Journal of epidemiology and community health
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J Epidemiol Community Health · Jun 1997
Effect of labour market conditions on reporting of limiting long-term illness and permanent sickness in England and Wales.
To identify any bias in the reporting of limiting long term illness and permanent sickness due to labour market conditions, and show the absence of the effect in mortality rates. ⋯ Limiting long term illness and permanent sickness measures may reflect a tendency for higher positive response in difficult labour market conditions. For average social deprivation conditions, standardised limiting long term illness for people aged 0-64 years was 20% higher in travel to work areas where employment prospects were relatively poor compared with areas with relatively good employment prospects. This casts doubt on the use of limiting long term illness as an indicator of objective health care needs for resource allocation purposes at national level.