14 November 2023
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research, Innovation and Engagement publishes a paper on experiences of women with disabilities in accessing healthcare services
Although she is now a Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research, Innovation and Engagement (DVC: RIE), Professor Nokuthula Sibiya still proudly introduces herself as a ‘nurse’. A quick glance into her research profile justifies why Professor Sibiya still feels strongly about being a ‘nurse’. Her research still focuses on maternal and child health, which is her research focus area. Recently, Professor Sibiya, with her PhD student, published a paper: Experiences of Women with Disabilities in Accessing Maternal Healthcare Services: A South African Case Study. According to the authors, the aim of the study was to explore the experiences of women with disabilities in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, in accessing public maternal healthcare services. “The objectives of the study were to describe the experiences of women with disabilities in accessing maternal healthcare services during pregnancy, childbirth, and post-partum care,” the authors said. The authors also wanted to explore the inhibitors of access to maternal healthcare services for women with disabilities and explore the facilitators of access to maternal healthcare services for women with disabilities.
In this paper, which was published on 24 October 2023, which she considers as one of her birthday gifts as she was born on 24 October, Professor Sibiya, and two academics from the Durban University of Technology, Doreen Mheta (PhD student), and Pauline Busisiwe Nkosi (co-super5visor), strongly argue that the field is not level for women with disabilities when it comes to people who access maternal healthcare services. The authors’ research has revealed that “access to maternal healthcare services is a challenge in most low – and middle-income countries”. In their article, they argue that South Africa in one of the countries striving to improve the accessibility of maternal healthcare services. While acknowledging this effort, they have pointed out that although the country has put in place some measures to improve the accessibility of maternal healthcare services, “vulnerable women, including women with disabilities, are still facing numerous challenges when trying to access these services”.
From the 12 women with varying disabilities that were interviewed during the study, the researchers uncovered that the infrastructure, as service providers’ attitude were not geared to serve these women with disabilities. “We found that narrow passages and information in inaccessible formats were a challenge for women with visual impairments,” the authors said. They further said that women with hearing impairments faced communication difficulties due to lack of sign language interpreters in most facilities. “Moreover, healthcare professionals displayed unfavourable attitudes toward women with hearing impairments, “and these women were often overlooked when seeking help”. The researchers also found out that the situation for women with physical impairment was not any better. According to the researchers, these encountered inaccessible buildings, narrow passages, small consultation rooms and equipment that is not adjustable, “such as beds and scales”.
The researchers have said that research on women with disabilities’ access to maternal healthcare services “is very scarce. There is a need for extensive research on women with disabilities’ access to maternal healthcare services and broadening our understanding of the factors that impact access for pregnant women with disabilities to develop disability-friendly maternal healthcare services”. The authors also pointed out that the World Health Organisation (WHO) has recommended that information on the health needs of people with disabilities be obtained to make facilities disability-friendly. “As a result, there is need for additional research that explores maternal healthcare needs and the utilisation of maternal healthcare services according to the type of impairment,” the researchers have said. According to the three researchers, the study also uncovered that healthcare providers’ knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs impact access to maternal healthcare service. There is need for research that explores the knowledge, attitudes and beliefs of maternal healthcare providers regarding maternal healthcare for women with disabilities, the researchers said.
Here is a short profile of these women – they were all Africans, ranging from 18 to 45 years of age; four of them were married; of the eight that were not employed, five had secondary education; four had visual impairment; five had physical impairment, with one among those also having visual impairment; four had hearing impairment.
Professor said that “ultimately, this study led to the development a framework for improving women with disabilities’ access to maternal healthcare services”. Professor Sibiya said that the framework explains access in four dimensions, which are accessibility, availability, acceptability and quality. Professor Sibiya and her student are in the process of finalising a paper that will present the framework.
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