What Is Medicaid Health Insurance?

Medicaid is a program funded by states and the federal government to provide various insurance coverages for low income citizens including families, children, elderly and the disabled.

What Is Medicare Health Insurance?

Medicare insurance is the nations largest health insurance program. Medicare coverages include people age 65 and over, disabled persons under 65 and persons with permanent kidney failure.

Other Medicaid Disability Insurance Details

• Individuals must have a certain basic income to qualify for Medicaid. While Medicaid is techniclaly administered by the federal government, states are allowed to set their own qualification rules. As a result, qualification requirements for Medicaid might vary from state to state.
• Disabled people covered by Medicaid are covered for hospital services, x ray services, home health care services and dental insurance for children as well.

Other Medicare Disabled Insurance Details

• The coverage for Medicare is divided into two parts. Part A is the Hospital Insurance and Part B is the Medical Insurance.
• Part A is usually designed for those over the age of 65.  If you have this type of Medicare, you do not have to pay an insurance premium as you have probably paid for it via taxes while you were working. However, if you have never worked or have not paid Medicare taxes then you might have to pay a certain amoutn of premium to be insured with Medicare Part A disability insurance. Part A Medicare insurance covers hospital care, nursing care and hospices.
• Part B Medicare insurance covers a variety of health services including but not limited to physicians, outpatient vists and all therapists that are considered absolutely essential for medical purposes.

These are the basic differences between Medicaid and Medicare.

Albert Einstein
The Mathematician/Physicist who had a learning disability and did not speak until age 3. He had a very difficult time doing maths in school. It was also very hard for him to express himself through writing.

Alexander Graham Bell
Had a learning disability

Cher
Has dyslexia

Christopher Reeve
Never has a person with a disability commanded so much media attention in recent history. Christopher Reeve, crippled after a horse-riding injury, wants to be up on his feet & wants to help others stand confident too. His life is now dedicated to harnessing the power of medical research to get up & ride again.

David Blunkett
The Rt Hon David Blunkett MP is without doubt Britain’s most famous guide dog owner. Often photographed with his guide dogs – Ted, Offa and Lucy – David Blunkett also holds the powerful political post of Home Secretary. Joining the Labour party aged 16, he was elected to Sheffield City Council aged 22. He was the council leader from 1980 to 1987 until he was elected MP for Sheffield Brightside. Seen as the archetypal municipal Socialist, he is in many senses a traditional Labour man – beard-wearing and blunt-talking. Arguably, he is a role model for disabled people who just want to get on with their lives.

Edison
Edison had a learning disability. He couldn’t read until he was twelve years old and had a very difficult time writing even when he was older.

Franklin D. Roosevelt
Roosevelt had Polio, was governor of New York State then elected President of the United States for 4 terms.

George Washington
Had a learning disability. He could barely write and had very poor grammar skills.

Goya
Spanish painter (1746-1828): At age 46, an illness left him deaf. He went on to create the most famous Spanish art of the 19th century.

Helen Keller
(Devoted Life to Persons with Disabilities) She was Blind, Deaf, and Mute

Ian Dury
movement/walking disability, resulting from polio. Hits from 1978 (“Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick”) into 1980’s. Recorded “Spasticus Autisticus” which was banned from radio, not surprising, as lyrics could be mis-construed as disabled-ist

John Milton
English Author/poet (1608-1674): He became blind at age 43. He went on to create his most famous epic, Paradise Lost.

Lord Byron
“Mad, bad and dangerous to know”, Britain’s great romantic was also born with talipes, a club foot. It is said that he “walked with difficulty but wandered at will”. He toured Europe extensively and captured the popular imagination through his poetry and his personality. From gloomy egoism through to satiric realism he was renowned for his writings, his sexual ambivalences and his championing of Greek independence from the Turks. Disability activist Tom Shakespeare summed him up in the following way: “Most of his poetry hasn’t stood the test of time, but he was a blockbuster in his day, and like very few other heroes, his name is still used as an adjective – ‘Byronic’, meaning dashing.”

