An action group in Canada, the Ontario Action Group to Prevent Work Disability, recently stated that prolonged time off work on disability benefits is unhealthy, and that work is healthy for an individual.

Terry O’Hearn, who is chair of Caldwell O’Hearn, a company that helps clients manage disability issues, said that people who stay on disability benefits in the long-term experience a loss of quality of life—family loss, and creating a huge economic cost.

Earlier this month, the group held a summit in Canada and invited Dame Carol Black, past president of the Royal College of Physicians in the UK, as a speaker. Traditionally, doctors always write a "sick note". But Black supports doctors writing a “fit note”. She said changing the notes involves a change in culture and attitude, both on the part of the general practitioner, and on the part of the employer who can, for example, accommodate the employee by creating a phased return to work.

In light of that, a general practitioner program is now online in the UK, and efforts will be made to educate hospital doctors. The Action Group is looking to emulate the UK and the US around changing the mindset around health concerns in the workplace.