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Older people’s perceptions of health and wellbeing in rapidly ageing low- and middle-income countries

ALBONE, Rachel
2019

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This report presents the findings of an analysis of data collected by HelpAge International and its network members using HelpAge’s Health Outcomes Tool. The tool is designed to collect data to better understand health and care in older age, and to measure the impact of HelpAge’s health and care programmes. It was developed in response to the challenges posed by the lack of data on older people’s health and care, particularly in low- and middle-income countries, and the resulting lack of understanding about how best to provide age, gender and disability sensitive services for older women and men. The tool was used between 2014 and 2017 in nine low- and middle-income countries across Africa, Asia and Latin America,1 and gathered data from over 3,000 older people. The findings are presented here in the context of the current debate and evidence on older people’s right to health.

This report explores three different areas in relation to ageing and health: older people’s access to health services; availability of care and support; and the impact both health, and care and support services have on older people’s health status, functional ability and wellbeing.

 

 

 

Global AgeWatch Insights. The right to health for older people, the right to be counted

ALBONE, Rachel
et al
2018

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This report considers the progress being made to achieve older people's right to health amid the global drive towards universal health coverage. It explores how older people are currently accessing health services and what changes need to be made to improve on this. It considers the role of data in driving and informing changes to health systems and the services they deliver. Data must be collected with and about older people to ensure adequate evidence for service design and delivery that is targeted and appropriate. This report explores the adequacy of current data systems and collection mechanisms and how, alongside health systems, they must be adapted in an ageing world. 

 

This report is supported by 12 country profiles (for Argentina, Colombia, El Salvador, Kenya, Lebanon, Moldova, Myanmar, Pakistan, Serbia, Tanzania, Vietnam and Zimbabwe; see Appendix 1). These provide national information on trends in the physical and mental health status of older people, and population-level information on access to UHC. The profiles are supplemented by data mapping, showing the national data available on older people’s health in the 12 profile countries, and revealing the data gaps. The data mapping results are available at www.GlobalAgeWatch.org.

Defying the barriers

KHONDKAR, Laila
HAQUE, Reazul Md
January 2018

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Research summaries, case studies and process documentation from “Inclusive Protection and Empowerment Project for Children with Disabilities (IPEP)” are presented.  The aim of the project was to build resilience and capacity among children with disabilities and to create a violence-free community for them. The project ran in five districts of Bangladesh i.e. Sylhet, Dhaka, Barishal, Rangpur and Gaibandha from 2014- 2017. 

 

The research topics were:

  • Understanding the Vulnerabilities of Children with Disabilities Living in both Government-run and Private Residential Institutions
  • The Vulnerabilities of Children with Disabilities from Low-income Households
  • Social Protection Schemes Relevant to Children with Disabilities and their Families 

 

Right to health: Reality of persons with spina bifida and hydrocephalus

MCPHERSON. Amy
January 2017

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"This report maps the situation of persons with SBH in relation to healthcare access and is a follow up of the CRPD Concluding Observations Art.25. Through a comprehensive survey, IF collected valuable data on the experiences, satisfaction, and perceptions of healthcare coverage of individuals with SBH across Europe. Based on its findings, the financial coverage of treatment and assistive products for patients with SBH is grossly insufficient across the EU. Europe as a whole lacks multidisciplinary care and specialised SBH teams, which translates into long waiting times and insufficient knowledge of the SBH specificities. 

Considering these findings, IF urges the EU Member States to adequately support the healthcare needs of persons with SBH, and to invest more substantially into creating multidisciplinary clinics that can help avoid preventable complications 11 and may reduce the overall burden 12 on the patient and the system. In addition, the Member States should actively support creation of the European Reference Networks as a way of improving care for persons with SBH. IF also calls on the European institutions for support in training medical professionals on rights of persons with disabilities."

Work Ability Index: Validation and Model Comparison of the Malaysian Work Ability Index (WAI)

LAVASANI, Sobhan
WAHAT, Nor Wahiza Abdul
2016

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Purpose: The study aimed to (1) measure the Work Ability of employees with disability; (2) assess the factor structure of different potential models of Work Ability Index (WAI) for employees with disability; and (3) identify the best factor structure of Work Ability Index for employees with disability in the Malaysian cultural context.

