Perceived Barriers to Gynecologic Care by Women Who Use Wheelchairs

Access to Obstetric and Gynecologic Care for Patients With Disabilities: ACOG Committee Statement No. 18

Although the Americans with Disabilities Act has been the law for more than 30 years, individuals with disabilities still face substantial barriers to health care and are at higher risk of receiving inadequate care than those without disabilities. It is important that obstetrician-gynecologists are aware of best practices for caring for their patients with disabilities, as well as how to adjust their offices, workflows, and practice patterns to be inclusive of all patients. Obstetrician-gynecologists and other reproductive health care professionals should understand the barriers that prevent disabled people from accessing reproductive health care. This is critical in identifying inequities and informing patient-centered approaches to services. Patients with disabilities should have access to the same health care as all patients, including all age-appropriate screening tests. It is important that health care teams acknowledge their inherent biases and offer and facilitate access to appropriate care, including recommended screening tests. Increasing training and exposure to individuals with different disabilities during medical training programs will not only help improve the lack of experience, but also help challenge the implicit and explicit biases that currently exist in health care.

Community mobility and participation assessment of manual wheelchair users: a review of current techniques and challenges

According to the World Health Organization, hundreds of individuals commence wheelchair use daily, often due to an injury such as spinal cord injury or through a condition such as a stroke. However, manual wheelchair users typically experience reductions in individual community mobility and participation. In this review, articles from 2017 to 2023 were reviewed to identify means of measuring community mobility and participation of manual wheelchair users, factors that can impact these aspects, and current rehabilitation techniques for improving them. The selected articles document current best practices utilizing self-surveys, in-clinic assessments, and remote tracking through GPS and accelerometer data, which rehabilitation specialists can apply to track their patients' community mobility and participation accurately. Furthermore, rehabilitation methods such as wheelchair training programs, brain-computer interface triggered functional electric stimulation therapy, and community-based rehabilitation programs show potential to improve the community mobility and participation of manual wheelchair users. Recommendations were made to highlight potential avenues for future research.

Practical Approaches to Advancing Health Equity in Radiology, From the AJR Special Series on DEI

Despite significant advances in health care, many patients from medically under-served populations are impacted by existing health care disparities. Radiologists are uniquely positioned to decrease health disparities and advance health equity efforts in their practices. However, literature on practical tools for advancing radiology health equity efforts applicable to a wide variety of patient populations and care settings is lacking. Therefore, this article seeks to equip radiologists with an evidence-based and practical knowledge tool kit of health equity strategies, presented in terms of four pillars of research, clinical care, education, and innovation. For each pillar, equity efforts across diverse patient populations and radiology practice settings are examined through the lens of existing barriers, current best practices, and future directions, incorporating practical examples relevant to a spectrum of patient populations. Health equity efforts provide an opportune window to transform radiology through personalized care delivery that is responsive to diverse patient needs. Guided by compassion and empathy as core principles of health equity, the four pillars provide a helpful framework to advance health equity efforts as a step toward social justice in health.