People with chronic diseases may be disadvantaged at participation in the workforce. This study aimed to describe the employment statuses of patients with epilepsy and to identify the prevalence of potential occupational health barriers and challenges.

Methods

Interviews were conducted on 394 patients attending  epilepsy  and  epilepsy  surgery outpatient clinics at King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center. Employment status and potentially unsuitable working arrangmeents were  examined  in  relation  to socioeconomic indicators, seizure types and healthcare provider counseling.

Results

Out of 171 participants who were unemployed (43% of total sample), 32% reported they    were not able to find a job, 49% reported they were not well enough to work, and 18% did not desire to work. Seizure type was not related to reason for unemployment.

Thirty (21%) out of 143 employed participants were currently working in potentially unsuitable arrangements (involving heavy machinery, working at heights, working with dangerous substances, working in night or rotating shifts), however 37% of these only experienced partial seizures, 16% only experienced seizures while asleep, and 11% had generalized seizures but had been seizure-­â€free for the last 6 months.

Twenty-­â€one percent of total participants reported that they had experienced a seizure while at work. Around 5% of participants reported seizures that resulted in injuries or fatalties to themselves or other persons, and 1.5% reported seizures resulting in property damage.

Around half of employed participants reported that their employers made special arrangements at work due to their condition, and 48% had requested a medical report from their physicians for purposes related to employment. Fifty-­â€six percent of participants working in potentially unsuitable arrangements had been asked  about  their  occupation  by  their  physicians.