Lord Nelson
Viscount Horatio Nelson is certainly Britain’s greatest naval hero. His skill as a naval commander is, of course, well-documented. He won crucial victories at Trafalgar in 1805 and the Battle of the Nile in 1798, during the wars with revolutionary and Napoleonic France. What is less often remarked upon is that a great part of his naval career and his major victories were won as a disabled person. Going ashore in Corsica following the fall of Toulon, a French shot flung debris into his face leaving him without sight in his right eye. Later, an assault on Tenerife resulted in a shattered right elbow – back on his flagship the arm was amputated. He carried on as a disabled seaman for nearly ten years, securing his most important naval victories at the Battle of the Nile and the infamous Battle of Trafalgar – where he died on October 21, 1805. Contrary to popular belief, he didn’t say “I see no ships”. Instead he said, during the Battle of Copenhagen, “… I have only one eye. I have a right to be blind sometimes” and, raising his telescope to his blind eye, “I really do not see the signal”.

Ludwig van Beethoven
(Famous Musician) – known to be deaf

Marla Runyan
One of the women representing the Unites States in the 1500 metre track event at hte 2000 Olympics was Marla Runyan. The American runner finished seventh in her preliminary heat and rose to sixth in the semi finals to qualify for the finals. During the final race, Marla lost track of the major competitors. She finished in eighth position, 3.20 seconds behind the gold medal winner. In 1996, Marla set several track and field records at the Paralympics in Atlanta, Georgia. Following that success, Marla wanted to compete in the 2000 Olympics in Sydney — even though she is legally blind. The 31-year-old runner has been diagnosed with Stargardt disease. This is a condition that leaves her with a limited ability to see what is in front of her. In Sydney, Marla became the first legally blind athlete to compete in an Olympics.

Marlee Matlin
Marlee Matlin is a stand-up comedian and an actress. Some of her films include A Dead Silence, My Party,A Hear No Evil, A Bridge to Silence, A Walker, and A Children of A Lesser God. In 1987, she captivated the world by winning the Academy Award for Best Actress in the film A Children of a Lesser God. Marlee Matlin became deaf in infancy due to Roseola infantum. However, deafness has not disabled her or her career.

Michael Bolton
(famous Singer): Deaf in one ear

Robin Williams
(famous Hollywood Star) was diagnosed to be suffering from Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder(ADHD) as a child. He never refuses a role related to medicine e.g Awakenings, Patch Adams.

Sarah Bernhardt
French actress (1844-1923) Disabled by a knee injury, her leg amputated in 1914, she continued starring on stage until just before her death. She is regarded as France’s greatest actress — “The Divine Sarah”.

Stephen Hawkings
Physicist/mathematician has Lou Gehrigs Disease and is in a wheelchair. He needs a computer to speak.

Sudha Chandran
(Indian actress and classical dancer) This brave lady dances with a Jaipur foot. She has acted in a movie on classical dance called “Nache Mayuri” & today acts in a variety of TV serials.

Tanni Grey-Thompson
Tanni Carys Davina Grey-Thompson OBE – to give her full name and title – is the disabled athlete that most people instantly recognise. Formerly Tanni Grey – the Thompson was added following her marriage in 1999 – she has competed in Paralympic Games since 1988, representing Britain at distances ranging from 100m to 800m. She has won fourteen paralympic medals including nine golds, and has broken over twenty world records. As a wheelchair athlete she was also the winner of five London marathons – in 1992, 1994, 1996, 1998 and 2001. In recent years, she has established herself as a TV presenter – including BBC TWO’s From the Edge disability magazine programme.

Tom Cruise
(Hollywood Star): is severely dyslexic

Walt Disney
Had a learning disability

Woodrow Wilson
U.S. President from 1913-1921. Had a learning disability – he was severely dyslexic

Disability Facts

• Having a disability places you in the world’s largest minority group. As the population ages this figure is expected to increase.
• Eighty per cent of persons with disabilities live in developing countries, according to the UN Development Program (UNDP).
• The World Bank estimates that 20 per cent of the world’s poorest people have some kind of disability, and tend to be regarded in their own communities as the most disadvantaged. Statistics show a steady increase in these numbers. The reasons include:
  a) Emergence of new diseases and other causes of impairment, such as HIV/AIDS, stress and alcohol and drug abuse;
  b) Increasing life span and numbers of elderly persons, many of whom have impairments;
  c) Projected increases in the number of disabled children over the next 30 years, particularly in the developing countries, due to malnutrition, diseases, child labor and other causes;
  d) Armed conflict and violence. For every child killed in warfare, three are injured and acquire a permanent form of disability. In some countries, up to a quarter of disabilities result from injuries and violence, says WHO.