 

Methods: Data was collected using the Work Ability Index (WAI) translated into Malay language. The study sample consisted of 275 employees with physical disability, from both public and private sectors across Malaysia. Descriptive statistics were calculated using IBM SPSS 20 to evaluate the score of each subscale and the cumulative index of Work Ability among employees with disability. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was conducted using IBM SPSS AMOS 21 to assess the factor structure of WAI and evaluate the validity of the proposed models for employees with disability.

 

Results: The WAI scores were 29.5% poor, 35.3% moderate, 28.7% good and 6.5% excellent. In the validation process, a non-orthogonal two dimensional structure was identified. In this model of WAI, the subscales were attributed to two factors: (1) subjective Work Ability factor that consisted of subscales 1, 2 and 7; and (2) health-related Work Ability factor, comprised of subscales 3, 5, 4 and 6. These two factors were positively correlated, which indicates that employees with disability who exhibit positive subjective Work Ability tend to also report positive health- related Work Ability.

 

Conclusion: This study has provided the first Malay version of WAI and has paved the way for future studies on work ability among employees with disability. The WAI translation has been validated among employees with disability and has shown adequate psychometric properties, thus making it suitable to investigate the associations between aspects of work and their impact on the health of employees with disability. 

Capturing the difference we make : community-based rehabilitation indicators manual

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION (WHO)
2015

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This manual presents indicators that "capture the difference (Community-Based Rehabilitation) CBR makes in the lives of people with disabilities in the communities where it is implemented. This manual presents these (base and supplementary) indicators and provides simple guidance on collecting the data needed to inform them. The indicators have been developed to show the difference between people living with a disability and their families and those without disabilities in relation to the information reported in the indicators. This comparability provides valuable information to CBR managers, donors and government agencies alike, which can be used to guide decision-making, support advocacy and improve accountability. Further, the ability of the indicators to provide a comparison of the populations of persons with disability to persons without disability aligns with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), which states that persons with disability have equal rights to those without disabilities...this manual serves to standardize the monitoring of differences made by in the lives of people with disabilities and their families, making it possible to compare the difference CBR makes across areas and countries. This manual aligns with the WHO Global Disability Action Plan 2014–2021, and may also be used to monitor other development plans in an easy and efficient way”

Positive practices in disability inclusion : "we all have a role" : the valuable contributions of persons with disabilities in community outreach

WOMEN'S REFUGEE COMMISSION
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
September 2014

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The Women's Refugee Commission identified and documented positive practices for disability inclusion in community center and outreach programming, in partnership with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and its partners in Lebanon. This article discusses the inclusion of people with disabilities in the Refugee Outreach Volunteer (ROV) network. ROVs are refugees who volunteer to provide insight into protection priorities, identify community-based solutions and refer refugees in need of urgent support

Positive practices in disability inclusion : "socialize, not stigmatize" : including children with disabilities in child-friendly spaces

WOMEN'S REFUGEE COMMISSION
International Medical Corps (IMC)
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
September 2014

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The Women's Refugee Commission identified and documented positive practices for disability inclusion in community center and outreach programming, in partnership with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and its partners in Lebanon. Child-friendly spaces are being established at community centers, in order to provide access to a safe environment where children can access psychological support, and health and education initiatives. This article discusses how International Medical Corps is approaching the inclusion of children with disabilities in these child friendly spaces

 

 

Positive practices in disability inclusion : "it starts with building trust" : from outreach to the community center

WOMEN'S REFUGEE COMMISSION
INTERSOS
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
September 2014

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The Women's Refugee Commission identified and documented positive practices for disability inclusion in community center and outreach programming, in partnership with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and its partners in Lebanon. This article discusses how INTERSOS have been using the expanding network of Refugee Outreach Volunteers (ROVs) and community centers to promote inclusion and access for people with disabilities and their families

Positive practices in disability inclusion : "taking a team approach" : overcoming barriers, starting with attitudes

WOMEN'S REFUGEE COMMISSION
Caritas Lebanon Migrants Center
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
September 2014

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The Women's Refugee Commission identified and documented positive practices for disability inclusion in community center and outreach programming, in partnership with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and its partners in Lebanon. This article discusses how a Caritas-supported Community Center has promoted the inclusion of people with disabilities through their approaches to encourage and facilitate participation in program activities

 

 

