What Is Disability?
Have you ever wondered what disability is? Many people are familiar with physical and intellectual disabilities but not other types of disability. People with invisible disabilities often face challenges as they are perceived as not disabled and thus have limited access to special services. In this article, we explore what disability is and its effect on the lives of those who experience it.
Definition: Disability is said to occur when a person is unable to function at the same level as an average person due to some physical, mental, intellectual, or sensory condition that they have. A person with a disability has a condition that limits their participation in their community as well as makes it hard for them to perform certain activities.
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities defines a disability as follows – long-term physical, mental, intellectual, or sensory impairments which, in interaction with various barriers, may hinder [a person’s] full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others.
Disabilities may be visible or invisible. According to the World Health Organization, disability has three dimensions.
1. Participation Restrictions in daily activities such as obtaining preventative services and healthcare, working and engaging in recreational and social activities.
2. Activity limitations include difficulty walking, hearing, seeing, or solving problems.
3. Impairment in a person’s body structure, functioning, or mental performance. Loss of memory, vision, or limbs are examples of impairment.
Types Of Disabilities
Disabilities may be of the following nature,
Physical
Mental
Cognitive
Sensory
Developmental
Intellectual.
Disabilities do not occur singly, and some conditions may involve multiple types of disability. Some people have more than one condition, and many have various disabilities.
Disabilities affect a person’s social relationships, mental health, hearing, communication, learning, remembering, thinking, movement, and vision.
Disability can have the following features.
1. Be related to an existing condition such as diabetes, which can result in vision or limb loss or nerve damage in some people.
2. It can be intermittent, such as some forms of multiple sclerosis, static, such as in the case of limb loss, or it can be progressive, such as in the case of muscular dystrophy.
3. Be related to an injury such as in the case of spinal cord and traumatic brain injury.
4. Be related to problems of development that become apparent during childhood, such as ADHD or autism spectrum disorder.
5. Be related to problems that may be present at birth and affect functioning in adulthood. The affected functioning may include behavior, hearing, vision, mobility, and cognition, which is learning, memory, and understanding. Other areas may also be affected. These conditions may be the result of the mother being exposed to infections, such as rubella, or substances such as drugs, alcohol, and cigarettes during pregnancy. Others, such as Down Syndrome, may be the result of disorders of chromosomes or single genes, such as in the case of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.
What Are The Key Facts On Disability?
According to the World Health Organization, here are key facts on disability.
1. Every one in six people, or 16 % of the world’s population, experiences significant disability. This figure makes up for up to 1.3 billion people worldwide with disability.
2. The lifespans of some persons with disability are reduced by about 20 years as compared to the general population.
3. Persons with disabilities have twice the risk of developing asthma, diabetes, stroke, obesity, poor oral health, and depression as compared to those without disabilities.
4. Persons with disabilities are discriminated against a lot in the healthcare system. Health injustices experienced by persons with disabilities include discrimination, barriers in the health system, exclusion from employment and education, poverty, and stigma.
5. Persons with disabilities are 15 times more likely to find transportation difficult and inaccessible as compared to those without disabilities.
According to the World Report on Disability, the number of persons with disability is increasing around the world. This is because the incidence of diseases associated with disability, such as diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and mental illnesses, is on the rise around the world, and the population is aging. Older people are more at risk of getting a disability. Other factors, such as natural disasters and conflicts, as well as road accidents, contribute to the increase of disabilities around the world.
An unsettling fact is that the majority of those with disabilities live in the developing world. This contributes to making those with disabilities the world’s forgotten minority. They regularly face discrimination and exclusion. Disabled people are the most vulnerable and poor, yet governments and international organizations disregard their needs. Exclusion of persons with disability hampers efforts to reduce poverty around the world.
What Are The Problems Faced By People With Disabilities?
Poverty
People with disabilities are amongst the poorest of the poor around the world. Poor people are also more prone to disability. Thus, disability causes and arises from poverty.
Problems related to poverty faced by those with disability are many and varied. Many people with disability do not have access to adequate housing, sanitation, water, transportation, and work conditions. Transportation is unsafe for many people with disability, and the work environment is rarely conducive to optimal productivity of those with disability.
Many do not have access to proper rehabilitation and medical care. Persons with disability incur extra costs in their daily lives for things such as assistive devices, special healthcare requirements, and personal assistance. Unfortunately, this increased cost of living is not accessible to many persons with disabilities, which increases their risk of being poorer than the average individual.
In the workplace, persons with disabilities also face discrimination. They have limited access to employment and education, and even when they get a job, they are more likely to be paid less than a person without a disability.
People with disabilities often face severe social exclusion. They have limited or no access to public spaces because of physical and other barriers. They are hardly involved in political decision-making, so their needs remain overlooked. Their voices remain unheard.
Double Discrimination
Though disability can affect virtually anyone, vulnerable people such as older people, poor people, and women are more likely to experience disability than the general population. These populations become more likely to experience double discrimination, which is inequity for what they are and for their disability.
For instance, women with disability face discrimination for their disability and for being women. They are more likely to be victims of violence and abuse.
School enrollments also affect children with disabilities. Children with physical disabilities face less discrimination than those with sensory and intellectual disabilities. Once they enter the labor market, those with learning disabilities and mental health issues become the most discriminated against.
The more severe the impairment, the more likely a person is to face increasing discrimination.
Do you have a disability? How has it limited your life, and what issues have you faced? Share in the comments below.