• In countries with life expectancies over 70 years of age, people spend on average about 8 years, or 11.5 per cent of their life span, living with disabilities.
• Disability rates in the population are higher among groups with lower educational level in the countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). On average, 19 per cent of less educated people have disabilities, compared to 11 per cent among the better educated. Ninety per cent of children with disabilities in developing countries do not attend school, says UNESCO. In the OECD countries, students with disabilities in higher education remain under-represented, although their numbers are on the increase, says the OECD.
• 1991 Brazilian census reported only a 1 percent to 2 percent disability rate, but the 2001 census recorded a 14.5 percent disability rate. Similar jumps in the measured rate of disability have occurred in Turkey (12.3 percent) and Nicaragua (10.1 percent).
• Persons with disabilities are more likely to be victims of violence or rape, according to a 2004 British study, and less likely to obtain police intervention, legal protection or preventive care. Women and girls with disabilities are particularly vulnerable to abuse. A survey in Orissa, India, found that virtually all of the women and girls with disabilities were beaten at home, 25 per cent of women with intellectual disabilities had been raped and 6 per cent of women with disabilities had been forcibly sterilized. Research indicates that violence against children with disabilities occurs at annual rates at least 1.7 times greater than for their peers without disabilities.
• Claims for disability benefits are surging in industrialized countries – up to 600 percent in some nations – encouraging governments, private companies and unions to search for ways to get disabled people back to work, according to the International Labour Organization (ILO).
• Discriminatory practices continue to deny persons with disabilities, as well as workers who become disabled, access to work. Two-thirds of the unemployed respondents with disabilities said they would like to work but could not find jobs.
• An estimated 386 million of the world’s working-age people have some kind of disability, says the International Labor Organization (ILO). Unemployment among the persons with disabilities is as high as 80 per cent in some countries. Of the some 70 million persons with disabilities in India, only about 100,000 have succeeded in obtaining employment in industry.
• A 2004 United States survey found that only 35 per cent of working-age persons with disabilities are in fact working, compared to 78 per cent of those without disabilities. One third of the employers surveyed said that persons with disabilities cannot effectively perform the required job tasks. The second most common reason given for not hiring persons with disabilities was the fear of costly special facilities.
• Unions are becoming involved in the return to work through the direct provision of services, and through disability management programs in the workplace, the ILO says. The ILO study also finds that private insurance providers are introducing more flexible arrangements so that workers who become disabled and who attempt a gradual transition to work do not lose their benefits. Companies are looking for ways to reduce costs by introducing disability management programs in the workplace. Thousands of persons with disabilities have been successful as small business owners, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.
• 45 countries have anti-discrimination and other disability-specific laws. Recent changes in national laws to promote the employment of disabled persons have often not been adequate to assist individuals with new types of impairments. This is particularly true for those workers suffering from the “new” occupational diseases, for example those related to stress and repetitive strain injury, and for those who have invisible disabilities, such as mental illness and chronic pain, that do not fall within the scope of legal definitions in some countries.

Disability Statistics & Poverty

The two-way link between poverty and disability creates a vicious circle. Poor people are more at risk of acquiring a disability because of lack of access to good nutrition, health care, sanitation, as well as safe living and working conditions. Once this occurs, people face barriers to the education, employment, and public services that can help them escape poverty.
Dr. Amartya Sen pointed out in his keynote address at the World Bank’s conference on disability, the poverty line for disabled people should take into account the extra expenses they incur in exercising what purchasing power they do have. A study in the United Kingdom found that the poverty rate for disabled people was 23.1 percent compared to 17.9 percent for non-disabled people, but when extra expenses associated with being disabled were considered, the poverty rate for people with disabilities shot up to 47.4 percent.

