Research Poster 1709872
Fear, Isolation, and Invisibility During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Qualitative Study of Adults With Physical Disabilities

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apmr.2021.07.520Get rights and content

Research Objectives

To examine the initial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on adults with severe physical disabilities from low-income and racially marginalized communities.

Design

Qualitative, observational using individual interviews conducted at a distance.

Setting

Low-income, racially marginalized communities of Flint and Detroit, Michigan.

Participants

15 adults with severe, long-term physical disabilities.

Interventions

Not applicable.

Main Outcome Measures

Themes associated with COVID related responses extracted from individual narratives.

Results

Length of interviews averaged one hour and forty minutes. Six themes emerged from the data. Overarching factors were fear, feelings of isolation, and a sense of being invisibility. These factors were experienced as a result of barriers to health and healthcare, home care assistance, and access to resources.

Conclusions

Findings expand existing knowledge and offer new insights into how the pandemic impacted physical and psychological health of adults with long-term physical disabilities and made visible the risks that they must contend with as a result of inadequate or insufficient accommodations. They help elucidate how race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status can differentially impact their lives and further marginalize populations that are “always already” vulnerable. This knowledge can expand awareness and appreciation of how social, economic, and political systems are structured and integrated into future clinical guidelines and emergency response policies.

Author(s) Disclosures

Nothing to disclose.

Key Words

COVID-19 Pandemic
Race/Ethnicity
Intersectionality Marginalization
Socioeconomic Status

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