Development of a safety awareness group intervention for women with diverse disabilities: a pilot study

OBJECTIVE Describe the development and preliminary evaluation of a safety awareness program for women with disabilities. DESIGN Baseline and postintervention questionnaires administered to a sample of women who completed a safety awareness program. PARTICIPANTS Seven women with diverse disabilities. INTERVENTION Eight interactive sessions designed to increase protective factors. SETTING Community site for persons with disabilities. MAIN OUTCOMES Safety self-efficacy, safety skills, social support/isolation, and safety promoting behaviors. RESULTS Significant increases from baseline to postintervention were found on measures of self-efficacy and safety skills. Although not statistically significant, improvements were also found in safety promoting behavior. CONCLUSION Despite the small sample, findings suggest that participation in a safety awareness program may improve protective factors.