"You must carry your wheelchair" : barriers to accessing healthcare in a South African rural area
Date
2015-10-01
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Co-Action Publishing
Abstract
Background: There is international evidence that people with disabilities face barriers when accessing primary
healthcare services and that there is inadequate information about effective interventions that work to improve
the lives of people with disabilities, especially in low-income and middle-income countries. Poor rural residents
generally experience barriers to accessing primary healthcare, and these problems are further exacerbated for
people with disabilities.
Objective: In this study, we explore the challenges faced by people with disabilities in accessing healthcare in
Madwaleni, a poor rural Xhosa community in South Africa.
Design: Purposive sampling was done with 26 participants, using semi-structured interviews and content
analysis to identify major themes.
Results: This study showed a number of barriers to healthcare for people with disabilities. These included
practical barriers, including geographical and staffing issues, and attitudinal barriers.
Conclusions: It is suggested that although there are practical barriers that need to be addressed, attitudinal
barriers could potentially be addressed more easily and cost effectively
Description
CITATION: Vergunst, R. et al. 2015. "You must carry your wheelchair": Barriers to accessing healthcare in a South African rural area. Global Health Action, 8:29003, doi:10.3402/gha.v8.29003.
The original publication is available at http://www.globalhealthaction.net
The original publication is available at http://www.globalhealthaction.net
Keywords
Rural poor -- Medical care -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape, Health services accessibility -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape, People with disabilities -- Medical care -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape, Rural health services -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
Citation
Vergunst, R. et al. 2015. "You must carry your wheelchair": Barriers to accessing healthcare in a South African rural area. Global Health Action, 8:29003, doi:10.3402/gha.v8.29003.