Disability as a public health issue: findings and reflections from the Massachusetts survey of secondary conditions.
Public health researchers and practitioners have begun to recognize the dynamic nature of disability, promote the health of people with disabilities, and develop strategies to prevent secondary conditions among them. To understand the epidemiology of secondary conditions, the authors developed the Massachusetts Survey of Secondary Conditions, a longitudinal study of adults with major disabilities (n = 656) based on a conceptual framework linking disability, mediating factors, and health outcomes. This paper reports baseline data on the number of secondary conditions experienced by survey respondents. Respondents experienced a mean of 5.3 of 17 secondary conditions. More numerous secondary conditions were associated with fair or poor general health and number of days unable to do routine activities. Factors amenable to public health interventions included difficulty with weight and exercise maintenance, tobacco and marijuana use, and experiencing assault. Disability should be a focus in all public health research, policy, and programs.
Wilber
Nancy
N
Massachusetts Department of Public Health, Boston University, USA. nancy.wilber@state.ma.us
Mitra
Monika
M
Walker
Deborah Klein
DK
Allen
Deborah
D
Meyers
Allan R
AR
Tupper
Paul
P
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D006233:Persons with Disabilities / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008404:Massachusetts / Q000453:epidemiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D010043:Outcome and Process Assessment, Health Care; D011634:Public Health / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011788:Quality of Life; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013223:Statistics as Topic; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology