Disability Rights, Benefits, and Support Services Sourcebook, 1st Ed.

By Omnigraphics

Provides an overview of rights and laws enacted to protect and accommodate people with disabilities and those interested in learning more about disability and the processes required to apply for these benefits, disability compensation benefits for veterans, information on how to find government and local disability programs and services, and other resources.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Omnigraphics
• Release date: Oct 1, 2019
• ISBN: 9780780817692

Book preview

Part 1 | Understanding Disabilities

Chapter 1 | What Is a Disability?

A disability is any condition of the body or mind (impairment) that makes it more difficult for the person with the condition to do certain activities (activity limitation) and interact with the world around them (participation restriction).

Figure 1.1. Disability Statistics

There are many types of disabilities, such as those that affect a person’s:

Vision

Movement

Thinking

Remembering

Learning

Communicating

Hearing

Mental health

Social relationships

Although people with disabilities sometimes refers to a single population, this is actually a diverse group of people with a wide range of needs. Two people with the same type of disability can be affected in very different ways. Some disabilities may be hidden or not easy to see.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), disability has three dimensions:

Impairment in a person’s body structure or function, or mental functioning; examples of impairments include loss of a limb, loss of vision, or memory loss

Activity limitation, such as difficulty seeing, hearing, walking, or problem solving

Participation restrictions in normal daily activities, such as working, engaging in social and recreational activities, and obtaining healthcare and preventive services

Disability can be:

Related to conditions that are present at birth and may affect functions later in life, including cognition (memory, learning, and understanding), mobility (moving around in the environment), vision, hearing, behavior, and other areas. These conditions may be:

Disorders in single genes (for example, Duchenne muscular dystrophy)

Disorders of chromosomes (for example, Down syndrome)

The result of the mother’s exposure during pregnancy to infections (for example, rubella) or substances, such as alcohol or cigarettes

Associated with developmental conditions that become apparent during childhood (for example, autism spectrum disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD))

Related to an injury (for example, traumatic brain injury (TBI) or spinal cord injury (SCI))

Associated with a longstanding condition (for example, diabetes), which can cause a disability, such as vision loss, nerve damage, or limb loss

Progressive, static (for example, limb loss), or intermittent (for example, some forms of multiple sclerosis (MS))

What Is Impairment?

Impairment is an absence of or significant difference in a person’s body structure or function, or mental functioning. For example, problems in the structure of the brain can result in difficulty with mental functions, or problems with the structure of the eyes or ears can result in difficulty with the functions of vision or hearing.

Structural impairments are significant problems with an internal or external component of the body. Examples of these include a type of nerve damage that can result in MS, or a complete loss of a body component, as when a limb has been amputated.

Functional impairments include the complete or partial loss of function of a body part. Examples of these include pain that does not go away or joints that no longer move easily.

What Is the Difference between Activity Limitation and Participation Restriction?

The World Health Organization (WHO) published the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) in 2001. The ICF provides a standard language for classifying body function and structure, activity, participation levels, and conditions in the world around us that influence health. This description helps to assess the health, functioning, activities, and factors in the environment that either help or create barriers for people to fully participate in society.

According to the ICF:

Activity is the execution of a task or action by an individual.

Participation is a person’s involvement in a life situation.

The ICF acknowledges that the distinction between these two categories is somewhat unclear and combines them—although basically, activities take place at a personal level and participation involves engagement in life roles, such as employment, education, or relationships. Activity limitations and participation restrictions have to do with difficulties an individual experience in performing tasks and engaging in social roles. Activities and participation can be made easier or more difficult as a result of environmental factors, such as technology, support and relationships, services, policies, or the beliefs of others.

The ICF includes the following in the categories of activities and participation:

Learning and applying knowledge

Managing tasks and demands

Mobility (moving and maintaining body positions, handling and moving objects, moving around in the environment, moving around using transportation)

Managing self-care tasks

Managing domestic life

Establishing and managing interpersonal relationships and interactions

Engaging in major life areas (education, employment, managing money or finances)

Engaging in community, social, and civic life

It is very important to improve the conditions in communities by providing accommodations that decrease or eliminate the activity limitations and participation restrictions for people with disabilities, so they can participate in the roles and activities of everyday life.

This chapter includes text excerpted from Disability and Health Overview, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), August 1, 2017.

Chapter 2 | Illness and Disability

An illness is a sickness. Some illnesses, such as a cold or the flu, are acute, which means they come on quickly and subside quickly. Other illnesses, such as asthma or diabetes, are chronic, which means they last a long time and perhaps a lifetime.

A disability is a physical or mental characteristic that makes it harder to complete routine daily activities. You can be born with a disability or get it from an illness or an injury.

