Medical, Functional, and Legal Aspects of Vocational Rehabilitation for People with Multiple Sclerosis

Issue title: Multiple Sclerosis

Guest editors: John DeLucaGuest Editor

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Britell, Catherine W.^a | Cooper, Laura D.^b | Law, Nancy^b

Affiliations: [a] RCH Technical Institute, Seattle, WA | [b] National Multiple Sclerosis Society

Abstract: A majority of individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS) are not employed, even though most are at an age of prime employability and have been successfully employed in the past. Factors that have been shown to decrease employment in these individuals include mobility impairment, bladder and bowel dysfunction, impairment in activities of daily living, cognitive dysfunction, social and family issues, lack of physical and functional access to the workplace, and attitudes of the patient, family, and employer about chronicity and disability in MS. This paper reviews the functional, psychosocial, and legal barriers to employment in these individuals and discusses effective interventions to maintain or regain successful employment in this population.

DOI: 10.3233/NRE-1993-3407

Journal: NeuroRehabilitation, vol. 3, no. 4, pp. 39-47, 1993