Self-perceived Transformational Leadership Decreases Employee Sick Leave, but Context Matters / [El liderazgo transformacional autopercibido reduce el absentismo por enfermedad, pero el contexto importa]

Purpose: Employee sickness absence increased steadily in recent years posing an important challenge for organizations and research. The present study addresses this need by analysing the causal link of transformational leadership and sickness absence, while also taking into consideration the context of leadership by studying the moderation effect of a leader’s perceived organizational support (POS) in that association. Design/Method: 57 middle managers of two Spanish companies were randomly assigned to either the control (n = 22) or intervention (n = 35) condition. Multigroup linear regression in MPlus was carried out to compare the effect of transformational leadership on follower sick leave during a 6 months pre and post-test period for both groups, while also taking into account the moderation effect of a leader’s POS. Findings: The analysis confirmed the association between transformational leadership and sick leave days due to short-term spells, moderated by the leader’s levels of POS. Moreover, this relationship was stronger within the intervention as compared to the control group. Conclusion: The present research provides causal evidence for the link between transformational leadership and sickness absence, and offers an evidence-based and actionable leadership training method for organizations seeking to reduce employee sick leave.(AU)

Objetivo: El absentismo laboral por enfermedad ha aumentado de forma constante en los últimos años, planteando un importante reto para las organizaciones y la investigación. El presente estudio aborda esta necesidad analizando la relación causal entre el liderazgo transformacional y el absentismo por enfermedad, a la vez que toma en consideración el contexto del liderazgo estudiando el efecto moderador del apoyo organizativo percibido (AOP) del líder en dicha asociación. Método: Se asignó aleatoriamente a 57 mandos intermedios de dos empresas españolas a la condición de control (n = 22) o a la de intervención (n = 35). Se llevó a cabo una regresión lineal multigrupo en MPlus para comparar el efecto del liderazgo transformacional sobre la baja por enfermedad de los subordinados durante un periodo de 6 meses antes y después de la prueba para ambos grupos, teniendo también en cuenta el efecto moderador del AOP del líder. Resultados: El análisis confirmó la asociación entre el liderazgo transformacional y los días de baja por enfermedad debidos a periodos de corta duración, moderada por los niveles de AOP del líder. Además, la relación era más fuerte en el grupo de intervención que en el de control. Conclusión: La investigación aporta pruebas causales de la relación entre el liderazgo transformacional y la baja por enfermedad y ofrece un método empírico de formación en liderazgo aplicable a las organizaciones que pretendan reducir la baja por enfermedad de sus empleados.(AU)

Comparison of pneumonia features in children caused by SARS-CoV-2 and other viral respiratory pathogens.

BACKGROUND: Pneumonia is a frequent manifestation of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in hospitalized children. METHODS: The study involved 80 hospitals in the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) Spanish Pediatric National Cohort. Participants were children <18 years, hospitalized with SARS-CoV-2 community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). We compared the clinical and radiological characteristics of SARS-CoV-2-associated CAP with CAP due to other viral etiologies from ValsDance (retrospective) cohort. RESULTS: In total, 151 children with SARS-CoV-2-associated CAP and 138 with other viral CAP were included. Main clinical features of SARS-CoV-2-associated CAP were cough, fever, or dyspnea. Lymphopenia was found in 43% patients and 15% required admission to the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). Chest X-ray revealed condensation (42%) and other infiltrates (58%). Compared with CAP from other viral pathogens, COVID-19 patients were older, with lower C-reactive protein (CRP) levels, less wheezing, and greater need of mechanical ventilation (MV). There were no differences in the use of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) or HVF, or PICU admission between groups. CONCLUSION: SARS-CoV-2-associated CAP in children presents differently to other virus-associated CAP: children are older and rarely have wheezing or high CRP levels; they need less oxygen but more CPAP or MV. However, several features overlap and differentiating the etiology may be difficult. The overall prognosis is good.