Search results for ‘Subject term:"physical disabilities"’ Sort:
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Visual impairment in childhood: insights from a community-based survey
- Authors:
- FLANAGAN N.M., JACKSON A.J., HILL A.E.
- Journal article citation:
- Child: Care, Health and Development, 29(6), November 2003, pp.493-499.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Aimed to produce a profile of visual impairment (VI) in childhood with a view to informing future services and raise awareness of the need for comprehensive assessment including developmental remediation and educational advice, against the background that the concept of VI in childhood has changed over the last 30 years. The number of children with an isolated visual problem has decreased and the numbers with VI and coexisting neurological disability has increased. Seventy-six children with VI were identified from multiple sources including hospital and community paediatricians and statutory blind registers giving a childhood prevalence of 1.61 per 1,000. Thirty-two per cent had a normal pattern of development. Global delays/severe learning difficulty were found in 43%. Only 21% had an isolated VI. Additional medical problems were present in 79% of which cerebral palsy, occurring in 33%, was the most common. Nine per cent were classified as totally blind. Cortical visual impairment was diagnosed in 45%. Twenty-two per cent were registered blind or partially sighted. Most cases of VI in children did not appear on the statutory blind or partially sighted registers, thus these have limited value for service development. The practice implications highlight the need for early assessment and advice from a co-ordinated team to optimise visual potential in childhood.
Disability, self and society
- Author:
- TITCHKOSKY Tanya
- Publisher:
- University of Toronto Press
- Publication year:
- 2003
- Pagination:
- 283p.,bibliog.
- Place of publication:
- London
This book views disability as a process of identity formation within a culture that has done a great deal to de-emphasize the complexity of disability experience. Unlike many who hold the conventional sociological view of disability as a 'lack' or stigmatized identity, the author approaches disability as an agentive (not passive) embodiment of liminality and as a demonstration of socially valuable in-between-ness. She argues that disability can and should be a 'teacher' to, and about, non-disabled or 'temporarily abled' society. Her reflections on disability rely on the thought of Hannah Arendt as well as her personal experience as an individual with dyslexia living with a blind partner. She uniquely draws on her own and others' situations in order to demonstrate the sociopolitical character of disability.
I am the fighter until the last moment: the relationship of race/ethnicity and education to self-reported coping strategies among older adults with visual impairment
- Authors:
- LEE Eun-Kyyoung, BRENNAN Mark
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Social Work in Disability and Rehabilitation, 2(4), 2003, pp.3-28.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
- Place of publication:
- Philadelphia, USA
This study examines how race/ethnicity and educational attainment are related to coping strategies and adaptation to age-related visual impairment among older adults. Narrative data from two previous studies of adaptation to vision impairment (n's = 155 and 343, respectively) were analyzed with qualitative methods. Results indicated that ethnicity of informants played an important role in relation to the type of coping strategies reported, which reflected differences in value systems and sociocultural contexts for each racial group. Educational levels were related to differences in the informants' help-seeking behaviors, attitudes toward learning, and the different kinds of coping resources available. These findings underscore the complexity of needs in the older visually impaired population. Implications of these findings for practitioners working with this population are discussed. (Copies of this article are available from: Haworth Document Delivery Centre Haworth Press Inc., 10 Alice Street Binghamton, NY 13904-1580)
Advocating for equality
- Authors:
- LEWINGTON Wendy, CLIPSON Caroline
- Publisher:
- SCOPE
- Publication year:
- 2003
- Pagination:
- 41p.
- Place of publication:
- London
The aims of this research were: to establish the level of advocacy provision for people with physical, sensory, communication and profound and multiple impairments; to make recommendations to Government, policy-makers and others on how to ensure that people with sensory, physical, communication and profound and multiple impairments are able to access appropriate independent advocacy provision; to identify what support and resources current advocacy providers would require to develop their schemes to include people with physical, sensory, communication and profound and multiple impairments; to establish whether local authorities have a local advocacy plan and whether advocacy providers feel this would be beneficial in their area The main findings from the research also included the following.. Many disabled people with physical, sensory, communication and profound and multiple impairments would benefit from the support of an independent advocate.. There is inadequate independent advocacy provision, especially for people with physical, sensory, communication and profound and multiple impairments. The main causes of lack of independent advocacy provision are funding issues and a lack of skills and experience around working with these groups of people. The types of independent advocacy undertaken by advocacy schemes may not always meet the needs of these groups of people. Finally, there is very little evidence of advocacy plans at a local level, but overwhelming support for their development among advocacy schemes.
Young disabled people and the new arrangements for leaving care in England and Wales
- Authors:
- PRIESTLEY Mark, RABIEE Parvaneh, HARRIS Julie
- Journal article citation:
- Children and Youth Services Review, 25(11), December 2003, pp.863-890.
