Resources search

"The present study focuses on the work and employment of persons with disabilities. It analyses relevant provisions of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, highlights good practices in promoting employment opportunities for persons with disabilities, and identifies the main challenges that States parties encounter in ensuring that persons with disabilities enjoy access to, retention of and advancement in employment on an equal basis with others"
A/HRC/22/25
Note: Easy read version is available in English in both pdf and word formats

This policy brief provides an introduction to integrating wheeled mobility and positioning device (WM & PD) provision into rehabilitation work with a focus on emergency contexts
PP Brief No 9(2)

This seminar video the findings and recommendations from a four year CBM-funded project in Bangladesh and Pakistan to identify children with disabilities and connect them with appropriate rehabilitative services

“In recent decades, cooperatives have improved the lives of many women and men with disabilities. This issue brief highlights how and why the cooperative form of enterprise can cater to the economic and social needs of persons with disabilities. Cooperatives enable them to participate more actively in society, increase their independence and make decisions about their lives and futures by providing employment opportunities and access to essential services”

Purpose: To identify factors influencing the sexual health of women with spinal cord injury (SCI) in Bangladesh.

Methods: This study used both qualitative and quantitative methods. The quantitative part used a case-control design. Cases were women with SCI and controls were age-matched women without SCI. Questionnaires were used to collect data concerning the sexual health status of women. Multivariate logistic regression was done to determine which factors had an independent effect on sexual health. In-depth interviews were held with a sub-group of women from both groups, and interview guides were used. The in-depth interview data was subjected to content analysis.

Results: In total, 92 questionnaires were given out and 30 in-depth interviews were conducted. A relationship was found between physical factors and sexual health, as pain, vaginal dryness and physical discomfort were mentioned more frequently among women with SCI. Environmental and emotional factors such as stigma, satisfaction of the husband and support from the husband and friends had an influence on the sexual health of the women with SCI, as well as the other group of women.

Conclusions: From interviews it became clear that most of the women with SCI were dissatisfied with their sexual health as compared to the women without SCI. However, environmental and emotional factors such as attitudes, support and stigma, rather than physical factors, were the most important influences on sexual health in both groups of women.

Purpose: The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities recognises assistive technology such as wheelchairs (WCs) as a tool for social inclusion for this population. In less resourced settings, organisations lack information about effective models of WC service provision. The goal of this study was to investigate the lifespan of WCs and whether they provided reliable mobility, at one clinic in Mexico.

Methods: Caregivers of children, who had requested replacements for their WCs from a clinic in Mexico, were interviewed in Spanish. Among others, the questions pertained to repairs/modifications, adverse events and WC usage characteristics. The owners exchanged their WCs for new ones at the clinic, and the maintenance status of each returned WC was evaluated using the WC Assessment Checklist (WAC).

Results: Twenty-three donated WCs, used by children aged 3 to 14 years for an average of 19 months, were evaluated. Brakes (n=18), seat and back-sling upholstery (n=11 and 7 respectively), and armrests (n=14) were the components that failed most frequently. A total of 26 adverse events due to WC failure were reported. Adverse events were significantly associated with poor WAC scores (rs=-0.544, p=0.007).

Conclusions: Poor WC reliability, associated with adverse events which could undermine social engagement, indicates the need for a stronger WC and for regular maintenance. For instance, brake failures which were most often associated with adjustment issues, could have been resolved with maintenance, while seat and back-sling upholstery and armrest failures suggest that the WC may not be appropriate for the environment. Future work should investigate the robustness of these WCs using standardised methods (ISO 7176), as well as the impact of maintenance interventions on WC reliability.

Purpose: Inclusion of children with disabilities in mainstream classrooms has become the focus of extensive research in education. It has both academic and social benefits for all students, such as providing opportunities for communication and social interaction. The evaluation of teachers’ attitudes towards inclusion appears to be a good method to determine the success of the programme. Although this has been widely researched in many countries, the available evidence is not consistent. This study was undertaken in the state of Andhra Pradesh in India, to measure and compare teachers’ attitudes towards the inclusion of children with hearing impairment in schools.

Method: A questionnaire developed by Giles and Tanner (1995) measuring three domains - (1) effective strategies for meeting the needs of all students, (2) the support for educational change in their district, and (3) inclusive education - was modified in keeping with cultural and geographical variations and used as the test tool. A hundred teachers of various Government and non-Government schools in 2 districts of Andhra Pradesh, India, participated in the study.

Results: Higher scores on domain 1 indicate that teachers feel effective strategies to benefit students with disabilities should be implemented in schools. The results also indicate that most teachers are agreeable to the inclusion of students with disabilities in their classrooms. Significant difference in attitudes was observed, based on the teachers’ qualifications, teaching experience, gender, level of teaching and management.

Conclusion: The study concludes that there is a need for intervention to foster more positive attitudes among teachers, if the implementation of inclusive education is to succeed. It also has implications for the framing of laws and policies for children with hearing impairments.

"People with disabilities are often amongst the poorest in the developing world. Yet they are usually left out of development projects. This is not because of ill-will. Development organisations simply do not know how to include them. This book offers suggestions based on the experience of organisations that participated in a two-year learning programme. It is full of useful tips on how to launch inclusive programmes and projects, how to prepare your staff for working with people with disabilities and how to adapt your organisational processes and systems"

Available in Braille, high resolution, low resolution and word formats.
Available in Portuguese: "Inclusão de pessoas com deficiência nos projectos de desenvolvimento: Um guia prático para organizações do Norte e do Sul".
Available in French: "Tiens compte de moi - L'inclusion de personnes en situation de handicap dans les projets de développement"
Available in Spanish: "Cuenta conmigo - Incluir a las personas con discapacidad en los proyectos de desarrollo"