Burden of Chronic Hemodialysis on the Ability to Work: Time for Action

Background  Understanding the factors that contribute to unemployment will help in the design of creative resolutions to enable hemodialysis patients to return to a productive life. Methods  We examined employment among 625 patients aged 18 to 60 years who were on hemodialysis in 8 dialysis units. Results  Overall employment was low among patients on chronic hemodialysis at 49.7%. Unemployment was significantly higher in women than in men (86.6% vs 17.1%, p  < 0.0001). The employment rate was 70.5% for those with no diabetes and hypertension, 29.5% for those with diabetes, and 25.9% for those with diabetes and hypertension. Furthermore, the results of the Cox regression showed that the variables of gender, level of education, capability of driving, and diabetes were related to employment of patients. Conclusions  The majority of patients on hemodialysis are unemployed or exit paid employment due to early retirement. Patients with diabetes and women are a vulnerable population with a higher unemployment rate.