Many different kinds of illnesses and disabilities can affect people. If you have an illness or disability, you know that taking care of your needs can be hard sometimes. But you can learn about the skills and support you will need to live well with a disability or chronic illness. Some things you can learn include:

The types of illnesses and disabilities and how each one affects teens in a different way

Tips to boost self-esteem and cope during tough times

How to play sports and stay active

A plan to help you do well in school

Tips for getting along with family, friends, and classmates

How to talk with your doctor and healthcare team

Tools to help people with disabilities live independently

Celebrities with illnesses and disabilities

Real girls with illnesses and disabilities

If you know someone with an illness or disability, this chapter is for you, too. When you understand the types of challenges faced by someone with an illness or disability, you will know how to be a better friend or family member to this person.

Keep in mind that people with disabilities are, above all, people who have great gifts to share. In fact, some people who might seem to have a disability do not even think of themselves as having one.

In the end, teen girls of all shapes, sizes, and conditions want many of the same things in life—to feel good about themselves and their relationships, to be able to take care of themselves and their needs, and to pursue their hopes and dreams.

Types of Illnesses and Disabilities

Congenital disorders are illnesses and disabilities that start at birth (or before). If you have a congenital disorder, you have never experienced life without it.

Acquired disorders are illnesses and disabilities that develop after you are born. If you just developed a health condition, you may suddenly have a lot to handle.

Being Born with an Illness or Disability

Meghan R. has had serious health problems since she was three months old. She has cystic fibrosis (CF), which can make it hard for her to breathe, as well as other conditions. Sometimes, she needs to spend two weeks in the hospital at a time. But she has lots of good times, too. She loves dancing and singing and helping out other kids. I just focus on the bright side of things, she says. I don’t look back. Life’s too short for regrets.

Meghan works hard to take good care of herself. If I don’t do my medical treatments, I could die—soon, she says. So I keep up with my medical treatments every single day. Because my plan is to live until I’m 100. Meghan hopes that someday she will become a doctor or nurse. Other people have helped her life so much that, she says, I just want to make a difference in someone else’s too. Children’s Hospital at Dartmouth, the hospital where Meghan gets treatments, made a video about her.

If you have a congenital condition, like Meghan, you probably already know a lot about your particular illness or disability. And you probably also know that there is a lot you can do to protect your health and build a good life for yourself.

Developing an Illness or Disability after Birth

Rachel was only five years old when she was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. Since then she has learned a lot about staying well with a demanding disease. Here is what she wants other kids to know:

"Most people, even those who have diabetes, do not understand the basics of living with and handling diabetes. Most people think that you cannot have sugar in your diet if you have diabetes. That is not true! You just have to control yourself about how much you are eating and be sure to correct how much insulin you take for the amount that you consumed.

Living and staying healthy with diabetes can sometimes be a challenge. But if you have diabetes, you can definitely live healthy with it! I try to be athletic through track, for example. And support is always a good thing. If you have people who care about you to support you, you will have an easier time living with diabetes—or any illness!"

If you have just learned you have an illness or disability, you may not know exactly what it means or what to expect. You may wonder, How will this change my life? or How will I make it through this? You may feel scared, confused, or overwhelmed. These feelings are normal. Here are some things you can do to feel better:

Research your illness or disability. You can learn what it is, what causes it, how you manage it, and more.

Talk with caring adults, such as parents, teachers, and doctors.

Talk with other kids who have an illness or disability. Ask them about when they first found out and what they do to take care of themselves.

Whether you were born with an illness or disability or developed one after you were born, support from other kids with the same condition can really help. See if you can join a local support group. You also can check out more online chatting information for kids with different kinds of health conditions. Other kids may have great tips—and may have a better sense of how you feel.

This chapter includes text excerpted from Illness and Disability, girlshealth.gov, Office on Women’s Health (OWH), February 16, 2011. Reviewed August 2019.

Chapter 3 | Disability Types

Disability is a restriction or limitation in the function of an individual’s ability to perform everyday activities. This does not mean that a differently abled person cannot participate equally. Many differently abled people can prevail over their restrictions with the use of suitable aids and specialized support services.

Disability can be categorized into various types based on the parts and organs of the body that are disabled.

The various types of disabilities are:

Intellectual disability

Learning disability

Physical disability

Visual disability

Hearing disability

Speech disability

Mental illness

Intellectual Disability

An intelligence quotient (IQ) testing is a series of exams used to determine one’s general intelligence in relation to other people of the same age. A person who has an IQ level of less than 70 is considered to have an intellectual disability, which is determined by the fact that the median IQ level is 100. Such a person will experience notable difficulty in performing the tasks of daily living, such as taking care of oneself, communicating effectively, and conforming to social norms. People with intellectual disabilities may face challenges in abstract concepts such as money and time as well.

The most common causes of intellectual disability are genetic conditions, problems during birth, complications during pregnancy or from diseases, and toxic exposure.

A few types of intellectual disability can happen during birth, while others can happen before birth or soon after birth, and they are:

Fragile X syndrome

Down syndrome

Fetal alcohol syndrome

Apert syndrome

Prader-Willi syndrome

Autism

Cerebral