[Linkage Between Promotion of Employment and Promotion of Health in the Community Setting - Results of the Pilot Project of the Federal Employment Agency and the Statutory Health Insurance].

Objective: The Federal Employment Agency and the Statutory Health Insurance (GKV) have put the link between the promotion of employment and of health to the test by making a joint approach aiming to reach unemployed persons with preventive health services and to maintain or improve their employability.
Methods: Specialist case workers (Integrationsfachkräfte) of the job centres conducted health consultations, motivating unemployed persons and raising their awareness of their own health as well as enabling them to access health promotion services of health insurance funds on a voluntary basis. Three different approaches were tested: consultations either being offered by specialist case workers of the job centres, by contracted educational institutions or by the federal employment agency's own special services (Fachdienste). The pilot project was implemented locally in the community setting. The steering groups set up in the 6 pilot locations, consisting of representatives of the job centres and the health insurance funds as well as of further local players, were the key element of this project.
Results: The offers implemented were a success: The unemployed persons welcomed the consultations offered by job centres; the preventive health services specifically directed at unemployed persons that were provided by health insurance funds have proven successful, especially in terms of reducing stress and maintaining employability.
Conclusion: Inclusion of the key points of this approach into the basic recommendations at federal level (Bundesrahmenempfehlungen) of the National Conference on Prevention of 19 February 2016 has created a basis for further advances and dissemination.
Competing Interests: Die Autoren geben an, dass kein Interessenkonflikt besteht.
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