Browsing by Author "Good G"

Now showing 1 - 5 of 5
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    Ableism, Human Rights, and the COVID-19 Pandemic: Healthcare-Related Barriers Experienced by Deaf People in Aotearoa New Zealand
    (MDPI (Basel, Switzerland), 2022-12-18) Roguski M; Officer TN; Nazari Orakani S; Good G; Händler-Schuster D; McBride-Henry K; Moreira PS; Morgado P; Almeida PR
    The COVID-19 pandemic significantly affected global healthcare access and exacerbated pre-pandemic structural barriers. Literature on disabled people's experiences accessing healthcare is limited, with even less framing healthcare access as a human rights issue. This study documents and critically analyses Deaf people's healthcare access experiences in Aotearoa New Zealand during the COVID-19 pandemic. Eleven self-identified Deaf individuals participated in semi-structured videoconferencing interviews. Discourse analysis was applied to participant narratives with discourses juxtaposed against a human rights analysis. Barriers influencing healthcare access included: (1) the inability of healthcare providers to communicate appropriately, including a rigid adherence to face mask use; (2) cultural insensitivity and limited awareness of Deaf people's unique needs; and (3) the impact of ableist assumptions and healthcare delaying care. Barriers to healthcare access represent consecutive breaches of rights guaranteed under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). Such breaches delay appropriate healthcare access and risk creating future compounding effects. Action is required to address identified breaches: (1) The CRPD should also underpin all health policy and practice development, inclusive of pandemic and disaster management responsiveness. (2) Health professionals and support staff should be trained, and demonstrate competency, in Deaf cultural awareness and sensitivity.
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    Disabled people's experiences accessing healthcare services during the COVID-19 pandemic: a scoping review.
    (BioMed Central, 2023-04-06) McBride-Henry K; Nazari Orakani S; Good G; Roguski M; Officer TN
    BACKGROUND: Disruptions to healthcare services during the COVID-19 pandemic are well-recognised problems. However, a dearth of research exists on disabled people's experiences with accessing these services. A scoping review was undertaken to identify and explore research on the experience of disabled people in accessing healthcare services between 2020 and 6 February 2023. METHODS: PubMed, Web of Science, CINAHL, and OVID were employed to search for research that included the voice of disabled people, or their parents or caregivers. Over two distinct phases, a total of 2,201 articles were reviewed according to article titles, keywords, and abstracts. Eighty-one studies were identified that met the inclusion criteria; these were reviewed in full. RESULTS: Eighteen studies specifically described the experiences of accessing healthcare or disability services, and sixty-three raised healthcare challenges as a secondary consideration. Many disabled people struggled to access healthcare services and felt they were invisible; as a result, individuals' mental health was negatively affected. Disabled people with compounding vulnerabilities were at the most risk of experiencing a lack of healthcare access. CONCLUSIONS: There is an urgent need for research and policy that is responsive to disabled people's access to healthcare during the pandemic; currently many health policies are 'disability-blind' and exclude these members of the global community. Furthermore, to assist in creating disability-responsive research, funding needs to prioritise researchers within the disabled community.
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    Interactions between the Public and Assistance Dog Handlers and Trainers
    (MDPI (Basel, Switzerland), 2021-11-24) McManus B; Good G; Yeung P; Hart B
    This research aimed to explore the experiences of handlers and trainers of disability assistance dogs in terms of the types of interactions they had with members of the Aotearoa NZ (NZ) public and how these interactions were perceived, interpreted, and managed. A qualitative method, guided by an interpretive approach and social constructionism, was utilised to collect data via semi-structured interviews with six handlers and six trainers of assistance dogs. Data were analysed using thematic analysis with the social model of disability as the theoretical base. Findings indicated that participants regularly faced a complex range of unique interactions due to various factors such as the public’s lack of knowledge and understanding of the dog’s role and right of access to public places. While participants encountered brief friendly comments about the dog and its role, other encounters involved long conversations, invasive personal questions, interference with their dogs, and denied access to businesses, cafés, restaurants, and public transport. These findings underpin the need to provide more education to the public on the etiquette of engaging with handlers and their assistance dogs and more support for businesses to understand the legal rights of handlers. Through education and support to change societal attitudes and remove structural barriers, disabled people using assistance dogs may be able to independently participate in community life and be fully included without hindrance.
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    Systems Are Overstretched from the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Interpretive Description of Disabled People's Access to Healthcare and Disability Support in New Zealand.
    (MDPI (Basel, Switzerland), 2024-02-02) Nazari Orakani S; Officer TN; Good G; McBride-Henry K; Cogle CR
    The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted healthcare and support services, creating challenges for disabled people. New Zealand implemented a range of policies to prevent and limit viral transmission of COVID-19. This study investigates disabled people's experiences accessing healthcare and disability support services during the COVID-19 pandemic, and based on this analysis, the implications of public health policy decisions on disabled people's experiences during the pandemic in New Zealand are explicated. A qualitative design underpinned by interpretive description methodology guided this study. A total of 64 disabled people or parents of disabled children participated in semi-structured interviews. The team of health services and disability researchers then engaged in an iterative thematic approach to analysis, which led to three key themes: (1) protective personal factors, which assisted disabled people to access healthcare and support services, (2) immediate pandemic policy impacts, including policy and legislative changes, which created additional access barriers for disabled people, and (3) exacerbating factors, including compounding vulnerabilities, overstretched systems, and the impact of the vaccine mandate, which worsened the already limited access to healthcare and disability services for disabled people. The pandemic overwhelmed an already stretched healthcare and disability support system, resulting in service disruptions with negative consequences for disabled people's health and wellbeing. Future policy development needs to be disability-centred in its inclusion of people with lived experience and consideration of the support needs of disabled populations. A first step in this process could include pandemic planning and policy co-design to ensure a continuum of healthcare services and support availability for individuals when services are disrupted. In addition, access to formal and informal support for disabled people should be recognised as a fundamental human right when accessing healthcare and disability support services.