution/colleagues and/or clients; it could mean stay at work longer than normal hours or be in the workplace distracted and non-productive, due to personal/family problems, boredom or dissatisfaction with the employer and with the aim of not producing to punish the latter. It is still possible that this phenomenon occurs to compensate incompetence; to appear more committed and more likely to progress; for fear of being fired; by the encouragement of managers; to meet demanding goals; to be sick and justify not work later; to appear sick because he was absent before; it can happen for the fear of becoming more limited in the future and need at that time to be absent or for predicting that family members may need support and will need to be absent later or simply having brief pauses, to relax and restore concentration, to produce more and better afterwards.

Thus, each institution should carefully analyze its situation, to understand which is (are) the subtype(s) of Presenteeism, to outline measures capable of alleviating the problem.

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