Research
The impact of COVID-19 on disabled people
It is now well established that disabled people are particularly at risk from both the health and social impacts of COVID-19. For many, their support needs and their impairments make them more susceptible to the condition and increase the risk of mortality.
The Centre for Disability Research together with colleagues from the London School of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene has secured funding from UKRI for a study looking at the impact of COVID-19 on disabled people and their families.
This qualitative study takes a longitudinal approach to explore disabled people's experiences of the epidemic in the short and medium term. It will look to document the impact of social isolation and the interruption of support on their wellbeing, the barriers and facilitators of this process and lessons learned for policy and practice. We are conducting 60 in-depth interviews with a range of disabled people, including parents of disabled children, with different conditions, in different social and physical locations across England and Scotland. In carrying out this work we are working closely with disabled people's organisations, social care organisations, parent support groups and voluntary bodies and are also interviewing key informants drawn from these organisations to understand broader experiences of their communities. After six months, interviews will be repeated to track changes over time, so that we can understand short and medium term impacts.
Aim
To provide authoritative evidence as to how disabled people in England and Scotland are experiencing the COVID-19 epidemic, and associated response measures, in the short and medium term, including what they consider might help them.
Objectives
- Exploring how disabled people and their families are managing in their day to day lives, in particular the availability of health and social care, food and other domestic supplies, and the impact of COVID-19 and response measures (e.g. social distancing, hygiene, quarantine) is having on their routines.
- Examine the impact that the epidemic and response measures have on regular treatment schedules for people with chronic illness or rehabilitation needs, impact on functioning, and any ideas they have for addressing difficulties.
- Examining the impact that the epidemic and response measures have on availability and delivery of social care, and how disabled people and organisations think these can be addressed
- Exploring the impact the epidemic and social distancing have on disabled people's wellbeing and mental health and the actions that they think can help to improve these.
- Identifying the barriers and facilitators that people believe could help or hinder their day to day lives.
Funder
UK Research and Innovation
Researchers
Nick Watson, Nicola Burns, Charlotte Pearson, Phillippa Wiseman, Tom Shakespeare, Shaffa Hameed, Nathaniel Scherer, Richard Brunner, Jane Cullingworth