Lurking beneath the surface: depression as a secondary health issue affects many employees who...

When an employee is off work due to illness or injury, the focus is usually on the primary reason for the absence. It may be an on-the-job injury covered by workers' compensation, or an employee may be on short-term disability due to a serious illness such as cancer, a chronic disease such as diabetes or a nonoecupational injury.

Throughout the process of evaluating the individual's ease, providing appropriate treatment, and planning for the employee's eventual return to work, what may go unnoticed is a common secondary health issue: depression.

According to