THIS PAPER will describe an attempt to study a group of seven patients in a longterm hemodialysis program. It presents a review of the pertinent literature, the results of psychological tests done on that group over a nine-month period, and discusses conclusions drawn from that material.

Despite the increasing number of studies of patients involved in long-term hemodialysis and organ transplant programs there still is a relative paucity of psychiatric information about this group of people. There are many questions that need to be explored to enhance over understanding. There is a need to further study the nature of the emotional stress of their prolonged illness and their confrontation with the reality of imminent death. The significance of the stress of repeated medical procedure, the effect of the change of the patient's life style necessitated by his relationship to the hospital and its life-saving machinery, and the manner in which