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Gender and disability are intimately connected as embodied experiences that young people navigate interactionally. Disabilities scholars have theorized that men and women with chronic health conditions face uniquely gendered challenges. Theories of gender and disability centered on youth continue to gain prominence as the population of children and young adults with chronic health conditions grows. This study draws on data from 22 in-depth interviews with young adults diagnosed with chronic health conditions in childhood in the United States. Women, men, and gender nonbinary individuals report that doing disability in interactions in childhood meant doing gender in expected feminine ways. Specifically, interviewees described increased empathy, a deep understanding of their own emotions, and the ability to use adversity to connect with and benefit others as expectations. Interviewees employed or resisted doing gender in ways that reflected individuals' gender locations. Women and nonbinary individuals saw feminine performance as a sign of weakness, often resisting demonstrating it in interactions. On the other hand, feminine performance reportedly impacted men in the sample in positive ways. This study takes a life course approach to illuminate how the ableist expectations expressed to disabled children are gendered and impact how disabled young adults negotiate an ableist world.

This chapter seeks to quantify the effects of geographic access to community health centers on the likelihood of an individual having a regular source of health care.

Utilizing survey and center location data, the analysis employs bivariate cross-tabulation with chi-square and multinominal logistic regression to quantify the relationship between variables.

While individuals living in close spatial proximity to community health centers were more likely to identify a community health center as a regular source of care as compared with those without proximal access, the effect of community health center access on the identification of any source of regular health care was generally insignificant or negative, except for populations with a chronic medical condition.

While these findings support current literature suggesting that spatial proximity to care is insufficient to transform at-risk populations into regular primary care users, it is important to note that it is possible that individuals prefer to access primary care services outside of their immediate neighborhoods, potentially mediating the observed effect of proximity to care on the likelihood of having a regular source of care. Also, because this analysis is based on cross-sectional survey data, it is impossible to make a causal argument about the relationship between variables. Only the observed association can be asserted and used to inform future studies.

Existing research supports a positive association between community health center utilization and measures of health for social groups traditionally facing barriers to care, but few studies isolate the effect of center availability and health, particularly when considering those living in the catchment area but are not regular users. Due to the complexity and prevalence of barriers to health care for vulnerable and at-risk populations, these findings suggest that improving geographic access to primary health care does not guarantee positive outcomes for target groups. The magnitude of social disadvantage on vulnerable and at-risk populations can have a devastating effect on health care outcomes that is not easily overcome by social programs.

This chapter will identify readily accessible existing sources of public data. Thechallenges of using that data are considerable and require extensive time to ensure validity for reporting purposes. Summaries of data field selection and data wrangling requirements are presented in conjunction with data aggregation strategies.

This study examines chronic illness, disability and social inequality within an exposure-vulnerabilities theoretical framework.

Using the National Survey of Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), a preeminent source of national behavioral health estimates of chronic medical illness, stress and disability, for selected sample years 2005–2014, we construct and analyze two foundational hypotheses underlying the exposure-vulnerabilities model: (1) greater exposure to stressors (i.e., chronic medical illness) among racial/ethnic minority populations yields higher levels of serious psychological distress, which in turn increases the likelihood of medical disability; (2) greater vulnerability among minority populations to stressors such as chronic medical illness exacerbates the impact of these conditions on mental health as well as the impact of mental health on medical disability.

Results of our analyses provided mixed support for the vulnerability (moderator) hypothesis, but not for the exposure (mediation) hypothesis. In the exposure models, while Blacks were more likely than Whites to have a long-term disability, the pathway to disability through chronic illness and serious psychological distress did not emerge. Rather, Whites were more likely than Blacks and Latinx to have a chronic illness and to have experienced severe psychological distress (both of which themselves were related to disability). In the vulnerability models, both Blacks and Latinx with chronic medical illness were more likely than Whites to experience serious psychological distress, although Whites with serious psychological distress were more likely than these groups to have a long-term disability.

Several possibilities for understanding the failure to uncover an exposure dynamic in the model turn on the potential intersectional effects of age and gender, as well as several other covariates that seem to confound the linkages in the model (e.g., issues of stigma, social support, education).

