Occupational health guidelines for mental disorders and stress-related complaints, a challenge for occupational health

The late Dutch critic, writer and journalist, Jan Blokker, once ironically said: “I hate information, you can't even trust your own prejudices anymore.” In spite of this, information is needed, in particular from well-conducted research, to make informed decisions in healthcare. Gaps between evidence from research and decision-making in daily practice occur in all important stakeholders in healthcare: healthcare professionals, patients and policy-makers.1 One of the strategies to close this gap is the systematic development and implementation of clinical practice guidelines.2 Also, in the field of occupational health (OH), professionals should strive to achieve an evidence-based practice by integrating the best available scientific evidence with their own expertise, and the values and preferences of their clients. An important instrument in the enhancement of evidence-based practice in OH is the development and implementation of evidence-based practice guidelines. In a well-written international collaboration, Joosen et al 3 report the results of a review of available guidelines on a key topic in OH: the management of mental disorders and stress-related psychological problems in an occupational healthcare setting. The authors searched for …