World Dementia Statistics

Indeed, the numbers and statistics surrounding dementia are staggering. Worldwide, there are now an estimated 24 million people living with some form of dementia. Without a major medical breakthrough in the fight against dementia, this number could jump to as many as 84 million who have age-related memory loss by the year 2040.
Although there are a number of forms of dementia, Alzheimer’s is the most common, and most well-known, of the age-related memory loss diseases. Currently, more than five million Americans suffer from Alzheimer’s, and it is the seventh leading cause of death in the U.S. About 13% of Americans over the age of 65 have Alzheimer’s and half of those over age 85 will develop Alzheimer’s — or a closely related dementia.
Health analysts estimate that in just five years the number of Americans with Alzheimer’s will jump to 7.7 million and by 2050 the number is projected to more than double to 16 million. So why is this disease growing so rapidly?
Simply put, our population is “graying” and our citizens are living much longer than any previous generation. In fact, the fastest growing segment of our population is the over 80 age group, and the odds of becoming demented for the very elderly are much higher.
Another aspect to our changing population is how quickly this change has taken place. A person born in 1900 could reasonably hope to reach about the age of 50 – the average life expectancy was just 47 years. However, over the course of the last century a number of factors, such as medical advances, widespread access to health care, improved sanitation and better nutrition have had a tremendous impact on how long we live. Consequently, the average life expectancy for both men and women in the U.S. today is 77 years of age. That’s an incredible increase of 30 years in just one century.
And, with the Baby Boomer generation on the verge of retirement, we are now looking at a shift to an even older society. There are about 77 million in the baby boomer generation. By the year 2030, these men and women will make up approximately 20% of the total U.S. population. As a result, health experts currently estimate that at least 10 million Baby Boomers will develop Alzheimer’s.
The news for older Baby Boomer females is even bleaker as about one-in-six females over the age of 55 could develop Alzheimer’s. Why do more women than men get Alzheimer’s? It’s not anything genetic. It is simply that women traditionally live longer (by about five years in the U.S), so it becomes basically a numbers game.
The statistics surrounding dementia are sobering. If you do not currently know someone with memory loss — a family member, friend, neighbor or co-worker — then you most certainly will know someone in the near future.
There are two risk factors for dementia, genetics and aging, and neither of these factors can be controlled. While time and money is being funneled into Alzheimer’s and dementia research, there is no “magic bullet” solution. Currently, there are several “disease-modifying therapies” in development that may offer temporary slowing of disease progression or even restore cognitive function. However, it may take years before these therapies are available to the general public.
The best approach is to adopt a proactive brain health lifestyle today. And, if a loved one or you is experiencing any signs of cognitive loss then you should visit your healthcare professional immediately.

Different Types of Disabilities:

“A disability”, according to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, is defined as “a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities”. This is a very broad definition of a disability. There are numerous types of disabilities which affect millions of individuals every day. Some may be acquired at birth, or it may be acquired slowly with growth, or others still may have been caused by an accident of some sort. No matter what disability type one belongs to, each of them have their own set of inhibitors and difficulties. Some of the commonly known categories and types of disabilities are:

Visual Disability: This type of disability may include sub-categories of :

• far-sightedness or near-sightedness
• complete blindness
• or color blindness.

This disability type can range widely in severity. While millions of people suffer from minor eye problems, many others still, face the severe visual impairment of loss of complete vision or color from their eyes.

Hearing Impairment: A person suffering from hearing impairments can be considered :

• Partially deaf, if they are hard of hearing. Varying degrees of hearing aids are available to assists such individuals to hear well.
• Or completely deaf, when they are unable to listen to any kind of sound or noise. Sign language is often the only kind of language used to communicate with such individuals.
• Physical Disabilities: There are many different types of disabilities that fall under this category. A disability is considered physical when it restricts any kind of mobility in a person. The most commonly experienced disability types within this category are:
  - Loss of limbs or any other part of the body that restricts movement
  - Injury to the Spinal Cord that leaves the individual wheelchair ridden
  - Arthritis
  - Stroke
  - Paralyzed arms and legs, also known as Quadriplegia
  - Cerebral Palsy

Learning/Cognitive Disabilities: Similar to physical disabilities, cognitive and learning disabilities encompass a wide range of different types of disabilities under it. This type of disability limits brain functions of an individual. It hinders mental growth and individuals suffering from it usually have a hard time in thinking, solving, expressing and languages. Some of the commonly known disability types within this category are:

• Dyslexia: affects ability to read
• Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD): loss in ability to concentrate
• Down’s Syndrome: Mental retardation
• Autism: Neurological disorder resulting in reduced social interaction
• Dysgraphia: affects ability to write

