{"title":"Non-use of healthcare services among persons with mobility impairments in Cofimvaba, South Africa.","authors":"Babalwa Tshaka, Surona Visagie, Lieketseng Y Ned","doi":"10.4102/ajod.v12i0.1112","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Access to primary health care is a fundamental right for all. However, persons with disabilities are experiencing difficulties when accessing healthcare because of various environmental and personal barriers which may lead to nonuse of such services.</p><p><strong>Objectives: </strong>This study aimed to identify the challenges leading to non-use of healthcare services among persons with mobility impairments in Cofimvaba.</p><p><strong>Method: </strong>A descriptive qualitative design using snowball sampling was implemented. Semistructured interviews were conducted in isiXhosa with five participants who stopped accessing healthcare, using a self-developed interview guide. Inductive thematic analysis was used to develop codes and themes from the data.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Study findings revealed major challenges experienced by persons with mobility impairments in accessing healthcare. These included inaccessible roads, geographic inaccessibility, financial accessibility and indirect cost of care, having little or not many health problems, physical infrastructure difficulties within facilities, and attitudinal barriers.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The findings indicated that persons with disabilities are experiencing a combination of structural and environmental challenges which make them stop accessing healthcare.</p><p><strong>Contribution: </strong>The article shares insights on access challenges that influence non-use of the often-needed healthcare services within the context of rural areas.</p>","PeriodicalId":45606,"journal":{"name":"African Journal of Disability","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.3000,"publicationDate":"2023-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9900281/pdf/","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"African Journal of Disability","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.4102/ajod.v12i0.1112","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q4","JCRName":"HEALTH CARE SCIENCES & SERVICES","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Background: Access to primary health care is a fundamental right for all. However, persons with disabilities are experiencing difficulties when accessing healthcare because of various environmental and personal barriers which may lead to nonuse of such services.
Objectives: This study aimed to identify the challenges leading to non-use of healthcare services among persons with mobility impairments in Cofimvaba.
Method: A descriptive qualitative design using snowball sampling was implemented. Semistructured interviews were conducted in isiXhosa with five participants who stopped accessing healthcare, using a self-developed interview guide. Inductive thematic analysis was used to develop codes and themes from the data.
Results: Study findings revealed major challenges experienced by persons with mobility impairments in accessing healthcare. These included inaccessible roads, geographic inaccessibility, financial accessibility and indirect cost of care, having little or not many health problems, physical infrastructure difficulties within facilities, and attitudinal barriers.
Conclusion: The findings indicated that persons with disabilities are experiencing a combination of structural and environmental challenges which make them stop accessing healthcare.
Contribution: The article shares insights on access challenges that influence non-use of the often-needed healthcare services within the context of rural areas.
期刊介绍:
The African Journal of Disability, the official journal of CRS, AfriNEAD and CEDRES, introduce and discuss issues and experiences relating to and supporting the act of better understanding the interfaces between disability, poverty and practices of exclusion and marginalisation. Its articles yield new insight into established human development practices, evaluate new educational techniques and disability research, examine current cultural and social discrimination, and bring serious critical analysis to bear on problems shared across the African continent. Emphasis is on all aspects of disability particularity in the developing African context. This includes, amongst others: -disability studies as an emerging field of public health enquiry -rehabilitation, including vocational and community-based rehabilitation -community development and medical issues related to disability and poverty -disability-related stigma and discrimination -inclusive education -legal, policy, human rights and advocacy issues related to disability -the role of arts and media in relation to disability -disability as part of global Sustainable Development Goals transformation agendas -disability and postcolonial issues -globalisation and cultural change in relation to disability -environmental and climate-related issues linked to disability -disability, diversity and intersections of identity -disability and the promotion of human development.