Factors Affecting Return to Work After COVID-19 Hospitalization in an Iranian Population

Background: In 2020, COVID-19 was a major cause of absenteeism. Objectives: To investigate the factors affecting the time taken to return to work after COVID-19 hospitalization. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted on 320 working individuals (295 men and 25 women) hospitalized in Yazd province, Iran, due to COVID-19 between September 2020 and March 2021. All patients who met the inclusion criteria and provided consent were enrolled in the study via census. The inclusion criteria were: A definite or probable diagnosis of COVID-19 and hospitalization for no reason other than COVID-19. The required information was collected through phone interviews using a researcher-developed questionnaire that included demographic, occupational, recent COVID-19 infection, and return-to-work information. Data were analyzed using SPSS software. Results: The average duration of absenteeism was 31.67 +/- 33.47 days. Univariate regression analysis revealed a significant relationship between absenteeism lasting more than 21 days and several factors: Age (P = 0.005), gender (P = 0.044), marital status (P = 0.005), number of dependents (P < 0.001), diabetes (P = 0.004), BMI (P = 0.031), job experience (P < 0.001), type of employment (P = 0.008), workplace respiratory exposures (P = 0.042), lower respiratory symptoms (P = 0.024), duration of hospitalization and medication use (P < 0.001), pulmonary complications (P < 0.001), and mental complications (P = 0.004). After adjusting for confounding factors, only three factors were significantly associated with a delay in return to work of more than 21 days: Duration of medication use (P < 0.001), presence of pulmonary complications (P = 0.014), and presence of psychological complications (P = 0.040). Conclusions: The severity of the disease, as indicated by the duration of medication use for COVID-19 after discharge, and the presence of pulmonary and psychological complications, directly influenced the return to work after COVID-19.