- Publisher:
- Elsevier
Using examples from a qualitative research project carried out a the Centre for Disability Studies at the University of Leeds in partnership with First Key (the UK National Leaving Care Advisory Service) involving young disabled people in an English local authority, this article argues that key issues such as family involvement, friendship, accommodation, education and employment, information, sexuality and parenting, health, independent living skills and transitional support all carry additional significance for young disabled people. Critically reviews new legislative arrangements for care leavers in England and Wales which came into force in 2001. Concludes with recommendations on support for young disabled people leaving care under the new arrangements.
The influence of health, social support quality and rehabilitation on depression among disabled elders
- Authors:
- HOROWITZ A., et al
- Journal article citation:
- Aging and Mental Health, 7(5), September 2003, pp.342-350.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
This study examined the influence of health, social support, disability, and vision rehabilitation services on depression among visually impaired older adults seeking vision rehabilitation services. Participants (n 1/4 95) were interviewed at application and approximately two years later. The first hierarchical regression model focused on concurrent relationships at baseline. The second model used baseline health and social support variables, along with indicators of change in vision and use of rehabilitation services, in order to predict change in depression over time. Findings indicate that being unmarried, in poorer health, having lower quality of relationships with family, and lower stability in friendships were significant independent risk factors for initial depression, explaining 50% of the variance. Decline in depression over time was predicted by younger age, better self-rated health, stability of friendships, and use of rehabilitation services that, along with baseline depression, explained 61% of the variance in depressive symptomatology at the two-year follow-up. Findings highlight the importance of qualitative aspects of social support for older disabled adults, as well as the distinction that needs to be made between factors that predict concurrent mental health status and those predicting change in status over time.
My right to play: a child with complex needs
- Author:
- ORR Robert
- Publisher:
- Open University Press
- Publication year:
- 2003
- Pagination:
- 101p.,bibliog.
- Place of publication:
- Maidenhead
This text provides a take on life from the perspective of a child who has no sight and no speech and who uses a wheelchair because of physical disabilities. It offers a glimpse into the thoughts of such a child, recognizing that family and support workers sometimes get things right and sometimes don't, and provides some explanations for the puzzling behaviour often encountered when working with children who are dependent on others for the ordinary aspects of daily life. The book aims to enable people new to disability work to avoid some of the pitfalls and take some short cuts in becoming interesting and useful to a child with complex needs.
Independence matters: an overview of the performance of social care services for physically and sensory disabled people
- Author:
- CLARK Jan
- Publisher:
- Great Britain. Department of Health. Social Services Inspectorate
- Publication year:
- 2003
- Pagination:
- 68p.
- Place of publication:
- London
Physically and sensorily disabled people should be benefiting from the modernisation of social care along with other service users. This report provides evidence that although some progress is being made, it is slow and patchy and too many disabled people still do not have the opportunities they seek and the support they need to live independently and take control over their lives. The services that councils provide, both through social services and their wider functions, are essential to delivering a high quality of life for disabled people. This can only be achieved with the support and strong leadership of chief executives, directors of social services, senior managers and councillors. Using evidence from both inspections and the annual delivery and improvement statements completed by councils, the report is organised under four themes - independence at home, identity and belonging, active citizenship and systems and processes. Key areas requiring further improvement include: home care is not sufficiently reliable or flexible and is not provided in a way that promotes independence; although waiting times for equipment and minor adaptations have improved some people have to wait unacceptably long times for major adaptations using the disabled facilities grant; services for those with brain injury are not well enough developed across the country; culturally sensitive services for disabled people are not well developed; disabled parents are often not effectively supported; day services needs reshaping to be more community-based, inclusive and linked to increasing employment opportunities although the numbers receiving direct payments are increasing there is still a long way to go before they are part of mainstream provision.
Development and disability
- Author:
- LEWIS Vicky
- Publisher:
- Blackwell
- Publication year:
- 2003
- Pagination:
- 454p.,bibliog.
- Place of publication:
- Oxford
- Edition:
- 2nd
The author reviews research on the development of blind children, deaf children, and children with spina bifida, cerebral palsy, Down's syndrome and autism. In addition, she includes research on children with developmental co-ordination disorder. For each disability, the author provides background information on the nature of the disability, assessment, incidence, and causal factors. She then summarises what is known about the effect of each disability on the development of motor skills, perception, cognition, communication, emotion and social skills. Finally, the practical and theoretical implications of the experimental findings are examined.
Supporting disabled adults in their parenting role
- Author:
- JOSEPH ROWNTREE FOUNDATION
- Publisher:
- Joseph Rowntree Foundation
- Publication year:
- 2003
- Pagination:
- 4p.
- Place of publication:
- York
A Task Force on Supporting Disabled Adults in their Parenting Role received evidence that people with physical impairments, sensory impairments, learning difficulties, mental health difficulties, long-term illness or HIV/AIDS experience common barriers to receiving appropriate support in their parenting role. The Task Force consisted of representatives from government, social services, voluntary organisations and disabled parents' organisations. It took evidence from parents, professionals and researchers.