Global development voices : living with a disability

CUMMINS, Jaz
VILANI, Lisa
December 2011

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This article is part of the Global development voices series. It features discussions from14 people living with disabilities where they highlight the challenges they face in their respective countries in terms of access to education, healthcare and employment, and in relation to their social lives and relationships. Related links are also provided to The World Report on Disability, key data on disability globally and debates about the issues

Personalised social support : thoughts, method and tools in an approach of proximity social services

RELANDEAU, Audrey
et al
May 2010

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This paper is a methodological guide to personalised social support to enhance understanding, thinking about and practising this approach to social work. It is targeted at field workers and public services’ or association advisers responsible for receiving, informing, guiding and supporting people with disabilities and other vulnerable groups.
This guide is divided into three sections. First, a "principles and benchmarks" section explores the theoretical aspects of social work, development and personalised social support. This section is followed by a "Practical guide" targeted at social workers, facilitators and advisers responsible for providing support and provides an in-depth guide to implementing personalised social support, based on various intervention techniques and practical tools. This section also offers a section devoted to project managers or social mecha¬nism coordinators, featuring benchmarks for the development and follow-up of a social support service. The third section features a "Toolbox" consisting mainly of tools sourced from Handicap International programmes

Finding online health information to strengthen midwifery confidence : sourcebook for the advanced international training programme on strengthening midwifery competence in sexual and reproductive health and services

GARRETT, Martha J
October 2009

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This is a practical handbook for midwives to help increase their searching skills for electronic information about midwifery and sexual and reproductive health. Such skills help save the users time because by refining the search terms, fewer and more specific search results are generated. The topics covered include: finding and accessing different types of resources; processing the resources you access; finding information for different professional purposes; and finding information on specific topics

"I washed and fed my mother before going to school" : understanding the psychosocial well-being of children providing chronic care for adults affected by HIV/AIDS in Western Kenya

SKOVDAL, Morten
OGUTU, Vincent O
August 2009

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This paper presents three case studies of young people each of whom is a primary caregiver for a relative living with HIV. They are drawn from a study in Western Kenya of how well children cope with the challenges of chronic care and the psycho-social impact it has on them

Gender and care : supporting resources collection

ESPLEN, Emily
February 2009

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This collection show-cases existing work on gender and care, including a mix of research papers, policy briefings, advocacy documents, case study material and practical tools from diverse disciplines and geographical regions - all focusing on different aspects of care. Summaries and links to key resources are provided, as well as information on international frameworks and conventions relating to care

Gender and development in brief : gender and care

ESPLEN, Emily
February 2009

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This bulletin aims to inspire thinking around how we can move towards a world in which individuals and society recognise and value the importance of different forms of care, but without reinforcing care work as something that only women can or shoud do. It offers an overview of why care is important and the approaches needed to bring about change, including an article which looks at innovative ways of challenging gender norms to bring about a more equal sharing of care responsibilities between men and women, and an inspiring example of home-based carers in Africa coming together to get their priorities heard

Child health : generating the will

WORLD VISION
2009

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This edition of Global Future explores the nature of political will and what is required to reduce rates of under-five mortality and realise Millennium Development Goals (MDG) four (to reduce under-five mortality) and five (to improve maternal health). Authors from around the world lay out the "why, who, what and how" of the actions needed to realise these MDGs and get more countries on track quickly. At the time of publication only 16 of the 68 countries with the highest rates of child death were on track to reach MDG four

Integrating mental health into primary care : a global perspective

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION (WHO)
WORLD ORGANIZATION OF FAMILY DOCTORS (WONCA)
2008

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This report provides the rationale and know-how on integrating mental health into primary health care. It outlines primary care for mental health in context and then presents primary care for mental health in practice, highlighting 12 case studies and key lessons learnt from specific countries. A detailed annex on the core functions of primary care workers is provided, as well as 10 core principles of mental health integration. This resource is useful to anyone interested in integrating mental health into primary care

Weak promise on HIV/AIDS [whole issue]

August 2006

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This issue focuses on HIV and AIDS and ageing and considers the effects of the epidemic on the elderly. Articles look at how parents provide care during illness to their children with little formal support in Cambodia, explore the experience of older people affected by HIV in dealing with grief in Tanzania, and report on the work of 'Empathy clubs' for older women caring for children with HIV in Vietnam

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