Quality of life and employment in persons with multiple sclerosis

Abstract

Background: Work is salient to life, is central to well-being, and is a means by which individuals define themselves. Disabilities such as Multiple Sclerosis (MS), however, can confound the interaction between person and work.

Objective: In the current study, in an effort to examine the effects of type of employment upon quality of life (QOL), employment was divided into three categories (full-time employment, part-time employment, and unemployment).

Method: Comparisons were then made between QOL ratings and the three categories. Although studies of QOL and MS are appearing more frequently in the literature, few studies have addressed this issue.

Results: A priori comparisons and Analysis of Variance resulted in the finding that persons with MS who were employed tended to rate their levels of QOL nearly one third of a standard deviation higher than their unemployed counterparts.

Conclusion: Results of the study emphasize the need for the provision of quality vocational services to persons with MS. Issues such as quality vocational services, timeliness, and the importance of continued work are discussed.

Keywords: QOL; Work; disability; multiple sclerosis; quality of life; well-being.