priority areas
Table of Contents:- Ageing
- Access to sport and fitness
- Housing
- Employment and income
- Transport
- Access to health care
- Violence against women with disabilities
- Other issues
Ageing
According to the ACT Government’s ACT Strategic Plan for Positive Ageing 2010-2014, the ACT has one of the fastest-growing populations of people aged 60 years and over in Australia, and this is expected to grow from 15.8% in 2010 to 19.6% by 2020, and to 22% by 2030. Since the incidence of many chronic illnesses and disabilities increases with age, and is linked to social isolation and disadvantage, there is a need to look for ways to adjust current thinking and approaches within the ACT to assist people to connect with the community and to raise the quality of their lives.
Related links:- The ACT Strategic Plan for Positive Ageing 2010-2014: Towards an Age-Friendly City was launched by the Minister for Ageing, Joy Burch MLA, on 15 December 2009.
- The Women With Disabilities Australia website provides information on ageing and disabilities.
Access to sport and fitness
While community sports are becoming more inclusive it has become evident that women with disabilities do not automatically participate in these in the ACT. There is a well documented need for women with disabilities to have support in order to access fitness activities in their community, to increase their general fitness and wellbeing in a sustained way and to reduce their dependence on the health and community support systems.
The issues for women with disabilities in accessing community sports in the ACT include:- Lack of access, including the lack of physical access to premises and lack of suitable equipment.
- Lack of money; women with disabilities are amongst the most economically marginalised groups in society.
- Lack of transport, and the high cost of transport, for women with disabilities who rely on wheelchair accessible taxis, or accessible bus services, it is often impossible to schedule travel in order to get to an activity.
- Lack of personnel conducting programs for women with disabilities which require much more intensive and individualised involvement.
- Other obstacles relating to sports and fitness organisations include:
- Lack of suitable programs, including programs which cater specifically for women with disabilities, and the lack of an inclusive component in mainstream commercial and community programs; and
- Lack of information, including information about the times and venues of such programs. Many women with disabilities do not receive information about relevant programs and thus do not participate.
WWDACT worked with WCHM and the YMCA on the Well, Able and Mobile program which showed notable and measurable changes in the participant’s health and well-being, reported fewer falls and injuries and increased self confidence and reduced social isolation.
Related links:- The YMCA offers health and fitness programs for people with disabilities.
- Pegasus, located in Holt, is part of the world-wide movement, Riding for the Disabled, which provides horse riding for people with disabilities. People from a wide range of disability groups are catered for in RDA programs run by Pegasus on their farm located in Holt.
- Mpowerdome has a unique approach of providing a holistic approach to fitness and wellbeing.
- Nican provides information on recreation, tourism, sport and the arts for people with disabilities and supports an Australian society where any recreational opportunity values diversity, supports freedom and choice and strengthens inclusive communities.
Housing
Housing is a basic human need. It provides people with safety, independence and a place where they can connect to the wider community. Some housing problems that can impact on health include location, affordability and homelessness. Women with disabilities need access to appropriate, affordable accommodation in order to live a fulfilling life. Unfortunately, factors such as low income, special needs and discrimination make this difficult.
Women with disabilities are less likely to be in paid employment than the general population and men with disabilities. This limits their ability to purchase their own home or secure an appropriate rental property. According to WWDA, women with disabilities pay the highest level of their gross income on housing, yet are in the lowest income earning bracket.
Women with disabilities also have a number of concerns and special needs which means that their housing options are limited. For example, housing may need to be wheelchair accessible, or in close proximity public transport and other amenities. Safety and perceptions of safety are also key concerns for WWDACT members and for women with disabilities more generally due to limited mobility. Many dwellings in Canberra have inadequate security measures such as screens and alarms, and access streets are often poorly lit.
Anecdotal evidence suggests that women with disabilities are discriminated against in the private housing market, which may make it extremely difficult for them to find accommodation. This is particularly relevant to women with psychiatric disability, intellectual disability and acquired brain injury.1
Due to the shortage of public housing and crisis accommodation as well as rising rental costs and house prices in the ACT, WWDACT is concerned with the ability of women with disability to secure appropriate housing.
- Housing & Community Services ACT is a division of the Department of Disability, Housing and Community Services. This area is responsible for the provision of public housing and community services in the Territory.
- ACT Shelter is an independent non-profit community organisation funded by the ACT Government to consult, represent and advocate housing issues on behalf of low to moderate income people in the ACT, and to report their views to government.
- Women with Disabilities Australia provides articles on housing and accommodation issues.
Employment and income
Unemployment and job insecurity is another example of a social determinant which can lead to poor health because of the psychological consequences (such as anxiety and depression) and the financial risks associated with not having an income. 2
People with disabilities experience higher unemployment rates than those without disabilities and as a result are at risk of poor health. ABS data shows that those with a disability have a much lower labour force participation rate (15%) than people without a disability (81%). 3
Women with disabilities experience dual disadvantage due to their gender. They are less likely to be in the workforce than men with disabilities for a number of reasons including low educational attainment, caring responsibilities, and traditional divisions of labour.
