Women with disabling health conditions: the significance of employment.

This study investigated employment status, desire to return to work, and health outlook among 148 women and 184 men with major disabling health conditions. Disabled women's need for job retraining and the importance of improved employer education about disability were recurrent themes during the interviews. No significant differences were found in women's and men's return to work or in desire for job retraining following disability onset. Perceived health status was significantly higher among employed women than among non-employed women, and the data suggest that employment contributes to improved health outlook among disabled women.