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. 2021 Feb;40(2):297-306.
doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.2020.01452.

Physicians' Perceptions Of People With Disability And Their Health Care

Lisa I Iezzoni  1 , Sowmya R Rao  2 , Julie Ressalam  3 , Dragana Bolcic-Jankovic  4 , Nicole D Agaronnik  5 , Karen Donelan  6 , Tara Lagu  7 , Eric G Campbell  8
Affiliations

Physicians' Perceptions Of People With Disability And Their Health Care

Lisa I Iezzoni et al. Health Aff (Millwood). 2021 Feb.

Abstract

More than sixty-one million Americans have disabilities, and increasing evidence documents that they experience health care disparities. Although many factors likely contribute to these disparities, one little-studied but potential cause involves physicians' perceptions of people with disability. In our survey of 714 practicing US physicians nationwide, 82.4 percent reported that people with significant disability have worse quality of life than nondisabled people. Only 40.7 percent of physicians were very confident about their ability to provide the same quality of care to patients with disability, just 56.5 percent strongly agreed that they welcomed patients with disability into their practices, and 18.1 percent strongly agreed that the health care system often treats these patients unfairly. More than thirty years after the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 was enacted, these findings about physicians' perceptions of this population raise questions about ensuring equitable care to people with disability. Potentially biased views among physicians could contribute to persistent health care disparities affecting people with disability.

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Conflict of interest statement

Disclosures of conflict of interest: No conflicts

Comment in

  • Eliminating Disability Bias: The Authors Reply.
    Iezzoni LI, Campbell EG. Iezzoni LI, et al. Health Aff (Millwood). 2021 May;40(5):852. doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.2021.00520. Health Aff (Millwood). 2021. PMID: 33939521 No abstract available.
  • Addressing Disability Bias.
    Isaacson A, Rushin C, Coleman J, Tolchin DW. Isaacson A, et al. Health Aff (Millwood). 2021 May;40(5):851. doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.2021.00344. Health Aff (Millwood). 2021. PMID: 33939522 No abstract available.
  • Eliminating Disability Bias.
    American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities; American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association; American Foundation for the Blind; American Therapeutic Recreation Association; Autism Advocacy; Autistic Self Advocacy Network; Brain Injury Association of America; Epilepsy Foundation; Justice in Aging; National Association of Councils on Developmental Disabilities; Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease; TASH. American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, et al. Health Aff (Millwood). 2021 May;40(5):851. doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.2021.00409. Health Aff (Millwood). 2021. PMID: 33939523 No abstract available.
  • "The Paradox of Physical Therapy".
    Jette AM. Jette AM. Phys Ther. 2022 Mar 1;102(3):pzac013. doi: 10.1093/ptj/pzac013. Phys Ther. 2022. PMID: 35358304 No abstract available.

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