Acquired Disability: This type of disability is generally acquired at virtually anytime and is not restricted or dependent on any particular gender, ethnicity or age group. It can affect almost anybody, though it is often more commonly found in concentrated regions. Acquired disabilities too can be split into sub-categories of different types of disabilities. The commonly known ones are:

• Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS)
• Multiple Sclerosis: Disorder of the Central Nervous System
• Alzheimer’s Disease: A progressive loss in memory

Various types of disabilities affect individuals all over the world. There are so many divisions of these disability types in numerous categories that it becomes impossible to name all of them. However, it is helpful to know the type of disability group one belongs to in order to identify with that category. Each of these disability types differ greatly, but all individuals who experience them face tremendous hardships. Help is available in various forms to make lives a little easier for individuals facing these different types of disabilities.

References:

1. For parents of visually impaired children – Family Connect
2. Types of Disability – Disabled World

Female Disability Discrimination

While disability discrimination is a common issue faced by many individuals, this discrimination is two-fold while dealing with women with disabilities. As a child, a disabled girl faces extreme societal rejection from other regular kids. A disabled girl generally grows up with the fear of being taunted and ridiculed for suffering from a particular disability. Disabled women on the other hand, face female disability discrimination at the workplace and during employment. Many countries look down upon disabled women and doubt their mothering skills. Sometimes they even go as far as blaming the disabled mother as the cause for a child born with birth defects. They are often times left with no respect and society disregards them as being at an equal level with other women. While disabled men too lose their “manhood” while dealing with their disability, they are still considered the head of the family and are given a higher preference in the workplace. Disabled women, on the other hand, find it harder to find jobs with their condition and often lose their self-esteem due to this prevalent bias. Much improvement is required to fight for equal opportunities for women with disabilities.

Support Organizations For Disabled Ladies

1. F.R.I.D.A. – Feminist Response in Disability Activism (1), is a Chicago based organization that was set up originally by five women to protect the rights of disabled women within their community. Within a year, F.R.I.D.A. gained immense popularity and quickly spread to many different states. It now impacts and benefits several women with disabilities and provides valuable information to all those suffering from discrimination based on their gender. As stated on their website, this female disability organization follows numerous goals. F.R.I.D.A.

• Is led by and for women with disabilitie
• Responds to issues affecting women with disabilities
• Is radicalized women, representing ourselves
• Raises awareness about the issues that affect us
• Provides a safe space for women with disabilities and those who identify as a woman with a disability, regardless of sexuality

2. 4DWM – For Disabled Women (2), is a website dedicated to disabled women suffering from physical or speech impairments. It is a project of Women Pushing Forward and Policy Research on Women and Disability (PROWD), and it funded entirely by a grant for Verizon network. It covers all areas of legal, education, assistive technologies and health that would benefit disabled ladies to become aware of the opportunities available to them.

3. DWOW – Disabled Women on the Web (3), is a web-based organization that was founded by Corbett O’Toole who is a part of the Disabled. It was set up to introduce a place where disabled women could discuss their difficulties and share their experiences and solutions to problems. The purpose is to bring together various women with disabilities and provide a platform to accumulate resources and information to support these women with special needs.

Female disability is equally prevalent, but somehow, disabled women seem to face a higher degree of discrimination and difficulties in dealing with their conditions. Being a disabled woman is a challenging task in this world. Many other women with disabilities have recognized this and have set up various groups and websites to bring together disabled ladies from around the world to share their stories and problems. They also provide support in medical, health, products and other areas which have proven to be extremely beneficial. Disabled women would gain immensely from visiting and joining such forums in order to be well-informed of what the world is trying to do to help them out.

References:

1. Feminist Response In Disability Activism
2. 4DWM – For Disabled Women
3. Disabled Women on the Web

Adaptive Aids to Help a Disabled Parent

The world is recognizing the increasing number of disabled parents around and people are constantly working harder to find newer and improved products that can assist special needs parents in any way. There have been many great inventions which have resulted from slight changes to original products and they have greatly increased efficiency for disabled parents. Some of the adaptive aid products that have excelled in this area are:

• Adaptive Parenting Aids: Custom-made products for each individual disabled parent who has specific unique needs.
• Baby lifter: Lifts a baby up and down from the floor
• Baby Bathtub: Specially designed bathtub for assisting wheelchair parents.
• Accessible Crib: Assists a disabled parent with limited balance
• Velcro disposable diapers: Highly recommended for special needs parents with limited dexterity.
• The Over-the-shoulder baby holder: Helps a disabled mother carry an infant around while breast feeding or simply in movement.

