Are you thinking about your professional life after transplantation? How well can you balance your career, your new organ and immunosuppressants? Find out here, as well as why the type of organ you have transplanted is an important factor influencing the pace of your return to work.
Career with transplanted kidney - is it possible?
Good news: People with a new kidney have statistically the best prospects of returning to work among organ transplant recipients! Compared to other transplant recipients (heart, lung or liver), the post-transplant employment rate is significantly higher. This is due, among other things, to the fact that the surgical techniques are improving all the time and that the aftercare following a successful kidney transplant is also designed to help you get back to an active life.
However, the question of how quickly you can return to work directly after a transplantation cannot be answered in general terms. There are various factors (e.g. your age) that influence how long it takes to return to work. To ensure that everything goes smoothly when you start your professional life, you will find a summary of the most important information here.
Working with a new kidney - why?
For many people, returning to work also means a return to normality. But not only that: returning to your job also contributes to a significantly higher quality of life and helps you stay physically and mentally fit. It has even been proven to have a positive effect on the lifespan of your new kidney. With this in mind, let's put some thought into how this could work out and what you need to consider to make it happen!
Workplace and transplantation - what do I need to plan?
For your professional (re-)start it can be helpful to plan and clarify different aspects already before the transplantation.
It is best to sit down with your employer before the transplantation and think about how your way back to work after the transplantation could look like. They will certainly try to support you in the best possible way. Perhaps retraining is also an option. For less stress, you can also complete this some time before your operation, after consulting with your employer.
Rehab clinics also offer programs that make it easier for you to start working later on. They will work with you to develop individual solutions for your professional life and provide support, for example, with applications for internal rehabilitation. So you are not on your own! You have experts on hand to provide you with the best possible support in the event of questions and problems.
Your transplant also plays a role - why?
This is exactly the question that a scientific study has also asked itself and investigated the effects of the type of transplant on professional (re-)entry. It was found that the employment rate of people with kidney transplants is significantly higher than that of people with new lungs, hearts or livers.
Most transplanted people with new kidneys find their way back into the workforce within the first 6 months after transplant. With proper planning and support from your medical team, you can be sure that everyone involved will do their best to help you (re)start your career as soon as possible.
Did you also know that one factor that positively influences your return to work is whether you already had a job one year before the transplant? In this case, it often helps if your employer already knows about the operation and the planned rehabilitation. This way, they can support you in the best possible way on your way back to work.
Returning to work after a transplant - what do I need to bear in mind?
Especially after the operation, your physical resilience is still severely limited. Physically strenuous work is taboo at first. It is important that you do not overload yourself and take care of the surgical wound. Coordinate with your employer and your nephrologist and discuss how to make the start as easy as possible. Always listen to your body. If something doesn't feel right, take it down a notch.
You should also avoid workplaces with high germ contamination. This is important to protect yourself from infections. Unfortunately, work with children, in hospitals or nursing homes has a particularly high risk of infection. You should also think twice about jobs at workplaces with high temperature fluctuations, increased humidity, chemical exposure or high dust levels (e.g. on construction sites). Due to the increased risk of infection, composting and waste sorting facilities are also unsuitable as workplaces.
But don't worry. Even if your workplace is at increased risk for germs, there are ways you can stay with your employer. For example, one option is to switch to a job that you can primarily perform from your home office. There, the risk of infection is much lower. If this is not possible in your current position, you could consider participating in retraining to support other positions in the same company in the future. It is best to talk to your employer about this at an early stage. Together you will certainly find a solution that suits you.
