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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
Monika Mitra, PhD, Jonina Schonfeld, Hayley Arnett, MA, Nancy Wilber, EdD, and Cheryl bushnell, RN. Bureau of Family and Community Health, Massachusetts Department of Public Health, 250 Washington St, 5th Floor, Boston, MA 02108, 617-624-5557, monika.mitra@state.ma.us
The Massachusetts Multiple Sclerosis Survey (MMS) was a needs assessment survey of people in Massachusetts diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS). Initial data analysis identified three important areas of need or difficulty and their associated health consequences. (a) The first area involved difficulty getting to places outside the home reported by 31% of respondents. Of these respondents, 71% reported getting places as either very or somewhat difficult. Difficulty getting to places was associated with poor general health, fatigue, and seeing or needing to see a mental health specialist. (b) The second area involved needing more help in the home. Twenty-five percent of respondents reported needing more help with personal care, health care, and tasks of daily living. Of these respondents, 32% reported needing help every day and another 32% reported needing help at least every week. Regression analysis indicates that respondents who reported needing more help than they had received were twice as likely (OR=2.08) to report poor health. (c) The third area of need involved difficulty accessing medical or mental health specialists. While 98% of respondents had some type of health insurance, 31% of respondents faced barriers to accessing medical or mental health specialty care. Regression analysis suggests that these respondents were twice as likely (OR=2.3) to report fatigue than respondents who did not experience barriers to medical and mental health specialists. This presentation highlights the types of barriers faced by people with MS and the associated consequences.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Disability, Access and Services
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.