Document Type : Original Article
Author
Center for Health and Education Programs, Health Department, Chakama Location, Kilifi County, Kenya
Abstract
Background: Persons Living with Disabilities in rural areas have continuously been denied access to basic needs like other humans; such as health services, food, proper housing and care, resulting to continuous inequality in access to services hence losing their dignity; this has adversely affected their mental health. The general objective of the study was to establish correlation between increases in disability cases to poverty level in rural areas.
Methods: The study was conducted in Chakama location, Kilifi County across 40 villages, and data collected quantitatively with a total of 265 disabled interviewed on their status of disability among other factors. Frequencies, percentages and pie charts were used to analyze findings of disabled in Chakama. Respondents were selected based on snowball sampling from Wazee wa mtaa (locally known elders within a neighborhood of 10 households and are thought to know every member in the 10 household neighborhood) and interviewed disabled.
Results: At least 77% interviewed disabled had severe cases limiting them from employment. There exists relationship of increase in poverty to development of severe forms of disabilities such as mobility and visual.
Conclusion: Failure in responding to disability needs would increase chances of economic degradation and poverty especially in marginalized communities; there’s need of collective responsibility from society and relevant bodies to ensure disabled have access to prerequisite needs, improving medical services in health facilities within rural areas and building resilience among disabled to minimize dependency on family and aid.
Keywords
Main Subjects
)