The purpose of World MS Day is to raise awareness about multiple sclerosis (MS), a sometimes debilitating neurological disease. Though many people diagnosed with MS can continue on with their regular employment, they often need a little help from their employers. MS in the workplace is the special focus of 2011's World MS Day.
Multiple Sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis is a chronic neurological disease that affects the central nervous system, leading to varying degrees of restricted movement. Worldwide, over two million people have been diagnosed with MS. Though the cause is yet evasive, and there is currently no known cure, there are medications that can significantly lessen the effects of the disease.
History of World MS Day
According to World MS Day's official website, its goal is "to raise awareness and mobilize the global [MS] movement." The first World MS Day took place on May 27th, 2009, sponsored by national MS societies around the world. Supporters in sixty-seven countries participated, hosting over 200 events.
On World MS Day 2010, the Multiple Sclerosis International Federation released a report, Global Economic Impact of Multiple Sclerosis, highlighting the heavy financial cost to the individual, as well as to society, of those diagnosed with MS. A great part of this cost is due to job loss and early retirement.
Rights of Persons with Disabilities in the Workplace
World MS Day 2011 focuses on multiple sclerosis in the workplace. On the World MS Day website, those who would like to can sign the petition for Access to Appropriate Work, calling on government leaders to "recognize, protect, and promote the rights of persons with MS and other disabilities to access appropriate work."
The 2006 UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities declares that "States Parties recognize the right of persons with disabilities to work, on an equal basis with others," and "States Parties shall safeguard and promote the realization of the right to work, including for those who acquire a disability during the course of employment." A disabled employee's right to work is protected by law but, faced with the complexities that MS can create, employers may not know how to accommodate such workers.
MS in the Workplace
Because MS is a progressive disease, those who are diagnosed often face the prospect of mobility loss, as well as other issues resulting from the disease. A cure for MS has not yet been discovered, but there are FDA-approved medications that hinder its progress, as well as limit the occurrence and severity of the relapses that many people with MS experience. These medications can greatly improve the quality of life of the individual with multiple sclerosis.
And according to the National MS Society official website, 85% of people diagnosed with the disease have, at least initially, what is known as relapsing-remitting MS. This means that every so often they have relapses, or attacks, of worsening neurologic function. These relapses last for a defined period of time, and the disease does not seem to progress any further beyond the attacks.
Taking these things into consideration, an employee with MS can often continue on in the workplace with minimal difficulty, aided by a few low-cost modifications on the part of the employer. " MS in Workplace: Tips for Employers," a 2003 article by Kimberly Hilden, then assistant editor of the Snohomish County Business Journal, suggests some adjustments, including:
- allowing time off for MS treatment
- making a workplace restroom wheelchair accessible
- replacing knobs with easier-to-handle levers on faucets and doors
- allowing the employee to telecommute on days when a relapse makes a physical commute more difficult
World MS Day: Work and MS
Though those who are affected by multiple sclerosis face many challenges, World MS Day 2011 hopes to ease that burden by enforcing the right of those with MS to obtain and hold employment and by raising awareness of the disease itself. When employers better understand multiple sclerosis, they can be better equipped to meet the needs of their employees who are affected by it.
Sources
- "Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities." UN Web Services Section, Department of Public Information. United Nations: 2006.
- Hilden, Kimberly. " MS in Workplace: Tips for Employers." The Daily Herald Co: 2003.
- "Multiple Sclerosis International Federation." MSIF: 2010.
- "National Multiple Sclerosis Society." National MS Society online.
- "World MS Day 2011." World MS Day online.
Sarah McCabe - Sarah scooted around from country to country as a Foreign Service kid, got her BA in linguistics at the College of William and Mary in ...
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