Disabled Parents Support Organizations

Many organizations have come together to provide disabled parents support and help for their unique needs. These organizations are established to provide a place where children of disabled parents can come and find ways to improve their parents’ lives. They also benefit disabled parents themselves by providing them with information about new products that can make their lives easier. Some organizations that have excelled in disabled parents support for many years are:

• Through the Looking Glass (TLG) (2): This is a non-profit, nationally recognized organization that conducts research, provides useful information and encourages the growth and prospect of disabled parents across the country.
• Invisible Children’s Project (3): This organization was established to assist disabled parents suffering from some form of mental illness that inhibits their parenting process.
• MS moms: This support site is for disabled mothers suffering from MS disorder.
• The Center for Rights of Parents with Disabilities (CRPD): The center provides education and support to protect disabled parents from discrimination of any kind.
• Disabled Adoptive Parents: This is an E-mail group that is setup to have group discussions with various disabled mothers and parents around the country seeking to adopt children.

While parenting is a hard enough task by itself, it is even more difficult for disabled parents to keep up with their children. Each individual faces different levels of difficulty and problems depending on the kind of disability they suffer from. To assist special needs parents in their needs for child growth, various products have been individually designed to help them. These products and aids are becoming increasingly popular due to the level of ease they offer. Various websites and disabled parents support groups have also been set up which may be visited to gain additional knowledge about new innovations in this field. With the help of such programs and aids, disabled parents are now finding it easier to care for their little ones.

References:

1. Parents with Disabilities Online
2. Through the Looking Glass
3. Invisible Children’s Project – Mental Health America

Disabled Toilets Regulations

The ADA Accessibility Guidelines (1) sets forth various disabled toilets regulations that all public places in the United States need to abide by. A disabled toilet must be installed in all public facilities with other regular toilets and their architectural design must comply with the ADA disabled toilets regulations. Some of these disabled toilets regulations are:

• Access: Disabled toilets access is a very important issue. All public facilities must have at least one disabled toilet located on the first floor that meets all ADA disabled toilets regulations. Other toilets for disabled people must be accessible my elevators.

• Size: Disabled toilets must be big enough so that a wheelchair can be maneuvered in it without difficulty. There must also be ample space to move around in the wheelchair within the facility.

• Heights of Fixtures: Toilet bowl in a disabled toilet must be located at an appropriate height for easy transfer from wheelchairs. Wash basins should be at an accessible height for individuals in wheelchairs to reach.

• Cleanliness: Extra effort must be made to ensure cleanliness of disabled public toilets. Wheelchair-ridden individuals often have to touch fixtures, walls and doors; therefore it is very important that these areas are always clean and dry for the sake of hygiene.

• Availability: Toilets for disabled people must not be available for the regular public. Disabled toilets are limited in number, often times only one or two in a facility. It is important that these be available to individuals who require it as they might have trouble controlling their bowels or have other immediate requirements for a disabled toilet.

Importance of Disabled Public Toilets

It is hardly arguable that disabled public toilets are a huge necessity in today’s world. In order to offer equality to all individuals, it is unfair to discriminate against disabled individuals by not providing disabled toilets access in every public facility. The ADA disabled toilets regulations sets forth strict size, cleanliness and accessibility guidelines for all disabled public toilets to follow. By following such rules, a business enterprise embraces the disabled community and provides them with equal opportunity in one of the most required areas of life. Due to the presence of these disabled toilets, it is now becoming increasingly easier for disabled individuals to travel freely without accessibility worries. It encourages them to move forward in life and not worry about these minor obstructions. Disabled toilets have indeed been a huge step forward in helping out the disabled community with their needs.

Toilets for disabled individuals are required to be set up in every public facility. However, a lot of places do not provide proper disabled toilets access to such individuals. It is important to remember that there are heavy fines in places for not complying with ADA disabled toilets regulations. If all the guidelines set forth by them for installing a proper disabled toilet are not followed by them, then a business might find itself in huge lawsuits that could result in it closing down eventually. The importance of these disabled toilets can be best understood by disabled people themselves as they know how hard it can be for them otherwise.

