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Disability

About one in every four adults in Utah and the United States has a disability.1 Disability is common, and yet, the disparities and needs of this community are often unrecognized and unfulfilled. Costly health events and chronic conditions such as, stroke, asthma, heart disease, diabetes, and cancer, are all more common for those with disabilities, and basic preventive services such as cancer screenings and dental checks are less common. Not only are people with disabilities are more likely to experience significant differences in their health behaviors and health than those without a disability, they are also more likely to experience social circumstances that put them at greater risk of having poor health outcomes, e.g. lower education, income, food security, etc. It is important to understand that many of these differences and the size of these differences are avoidable, societally based, and not solely due to the nature of disability itself.2

Costly health As stated by Healthy People 2020, "To be healthy, all individuals with or without disabilities must have opportunities to take part in meaningful daily activities that add to their growth, development, fulfillment, and community contribution." This will require all public health programs, organizations, and communities to find ways to include people with disabilities in program activities and healthy communities. This can be achieved by utilizing the GRAIDs framework. A gap in the availability and accessibility of evidence-based programs led to the development of the Guidelines, Recommendations, Adaptations, Including Disability framework (GRAIDs) by the National Centers on Health, Physical Activity and Disability (NCHPAD). The GRAIDs are an evidence-based method to adapt programs to be more inclusive of individuals with disabilities. The GRAIDs framework is applicable across programs, settings, sectors, and organizations. Applying the five GRAIDs domains will ensure accessibility and inclusion for individuals with disabilities in communities, programs, services, and organizations.

Why It's Important

Bergner and Rothman2 have suggested that health status assessment measures serve four different functions, including examination of the health of general populations, clinical interventions and their effects, changes in the health care delivery system, and health promotion activities and their effects.

1. Utah Department of Health and Human Services. Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) https://ibis.health.utah.gov/ibisph-view/query/selection/brfss/BRFSSSelection.html.
2. Krahn G.H., Walker D.K., Correa-De-Araujo R. Persons with disabilities as an unrecognized health disparity population. AJPH. 2015;105:S198?S206. . https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4355692/.

General Health Status - Adults (BRFSS)


Physical Health - Adults (BRFSS)


Activity Limitation - Adults (BRFSS)


Disability - Adults (BRFSS)


Division of Data, Systems, and Evaluation, Utah Department of Health and Human Services | Telephone: 801-538-9191 | Email: dse@utah.gov
The information provided above is from the Utah Department of Health and Human Services IBIS-PH web site (http://ibis.health.state.gov). The information published on this website may be reproduced without permission. Please use the following citation: " Retrieved Sat, 27 April 2024 16:09:17 from Utah Department of Health and Human Services, Indicator-Based Information System for Public Health Web site: http://ibis.health.state.gov ".

Content updated: Thu, 29 Feb 2024 16:17:17 MST