Jens Wahlström

My research focuses on how the work environment, health, and rehabilitation influence people's opportunities for a long and sustainable working life. My main research areas are work-related musculoskeletal health, return to work following illness and treatment, and organizational conditions for health and work ability.

I lead the research group VECTOR, where we study how different aspects of the work environment affect health and the ability to maintain a sustainable working life. An important part of our research concerns the relationship between physical workload and musculoskeletal disorders. We study occupational exposures including ergonomic and biomechanical workload, vibration, and cold. Using large cohort and register-based studies, we investigate both the risk of developing disease and the long-term consequences of ill health for working life.

A growing area of my research concerns return to work following orthopedic surgery. I lead the REWARD research program, where we study sickness absence and return to work following hip and knee replacement and spine surgery. Using national quality registers linked with other Swedish registers, we investigate how patient characteristics, occupational workload, and healthcare-related factors influence return to work. Our aim is to generate evidence that can contribute to more targeted rehabilitation and clinical decision support for patients of working age.

I also conduct research on the organizational work environment and workplace health-promoting factors. One example is the MORFAR project, where we study the organizational conditions that characterize workplaces in which employees thrive and the organization performs well, and how these factors can be measured and applied in occupational health practice.

A common thread throughout my research is the ambition to combine epidemiological research with knowledge that can be translated into practice to prevent ill health, support return to work, and create conditions for a sustainable working life.