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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
Phillip W. Beatty, MA and Shawn C. Bingham, MA. National Rehabilitation Hospital Center for Health and Disability Research, 1016 16th St. NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC 20036, 202/466-1914, phillip.beatty@medstar.net
Objective: To determine the extent to which lack of access to health services among people with spinal cord injury is associated with experiencing secondary conditions.
Methods: Data for this research comes from a national longitudinal survey of people with spinal cord injury, multiple sclerosis, and cerebral palsy. Focusing on the subsample of people with SCI who responded to the Year 1 and Year 2 surveys (n=177), we crosstabulated indicators of access to a variety of health services in survey year 1, with items measuring the presence or development of secondary conditions in survey year 2. We hypothesize that respondents who report a lack of access to health services in year 1 will be more likely to report secondary conditions in year 2.
Results: Respondents who did not receive basic health services (primary care, specialty care) every time they were needed in survey year 1, were significantly more likely to report the presence or development of decubitus ulcers, urinary tract infections, spasticity, contractures, and osteoporosis in survey year 2. Respondents who did not receive physical rehabilitation services every time they were needed in year 1, were significantly more likely to report experiencing spasticity and contractures in year 2. Controlling for overall health status and ADL status do not alter these patterns appreciably.
Conclusions: Promoting access to a variety of health services for individuals with spinal cord injury may significantly reduce the incidence and prevalence of life-threatening, painful, and costly secondary conditions.
Learning Objectives: Learning Objective
Keywords: Access to Health Care, Disability
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.