- The ACT Disability Workforce Working Group (WWG) is charged with developing and delivering a workforce strategy for the ACT disability sector . Workforce Directions 2010-14 sets the strategic direction for the WWG for the next four years. Please contact david.addison@act.gov.au
- Women with Disabilities Australia has articles on education, employment and income issues related to women with disabilities. For further information please contact david.addison@act.gov.au
Transport
Access to transport influences a women’s ability to participate in the workforce and remain socially connected and is thus important to health and wellbeing. According to the Disability Discrimination Act 1992, ‘A person with a disability has a right to obtain goods and use services and facilities in the same way as people without a disability.’ Despite this, women with disabilities in Australia face barriers to their mobility because of a lack of adequate transport options. This is particularly stark in the ACT where the taxi services for people with disabilities have been rapidly declining for some years and passengers are at risk of being unable to participate in the community.
Taxis are very important to women with disabilities, to their inclusion, and to their active participation in the social and economic life of the community. Many women with disabilities are reliant on accessible taxis to keep in touch with their family and friends, to access essential services, to work, to study, to attend health appointments and to participate in and contribute to community life.
Some of the issues which emerged from consultations with Wheelchair Accessible Taxi (WAT) users in the ACT included unreliability and waiting times—the average waiting time for a wheelchair accessible taxi is one hour; lack of driver awareness about people with disabilities; and inadequate equipment such as lifts and ties in WAT taxis.
Unfortunately, there is little alternative for many women with disabilities in the ACT. ACT buses, often the preferred form of transport for women with disabilities due to their affordability, are improving; however, the majority of buses and bus stops are still not wheelchair accessible.
WWDACT, through its involvement in the WAT Consortium, has been active in lobbying the ACT Government for an alternative model for the taxi industry which better serves people with disabilities.
- The Department of Territory and Municipal Services (TAMS) has information about WAT taxis in Canberra.
- Read the WAT Consortium’s submission to the ACT Government’s review of the taxi industry.
- ACT Chief Minister and Minister for Transport, Jon Stanhope, launched the ACT Government's Accessible Public Transport Action Plan 2009-2012 on Wednesday 30 September 2009.
- The Women With Disabilities Australia website provides information on transport and travel related to women with disabilities.
Access to health care
Access to appropriate health services greatly impacts on a women’s experience of health and wellbeing. In relation to the health system, disability should not be a barrier to good health outcomes; however, women with disabilities face communication, physical, and other barriers to accessing health care that meets their needs.
According to recent undertaken by the Women’s Centre for Health Matters, which surveyed 199 women with a disability or long-term or chronic health, the greatest barrier for women with disabilities in accessing the health and wellbeing information they need, is not being able to obtain the information in the format they require. Not being able to access a spectrum of information in a variety of formats limits the extent to which women can make informed decisions about her health. More than this, however, it entrenches disadvantage by enabling some women access to health and wellbeing information and not others. [4]
- Sexual Health and Family Planning ACT runs services and programs on sexual and reproductive health for people with disabilities.
- ACT Health's Aged Care and Rehabilitation Service provides a range of services to both the elderly and those with an impairment or disability who require acute medical care, rehabilitation or at-home care.
- The Women With Disabilities Australia provides information about health and women with disabilities.
Violence against women with disabilities
Violence against women has severe impacts on a women’s mental and physical health. A study by the Department of Human Services in Victoria, The Health Costs of Violence-Measuring the Burden of Disease Caused by Intimate Partner Violence found domestic violence to be a greater contributor to poor health outcomes than the more well known risk factors such as high blood pressure, smoking and obesity. [5]
Women with Disabilities Australia (WWDA) has found that women with disabilities experience violence at significantly higher rates, more frequently, for longer periods, in more ways, and by more perpetrators than non-disabled women. Despite the high incidence of violence experienced by women with disabilities, services are frequently non-existent, inaccessible or inadequate to meet the needs of these victims and survivors. A crisis service, for example, may not have transport to assist a women with a disability physically leave a violent situation, or may not provide information which is accessible in both content and format. [6]
In their response to the Australian Government’s Consultation on the National Plan to Reduce Violence against Women and Children, July 2008, WWDA identified that “the lack of inclusive services and programs for women with disabilities experiencing or at risk of experiencing violence, is well documented and is widely recognised as a barrier.”[7]
Anecdotally, this national evidence is also shared by women with disabilities in the ACT—we know that very few women with disabilities access family violence services and if they do, the services do not always meet their needs.
As a response to this pressing issue and the lack of ACT specific data, WWDACT, in partnership with Women’s Centre for Health Matters and the Domestic Violence Crisis Service, conducted a project in early 2009 to explore the current practices of domestic violence services in accommodating women with disabilities.
- Have information about the service’s accessibility that would allow for women with disabilities to know if the facilities were appropriate to their needs;
- Did not have the full range of assistive communication devices available;
- Did not have data of service use of women with disabilities experiencing violence of a Disability Action Plan in place.
More work needs to be done in this area and WWDACT and WCHM have been successful in seeking funding to develop and deliver a targeted disability awareness training package for domestic violence service staff. The project aims to develop the skills of sector staff to work with women with disabilities in the hope that they may break the cycle violence and disadvantage in their lives and participate more fully in the ACT community.
Related links:- Read the Women with Disabilities Accessing Domestic Violence Services final report.
- Women’s Information and Referral Service (WIRC) provides information about domestic violence and related services in the ACT.
- The National Council to Reduce Violence against Women and their Children is charged with the responsibility for providing expert advice to Government on measures to reduce the incidence and impact of domestic and family violence and sexual assault on women and their children and delivering a draft National Plan to Reduce Violence against Women and their Children.
- The Women With Disabilities Australia website provides information about violence and abuse involving women with disabilities.
Other issues
Visit the WWDA website for more information about a whole range of other issues facing women with disabilities including sterilization, motherhood, and leadership and mentoring.