End-stage chronic renal failure requires permanent hemodialysis, preventing patients from working during half-a-day three-times a week. Working ability is thus greatly jeopardized, unless patients can undergo dialysis during the evening. For this purpose they have to make a choice between home-dialysis, with the need of an accompanying person of the family, and of acceptable accommodation (these conditions are rarely fulfilled nowadays, especially in larger cities) and self-care dialysis, 3-5 patients performing themselves their session in the same unit at the same time, with a nurse for help if necessary. In both cases, patients must have learned the technics during a 2-3 months period of training. This teaching can often be achieved quite satisfactorily in some patients with great sociocultural handicaps, such as recent immigrants from Africa. From a technical point of view, excellent results can be obtained even in completely illitterate patients. Moreover, these patients feel greatly valorized and the psychological benefit appears paramount, concerning their relations as well with French people (medical and nursing staff) as with other African people. Finally, acquiring autonomy helps them to keep or find a job and thus to be able of hiring a suitable flat for allowing their spouse(s) and children to come from Africa and live with them.

Medical education immigrants Autonomy hemodialysis

hemodialysis Job Satisfaction Conference Paper adaptation human relation Self Care human migration