Lockdown-Related Disparities Experienced by People with Disabilities during the First Wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Scoping Review with Thematic Analysis

Tiago S. Jesus, Sutanuka Bhattacharjya, Christina Papadimitriou, Yelena Bogdanova, Jacob Bentley, Juan Carlos Arango-Lasprilla, Sureshkumar Kamalakannan and International Networking Group of the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine The Refugee Empowerment Task Force
Additional contact information
Tiago S. Jesus: Global Health and Tropical Medicine (GHTM) & WHO Collaborating Centre for Health Workforce Policy and Planning, Institute of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, NOVA University of Lisbon, 1349-008 Lisbon, Portugal
Sutanuka Bhattacharjya: Department of Occupational Therapy, Byrdine F. Lewis College of Nursing and Health Professions, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA 30303, USA
Christina Papadimitriou: Departments of Interdisciplinary Health Sciences, and Sociology, School of Health Sciences, Oakland University, Rochester, MI 48309-4452, USA
Yelena Bogdanova: Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation Service, Veterans Affairs Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
Jacob Bentley: Department of Clinical Psychology, Seattle Pacific University, Seattle, WA 98119, USA
Juan Carlos Arango-Lasprilla: IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, 48009 Bilbao, Spain
Sureshkumar Kamalakannan: Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI), South Asia Centre for Disability Inclusive Development and Research (SACDIR), Indian Institute of Public Health, Hyderabad 500033, India
International Networking Group of the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine The Refugee Empowerment Task Force: Membership of the Refugee Empowerment Task Force, International Networking Group of the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine is provided in the Author Contributions.

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 12, 1-24

Abstract: People with disabilities may be disproportionally affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. We synthesize the literature on broader health and social impacts on people with disabilities arising from lockdown-related measures. Methods: Scoping review with thematic analysis. Up to mid-September 2020, seven scientific databases and three pre-print servers were searched to identify empirical or perspective papers addressing lockdown-related disparities experienced by people with disabilities. Snowballing searches and experts’ consultation also occurred. Two independent reviewers took eligibility decisions and performed data extractions. Results: Out of 1026 unique references, 85 addressed lockdown-related disparities experienced by people with disabilities. Ten primary and two central themes were identified: (1) Disrupted access to healthcare (other than for COVID-19); (2) Reduced physical activity leading to health and functional decline; (3) From physical distance and inactivity to social isolation and loneliness; (4) Disruption of personal assistance and community support networks; (5) Children with disabilities disproportionally affected by school closures; (6) Psychological consequences of disrupted routines, activities, and support; (7) Family and informal caregiver burden and stress; (8) Risks of maltreatment, violence, and self-harm; (9) Reduced employment and/or income exacerbating disparities; and (10) Digital divide in access to health, education, and support services. Lack of disability-inclusive response and emergency preparedness and structural, pre-pandemic disparities were the central themes. Conclusions: Lockdown-related measures to contain the COVID-19 pandemic can disproportionally affect people with disabilities with broader impact on their health and social grounds. Lack of disability-inclusive response and emergency preparedness and pre-pandemic disparities created structural disadvantages, exacerbated during the pandemic. Both structural disparities and their pandemic ramifications require the development and implementation of disability-inclusive public health and policy measures.

Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; health equity; social determinants of health; people with disabilities; public health; healthcare disparities; discrimination; stigma; social inclusion (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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