Search

Background: Non‐communicable diseases (NCDs), also known as chronic diseases, now constitute a major proportion of ill‐health across most adult and older populations including in people with intellectual disability. The current paper is a comparative analysis of prevalence of NCDs across mid‐aged and older‐aged people with mild intellectual disability. Method: Comparative data comes from two cross‐sectional surveys using similar methodology and timeframes. The analysis sample comprises mid‐aged group (30–50 years, N = 291) and older‐aged group (≥60 years, N = 391). Results: People with mild intellectual disability start developing NCDs in early to mid‐adulthood and increases with age. The mean number of NCDs in mid‐aged group was 0.86 (SD, 0.84) compared to 3.82 in older group (SD, 2.67). Conclusion: There needs to be early identification and management of NCDs using relevant health promotion and preventative measures at optimal intervention points. The training of healthcare professionals needs improvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Play is critical to child development and children have the right to experienced meaningful and fun play. Playgrounds provide an environment where all children including those with vision impairment can experience joy, social interaction, physical challenges and stimulation. Participation in an accessible playground can also contribute to advancing specific developmental domains that can be impacted by childhood vision impairment. However, despite the importance of play being recognised by the United Nations and guidelines being legislated in Australia, access to inclusive playgrounds that meet the needs of people with vision impairment remains challenging. An urgent need exists to address the exclusion of children with VI and their families from playground participation. This paper aims to identify inherent benefits of play for all children and to investigate what is known about inclusive playground features, specifically those that meet the needs of children with vision impairment. The challenges of meaningful inclusion of children with vision impairment is explored, including those approaches that may progress design and facilitate inclusion. Playground features such as layout, pathways, equipment, sensory elements and use of technology are discussed, along with importance of consultation, listening and learning from the voice of users. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accessible Summary: In the past 30 years, many people with (intellectual) learning disabilities have been moved out of large "institutions" and into their own home in their local communityThese people are now often between 30 and 50 years oldWe asked people with learning disabilities aged between 30 and 50 and who are living in their local community what things, including work, that they enjoyed doingWe asked people with learning disabilities aged between 30 and 50 and who are living in their local community whether they felt that they could make decisions about their lifeWe found out the things that make their life good, and also what might stop people enjoying their lifeWe learnt that people with learning disabilities should receive more support to assist them before they retireWe learnt that people with learning disabilities still need more support and choice around who they live with Background: This study investigated perceived quality of life (QoL) of community‐dwelling middle‐aged adults (30–50 years) with an intellectual disability and/or developmental disability living in rural or urban areas in New South Wales and Queensland, Australia. The specific aim of the current paper was to provide a descriptive evidence base of QoL and its specific domains by various key demographic characteristics of middle‐aged individuals. This cohort is likely to have either experienced or reached adulthood during and after large‐scale deinstitutionalisation in Australia. Methods and procedures: A cross‐sectional design was utilised, based on the QoL‐Q survey, testing domains of satisfaction; Competence/Productivity; Empowerment/Independence; and social belonging/community integration. The survey included demographic questions and was distributed to participants through disability support agencies across two states. The final sample included 291 respondents. Results: The overall QoL‐Q scores ranged from 3.0 to 29.5 (Mean = 20.4, SD, 4.1), with considerable variation in mean scores both across and within domains. The two demographic areas that showed greatest predictive value for QoL were work status and accommodation issues. The loss of agency and control in choice of co‐residents influenced perceived QoL for empowerment and independence domain of QoL‐Q. Conclusions: The findings highlight QoL issues associated with policy decisions and support programmes for middle‐aged adults. The two key recommendations arising from the project are that future planning for post‐retirement or reduced working hours needs to commence at a much younger age than currently expected, and more attention needs to focus on facilitating individual decision‐making and choice within shared accommodation options. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to examine the internal consistency and factor structure of the Traditional Chinese version of the Impact on Family Scale in order to make cross cultural comparisons. The Traditional Chinese version of the scale was administered to 137 Hong Kong Chinese parents of children with Autism Spectrum Disorders. Two short versions of the scale based on 15 and 11 items were examined to investigate whether the single factor of the short scale from the United States could be replicated. The shortened version of the Impact on Family Scale has the potential to be useful for cross-cultural comparisons between United States and Traditional Chinese samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Australian education service provision includes the delivery of quality educational programmes to rural and remote living children. However, according to their parents, many children with developmental disabilities (such as Down Syndrome and Autism Spectrum Disorders) who are living in rural country areas in New South Wales (NSW) still do not have access to an acceptable education programme. This study aimed to use quality of life factors via a family quality of life scale to explore 51 parents’ experience of educational service provision for their children with developmental disabilities in rural NSW. The results indicated that successful engagement with the school system is strongly affected by the views, assumptions, expertise and prejudices of teaching and care professionals. Further research into how local educational service providers may assist rural Australian families with a child with IDD in rural and remote locations is warranted. