Reviewer ’s report  
 
Title: "The Importance of Awareness, Support and Inner Strength to Balance Everyday Life"  -A 
qualitative study about women's experiences of a workplace health promotion program in 
Human service organizations in Sweden.  
 
Version: 0 Date: 23 Mar 2018  
 
Reviewer: Nicola Magnavita  
 
Reviewer's report:  
 
In the introduction, the authors attribute t he increase in absenteeism observed in Europe to the 
mental illnesses of women. I believe other factors should be mentioned, primarily the aging of 
the workforce [Poscia A, et al. Workplace Health Promotion for Older Workers: a Systematic 
Literature Review . BMC Health Serv Res. 2016 Sep 5;16 Suppl 5:329. doi: 10.1186/s12913 -016-
1518 -z.]. Furthermore, women's absences are not only related to mental health, but also to social 
factors and the gender gap. Problems encountered by Swedish women who report higher levels 
of job strain due to less decision authority compared to men, are similar to those observed in 
Italian radiologists [Magnavita N. Is there a gender gap in Italian radiology? A cross -sectional 
study. Eur J Radiol. 2013; 82 (9): e502 -e507 doi:pii: S07 20-048X(13)00202 -7. 
10.1016/j.ejrad.2013.04.007 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ejrad.2013.04.007 ].  
There seems to be a problem with the definition of WLB. The authors observe that "Work -life 
balance has been defined in various ways, for instance, as a feeling  of satisfaction due to a 
successful balance between work and private life". The authors should say that the lack of a 
definition accepted by all makes it difficult to compare studies on the subject. A subjective 
definition such as that proposed by the aut hors has an obvious limitation. A workaholic worker 
could in fact consider himself fully satisfied by work and family life, even if this is marginal or 
practically non -existent.  
The study involved a small fraction of workers (55/1300, less than 5%) of a mu nicipality. Later, 
only a small part of those who participated were interviewed. The authors must recognize that 
this is a strong limitation of their work.  
The interviews also bring with them a strong share of the interviewer's subjectivity.  
Are the methods appropriate and well described?  
If not, please specify what is required in  your comments to the authors.  
 
Yes 
 
  
Does the work include the necessary controls?  
If not, please specify which controls are required in your comments to the authors.  
 
No 
 
Are the conclusions drawn adequately supported by the data shown?  
If not, please explain  in your comments to the authors.  
 
Yes 
 
Are you able to assess any statistics in the manuscript or would you recommend an  
additional statistical review?  
If an additional statistical review is recommended, please specify what aspects require further  
assessment in your comments to the editors.  
 
Not relevant to this manuscript  
 
Quality of written English  
Please indicate the quality of language in the manuscript:  
 
Acceptable  
 
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