Concern about the province’s high sick leave rate is starting to spread among Burgos employers, especially in the wake of the pandemic. The FAE asked the College of Physicians to collaborate on a study—conducted using statistics from 2018 and 2019—that produced startling, and in some ways shocking, data. Most notably, temporary disabilities granted for psychiatric reasons in primary care accounted for 29% of the total, 12 percentage points higher than the national average. Ángel Carlos Matia, a member of the university’s board of trustees, could not explain why Burgos stood out for this type of sick leave, but he did assure that “sick leave rates have increased even more after COVID-19.”
However, the most common reasons for absenteeism are related to infectious diseases (respiratory infections and gastroenteritis). The second is due to musculoskeletal disorders and the third is due to mental illness. Mattia warned that the patient was 43 years old, with the most common age group being 36 to 45 years old. Additionally, being overweight, smoking, and drinking alcohol are strongly associated with absenteeism.
(For more information, see this Friday’s print edition of Burgos Journal)