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Little is known about the experience of Chinese parents of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) living in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Seventy-five parents of children (aged 6 months-18 years) with ASD diagnoses completed the Family Quality of Life Scale. Forty-five parents from the original surveyed cohort, also participated in semi-structured interviews. Parents' perceptions of their child's disability were influenced both by their cultural background and by the limited and expensive, pre- and post-diagnostic services available. Longer waiting times to diagnosis were associated with lower emotional well-being and perceived disability-related support. Clinicians are encouraged to become part of the support network for parents of children with ASD, to help parents to adjust to caring for their child. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Rural Australians comprise a third of the population. However, there are relatively few research studies that have focused on issues for children with developmental disabilities in rural regions. In particular, there is very limited research that gives voice to parents regarding challenges faced by them due to their location in rural regions. Methods: This article is based on the qualitative component of a mixed-methods study undertaken in rural settings. In-depth, face-to-face interviews were conducted with 17 parents yielding 30 h of information rich taped data. Thematic analysis techniques were used to identify major issues. Results: Three core themes emerged from analysis of the qualitative data regarding information and support needs: an ongoing lack of timely and relevant information about disabilities and support services; inadequacies in interactions with service providers particularly doctors and allied health staff; and considerable challenges and barriers to access and use of health services. Conclusions: Within the constraints of limited rural service provision, there are still opportunities for considerable improvements, through focussed in-service training to narrow the information gap, improve provider-client interaction around attitudinal issues and uptake of tele-health to minimise the long waiting times and the need to regularly travel long distances to access services and setting up online support groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Confucian philosophy, filial piety (FP) is a virtue of respect for one's parents and ancestors. Fulfilling one's FP responsibilities means that an individual should be good to their parents; should be capable of supporting and taking care of their parents and ancestors in their old age. As a result, it is generally recognized that in Chinese society, parents attach a very high value to the academic achievement of their children. A Chinese child's 'job' is to do well academically, in order to become gainfully employed, so that they can fulfil their FP duties. If a child is unable to observe FP towards their parents and ancestors, for example due to limited academic achievement, this might be perceived by their family as straining and violating their cultural obligations. Consequently there are several culturally specific impacts that must be faced by Chinese parents who find themselves raising a child with a significant disability, such as autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Despite the acknowledged importance of the family, relatively little is known about the functioning of Chinese families with children with ASD (CwASD) in Hong Kong (HK). Data were gathered from 100 x HK/Chinese parents of CwASD to try to understand how traditional Chinese beliefs, community values, and the day-to-day experience of raising a child with ASD impacted on Chinese parents' perception of current local school provision in HK, and the resulting coping strategies employed by these parents. It is hoped that the results of this study will raise awareness for the need of further teacher awareness, and educational services for families who are currently trying to adjust their parenting skills to cater for a family member with ASD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An investigation of parents' perspectives on family life with a child with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) in Negara Brunei Darussalam (Brunei) and the socio-cultural context in which these families function was conducted. It has been suggested that the impact of a child with a developmental disability, like autism spectrum disorder, on the family appears to be related to demographic; child and parent characteristics (Dur-Vila, Dein, & Hodes, 2010). Thirty sets of Bruneian parents with children with ASD aged between 4 - 12 years were surveyed regarding the impact of having a child with autism on family functioning. The investigator found that based on the results from the Impact on Family Scale (Stein & Reissman, 2004) that the financial situation, social interaction within and outside the home, and the subjective distress felt by the parents were found to be high on impact. Content analyses of the narrative data indicated that parents' Islamic faith influenced their coping with rearing a child with ASD in Brunei. This study highlights the need for further investigation of parent adjustment in terms of Islamic cultural influence, the context, help seeking and support service uptake. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines the attitudes of preservice teachers toward college students with disabilities in Australia. Use of the Interaction with Disabled Persons Scale (IDP); Evaluation of the factor scale of IDP; Factors affected by preservice teachers' attitudes; Assessment of changes in the attitude of student teachers toward disability.

There is growing recognition of the communicative potential in many of the informal and idiosyncratic behaviors exhibited by children with developmental and physical disabilities. To assist in assessment and intervention planning, it would seem important to identify these potential communicative acts. To this end, the present article describes the development of the Inventory of Potential Communicative Acts (IPCA). The IPCA is an interview schedule designed to be completed by parents, teachers, and therapists of children with developmental and physical disabilities and severe communication impairment. It consists of 53 questions asking informants to indicate how the child communicates 10 distinct pragmatic functions. To date, pilot testing, development research, and field trials have involved 30 children. The results of this development work indicate that the IPCA is an efficient means of collecting accurate and verifiable data on the potential communicative acts of children with severe communication impairment associated with a range of developmental and physical disabilities. Use of the IPCA in communication assessment and intervention is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]