HYDERABAD : CBM India, a leading organisation in disability-inclusive development, in collaboration with IIPH Hyderabad and Humanity and Inclusion, conducted a study on the impact of Covid-19 on persons with disabilities in India. The study was conducted to understand the level of disruption on the living conditions of persons with disability due to the pandemic and related restrictions, and to generate evidence to be prepared for future pandemics or emergencies.
The study consisted of 60% male and 40% female. The respondents had different impairments – 51.6% with physical impairment, 16.1% with visual impairment, 19% with intellectual impairment, and 9.2% with speech and hearing impairment.
The study was conducted across 14 states in India – Telangana, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, Delhi, Uttarakhand, Assam, Meghalaya, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Maharashtra. The cross-sectional survey was repeated for a second time, six weeks after the first interview on a randomly identified 25% sub sample to discern any change in trends over this period.
The study revealed that the pandemic affected the health, rehabilitation, education, livelihood and social participation of persons with disabilities. 42.5%, i.e., two out of every five people with disability reported that lockdown had made it difficult for them to access routine medical care. Among those with a pre-existing medical condition (12.7%), 58% stated facing difficulty in accessing routine medical care. Therefore, persons with disabilities and pre-existing medical problems suffered significantly more.
Isolation, abandonment, and violence were other worrying psycho-social problems reported, showing the lack of empathy during the difficult times. 81.6% reported experiencing moderate to high levels of stress. Among the 34.5% who stated that they needed information on mental health issues, only 25.9% had access to such services.
Only 20% were able to get regular mental health counselling or therapy related services during the COVID-19 outbreak and lockdown, and 11.4% faced problems getting their regular psychiatric medicines. 58.2% were unhappy that the therapy sessions for their child with disability has ceased during the lockdown. 84.2% stated that their daily lives had been impacted. The lack of mobility both in rural and urban areas led to distress.
Prof GVS Murthy, Director, IIPH Hyderabad, adds, “People with disability suffered significantly more than the rest of the population in accessing health and rehabilitation care during the lockdown. We need to be adequately prepared so that we do not comprise the health needs of people with disabilities as the country has committed itself to the goal of Universal Health Care as part of SDGs.”