This study (1) extends the racial/ethnic disparities in exposure-vulnerability framework by including factors measuring chronic medical illness and disability which: (2) explicitly test exposure and vulnerability hypotheses in minority populations; (3) develop and test the causal linkages in the hypothesized processes, based on innovations in general structural equation models, and lastly; (4) use national population estimates of these conditions which are rarely, if ever, investigated in this kind of causal framework.

Chronic illnesses often go unnoticed mainly due to their invisibility and lack of understanding both at home and in the workplace. In this chapter, I use an autoethnographic approach to engage with my “emotionally charged” lived experiences of living and working with a stigmatized chronic illness – irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) – in a highly patriarchal Pashtun society where women are expected to perform various social roles despite of illness and are often silenced to male domination. IBS is a functional gastrointestinal disorder characterized by abdominal pain, abnormal bowel function, and bloating, in the absence of any structural abnormalities, and has a significant impact on one’s life. As I navigate through my experiences of suffering from a chronic illness and the emotional labor involved therein, I shed light on the challenges I face as a woman in managing work and life and as I silence my pain and emotions to fit into the roles of a “professional” academic, a “good” wife, a “good” daughter, a “good” sister-in-law, a “good” daughter-in-law, and so forth. I have used both the lens of stigma to reflect my sufferings and normalization to demonstrate my resilience and (re)adjustment to the new life. In doing so, pain and emotions do leak out during intense situations but silencing chronic illness is mostly strategic as it protects us from being excluded, marginalized, and stigmatzed both at work and home.

The process of chronic pain (CP) and strategies is to improve the patient’s health and well-being. CP is a frequent medical problem that presents a major challenge to healthcare providers because of its complex natural history, imprecise aetiology, and inadequate response to pharmacological treatment. Although different definitions exist it is widely accepted that CP is an ongoing pain that lasts more than 3 months or that persists longer than the reasonably expected healing time for the involved tissues. Also, it is acknowledged that its treatment is much different than the treatment for acute pain. When addressing a person with CP, one should always keep in mind that pain is much more about the individual than the underlying medical condition. Every person is different, and healthcare providers should take a tailor-made approach to managing their pain. This is the only way to ensure good results in pain treatment. Treatment goals should be discussed and adapted to the patient profile. It is fundamental to have clear goals from the beginning and to ensure these are realistic, individualized, and measurable. Effective treatment for CP is only achieved through a holistic framework in which the patient’s well-being is the first concern and an interdisciplinary and societal approach is implemented from the first day.

This study examined dimensions of young-adulthood development in lived experience reported by young persons (19 women, 18 men) with the disabling condition of kidney failure requiring chronic dialysis or kidney transplantation. In semistructured phone interviews, participants (ages 23–37) described their family/living situation, employment and community activity, current situation, and experience. Participants' qualitative responses about “the way you see things, do things, feel about things” and “how you feel about yourself” were examined to identify themes. Limited achievement of proposed “successful” dimensions of young adulthood characterized the study cohort, based on indicators included in the interview. In qualitative data, the theme of perceived stigma and spoiled identity (Goffman, 1963) was reflected in comments offered by participants regarding their self-confidence and motivation to pursue goals. A second theme in participants' qualitative responses was a sense of isolation from age peers who shared their condition, and participants expressed frustration around having an age-inappropriate condition (“why me?”). Perceived stigma and spoiled identity impact social ties and life goals and are understudied influences in the life course trajectory of young persons with kidney failure and the challenges inherent in navigating health status and developmental life course transitions.

This chapter addressed the professional, interpersonal, and functional experiences of teachers with physical disabilities and their employers. To obtain different perspectives on these issues, I conducted 67 in-depth interviews with teachers with disabilities (motor disabilities, sensory disabilities, and chronic health conditions), their colleagues, principals, disability researchers, and two individuals who hold positions of leadership in the educational system. In addition, I analyzed 10 YouTube videos featuring teachers with disabilities. The findings reveal the organizational and personal barriers teachers with disabilities face. Tackling these barriers is important since teachers with disabilities have unique opportunities to contribute both personally and socially.