Address challenges faced by women with disabilities

This budget reduction is a retrogressive measure that is inconsistent with the Government commitments both domestic and international and will cripple health service delivery in the country.

 

Has the healthy sector budget taken into consideration the practical challenges faced by persons with disabilities such as women?

 

Women with physical disabilities face multiple discriminations and are often more disadvantaged than men with disabilities in similar circumstances. They have different life experiences due to the biological, pschological, economic, social, political and cultural attributes associated with being female.

 

Often times, they are denied equal enjoyment of their human rights because of the lesser status ascribed to them by tradition and custom. They face particular disadvantages in the areas of education, work and employment, family and reproductive rights, health, violence and abuse.

 

 Prejudice and discrimination hinder women with physical disabilities in accessing reproductive health care services.They encounter physical attitudinal barriers as they seek health care. The difficulties women with physical disabilities face when they visit reproductive health service providers are mainly accessing the various health facilities.

 

These difficulties include lack of ramps, hand rails and unadjustable beds. Accessing public transport, which is the most convenient means of travel to the health facilities is a big challenge since most vehicles are also not disability friendly.

 

Studies reported by medical anthropologists Benedicte Ingstad and Susan Reynolds Whyte have shown that access to medical care is significantly impaired when one lacks mobility and the burden of transportation falls most heavily on those with disabilities.

To worsen the situation, women with physical disabilities living in poverty face higher healthy risks and are often unable to obtain proper treatment leading them to significantly more likely to acquire a disability within their life time. The World Bank indicates that 2% of individuals with disablities have access to adequate rehabilitation services.

Meanwhile, Uganda ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) in 2008 with the duty of upholding its provisions. Article 25 of the UNCRPD enacts that;

 

 

This provision was applied in Section 8 of Persons with Disabilities Act of 2006 where the government is to promote special health services by PWDs in providing access to reproductive health services which are relevant to women with disabilities, enforcing user friendly hospital materials for use by PWDs visiting hospitals and encouraging population based public health programmes relevant to PWDs. Whether these provisions have been implemented is a question of doubt.

 

To solve the aforesaid challenges, reproductive awareness seminars are a valuable source of reproductive health information. They should be enhanced to include topics covering more than STDs, contraceptives and HIV/AIDS.

 

Despite the fact that not all the medical personnel are disability friendly and are not aware of disability issues and needs, there is need to create diverse awareness among the medical personnel so as to change their attitudes towards sexuality and sexuality.

 

Given the challenges women with physical disabilities face in accessing buildings and public transport, the Government should establish a responsible authority to oversee the build up environment by levelling of pavements, building of ramps, installation of lifts and ensuring access to other public places and utilities and the building of accessible public vehicles.

 

Perhaps the Buildings Control Act spearheaded by Uganda National Action for Persons with Physical Disabilities (UNAPD) to provide guidelines or set standards for the construction of buildings in Uganda will serve the need in solving accessibility challenges those women with physical disabilities face.

 

However, people should not wait for laws and policies in order to create a conducive environment for PWDs. It should be each and every ones moral authority to accommodate others in society for the good of us all to live in.