Disability

Team Canada’s Alicia Souveny: Car crash survivor and blood donation advocate

Alicia Souveny lost her left leg in a car accident in 2019 and would have lost her life, too, had she not received enough blood in time from donors. She's now an ambassador for the Canadian Blood Services and a member of the national women's para-hockey team.

‘Nothing for most and no easy way to fight back:’ Advocates skeptical as regulations for Canada Disability Benefit Act outlined

Persons with disabilities in Canada need and deserve access to justice, or they will continue to be pushed to the margins. The federal government has the opportunity to learn from mistakes and ease the way for people with disabilities who rely on social assistance to survive. Now it just needs to act.

Backlash against call for equity in medicine is misguided

A backlash against EDIA (equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility) is gripping Canadian medicine. The reasons for this backlash are complex but ultimately misguided.

People with disabilities account for 13% of all pregnancies, but their needs are invisible

People with disabilities need inclusive, accessible pregnancy care that treats them with respect, dignity and acceptance.

Access denied: Pandemic highlighted issues in accessing sexual and reproductive health for persons with disabilities

The COVID-19 pandemic led to a number of people with disabilities missing health-care appointments due largely to health and safety concerns on transit. But there are measures we can take to provide accessible, disability-affirming care.

Health disinformation is harming autistic children: Are Canadian government regulations on the horizon?

With the recent explosion of health disinformation and harmful products for sale on social media have come real consequences for vulnerable children. Regulation and enforcement are crucial.

Finding your energy envelope: Long COVID patients urged to ‘pace’ themselves back to health

For many long COVID patients, returning to activity can cause debilitating "crashes." But symptom management techniques like pacing can offer relief and may even help some patients slowly recover.

Youth with disabilities an untapped resource in labour shortfall

As we mark National Disability Employment Awareness Month, it’s time for a change. Governments need to step up and provide access to stable funding streams so young people with disabilities can access the support they need.

Disability and reproductive health: Examining the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic

To better understand the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the reproductive health of women, trans and non-binary people with disabilities, researchers at the University of Toronto partnered with the DisAbled Women’s Network (DAWN) of Canada to conduct the ongoing Disability and Reproductive Health during COVID-19 Study.

Born with a disease that kills but not at death’s door: Living in that in between

As a child with cystic fibrosis, I was hit with this adult issue of mortality – something no 5-year-old should be worrying about. When I was born in 1971, the median survival rate for women with CF was 20 years old. I’ve chased that median age of survival my whole life.

Labour shortage? Opening doors to young workers with disabilities can help fix the issue

As companies struggle with a labour shortage, it's time for them to zero in on one enormous, skilled and very under-tapped pool of talent: youth with disabilities.

Are pharmacists really the most accessible health-care providers?

Pharmacists claim to be the most accessible health-care providers – but recent research has found that pharmacies in Alberta are often not very accessible to people with disabilities or mobility issues.

‘Equitable and free of barriers’: Canada’s first gold-level certified accessible clinic opens its doors

Canada now has its first medical clinic that is accessible enough to earn gold-level certification from the Rick Hansen Foundation. The Ability Clinic, which opened this August, is one of only 59 gold-certified spaces in Canada.

Improving the health-care experience for autistic patients: The Autistic Health Access Project

Autistic people are leading seminars in medical schools about what it's like to experience the health-care system as an autistic patient. They hope that future doctors will work with these patients more collaboratively.

‘This is the community in action’: Toronto’s Disability Vaccine Outreach Initiative

Disabled people are assisting their peers in gaining access to vaccines while also educating vaccine clinics about access needs. It's just one example of why involving communities in the rollout matters.

People with developmental disabilities have a right to better dental care and less suffering

People with developmental disabilities face barriers to dental care. It's time we took action to ensure that they do not remain invisible to dentists.

A call for inclusive health research

We need an inclusive approach to health research, one that engages the affected communities in all aspects of the research and that meets them where they are.

‘Do you care about disabled people or not?’

Why aren't we gathering data about the effect of COVID-19 on adults with developmental disabilities? Is it because of underlying attitudes in health care that their lives matter less?

COVID-19 and the forgotten disability community

Canadians pride themselves on diversity, inclusion and public health care. But COVID-19 has shown how people with disabilities are consistently left behind. Now is the time that changed.

‘Foolproof’ exam software creating barriers for students with disabilities

To make sure students aren’t tempted to cheat when writing exams at home, professors have been using proctoring software, but it doesn’t account for those with mental or physical disabilities.