title: Exploring Barriers of the Health System to Rehabilitation Services for People with Disabilities in Iran: A Qualitative Study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The United Nations (UN) identified health as a basic human right, but, unfortunately, the evidence shows that people with disabilities (PWD) often have lower levels of health than the general population. This can be associated with problems in access to the services and programs. The aim of this study was to explore barriers of the health system to rehabilitation services for PWD in Iran.
  
  
  METHODS
  This was a qualitative study conducted on 21 participants using semi-structured, in-depth interviews and content analysis from June 2014 to July 2015. Data analysis was performed by MAXQDA version 10.
  
  
  RESULTS
  "Barriers" were the most prominent challenge of people with disabilities that needed access to rehabilitation services. These barriers were categorized into eight concepts of deficiency in the system that provides rehabilitation services, defect of education, deficiency in detecting and screening of people with disability, defect of stewardship in rehabilitation, ignoring socio-cultural factors, accessibility hardships, lack of identification, and financial hardships in rehabilitation.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  An efficient rehabilitation plan requires a common understanding, considering the long-term complications involved in addressing the barriers. Understanding the barriers of the health system to rehabilitation services requires comprehensive management that first should be familiar with all of PWD, providers, policy makers, and other beneficiaries. It also is necessary for policy makers to consider rehabilitation services as a main part of the health plan; especially, they must change their oversight of rehabilitation services and programs. Thus, policy makers should have need comprehensive management and recommended further research.
authors.affiliation: Ph.D. Student of Health Services Management, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Kianoush
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Abdi
authors.affiliation: Professor of Health Management, Department of Health Management and Economics, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Mohammad
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Arab
authors.affiliation: Professor of Health Management and Economics, Department of Health Management and Economics, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Arash
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rashidian
authors.affiliation: Ph.D. of Health Education, Associate Professor, Department of Rehabilitation Management, School of Rehabilitation Sciences, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Mohammad
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kamali
authors.affiliation: Ph.D. of Nursing, Associate Professor, Department of Health in Emergency and Disaster and Nursing, University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Hamid Reza
authors.initials: HR
authors.lastname: Khankeh
authors.affiliation: Ph.D. of Population Studies/Reproductive Health, Assistant Professor, Department of Population, Health and Family Planning, National Institute for Population Research, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Farideh Khalajabadi
authors.initials: FK
authors.lastname: Farahani
keywords: barriers; health System; people with disability; rehabilitation