Reference:

1. ADA Accessibility Guidelines – United States Access Board
   

What Are Disabilities Sports?

There are several disabled sport opportunities available

Disability sports consist of participation in athletic games by physically or mentally disabled individuals. These individuals may be inherently disabled or be disabled due to some unfortunate event in their lives. Either way, participation in any kind of disabled sports requires the individual to have some sort of limiting factor that excludes them from regular sports. Disability sports events are organized in ways slightly different than other common sports. Most of the time, while organizing a disability sport, the same existing sport is taken and then modified according to specific disability requirements of the group of individuals concerned. Other times, special disabled sports events are created for the benefit of such individuals. These disabled sports might not have any counter-part in regular sporting events but are fairly commonly recognized among specific organizations.

Types of Disability Sports Events

Disability sports can be broadly divided in to 3 general types:

• Disabled sports for individuals with a mental incapability
• Disabled sports for individuals with a physical incapability
• Disabled sports for the deaf

In order to cater to the various different kinds of disabilities, different disability sports events have been set up for such individuals. Some of the most common disability sports that are nationally or even internationally famous are:

• Special Olympics
• Disability Commonwealth Games
• Deaflympics
• Paralympic Games

Importance of Disability Sports

Sports, in general, takes up an important place in the lives of most individuals. However, disability sports has a whole new level of importance in the lives of individuals suffering from a mental or physical disability or their friends and families.

• Disabled sports gives prior athletes who are now disabled another opportunity at playing their sport which used to be their life at one point.
• These disability sport events makes individuals feel a sense of belonging that every game team brings with it.
• Disability sports provides a sense of confidence of independence within a person.
• Staying active even provides much needed exercise to some individuals.
• Most importantly, disabled sports improves the psychological factors affecting a disabled individual by making them feel like they can achieve new heights for themselves.

Disability sports have provided a much needed revival of confidence and intelligence within the large group of disabled individuals in this country. Many of these individuals are extremely talented in various sports and these disability sport events provide an opportunity for them to portray them. With efforts being made worldwide to have this form of disabled sports accepted by all, it is almost certain that disability sports will soon become a very common event in many countries of the world.

Reference:

1. About Disabled Sports USA – Disabled Sports USA

Speech and Language Disabilities

Individuals suffering from speech disabilities often show limited or no speaking ability. They lose the ability to interact normally with others and have issues in expressing themselves through words. Speech impairments may also cause a difficulty in public speaking and articulation. Overall, an individual experiences difficulty in communication skills and shows evident signs of speech difficulties.

Causes of Speech and Language Disabilities

Speech and language disabilities may occur as a side effect of many other forms of disabilities and conditions. The speech impairment may be the direct result of something entirely difficult and yet affect an individual’s life tremendously. Some of the causes of speech disability are:

1. Hearing Impairment: Many a time, speech disabilities are formed due to a loss in hearing as hearing is very critical in the development of your speech skills.
2. Brain injury: A brain injury due to some accident may hurt the region of the brain which controls speech and languages. This might cause a communication disability due to damage to that control region.
3. Learning disabilities: A child may develop speech disabilities if he is suffering from some form of learning disability as this hinders other areas of growth and development.
4. Neurological disorders: Individuals suffering from neurological disorders might develop speech difficulties as well.
5. Physical disabilities: Various physical disabilities result in speech impairments to the individual.
6. Mental retardation: One may experience speech and language disabilities when they suffer from some kind of mental retardation.

Living with Speech Disabilities

As we can see, speech disabilities may occur due to several reasons. While some may overcome them with continuous practice and effort, others may find it next to impossible to get rid of this speech impairment from their lives. Instead of letting it get you down and affecting your life negatively, you can take a number of steps to seek help and make things look a little brighter for you. In order to cope with speech disabilities, one may consider the following points:

• Therapy: Seek speech disability therapy from trained professionals to improve the quality of your speech.
• Technology: Use the numerous technological products that are available to individuals suffering from speech disabilities in order to make daily activities a little simpler. Examples of such products are text to speech devices, communication aids, modified keyboards etc.
• Don’t stress: Many individuals suffering from speech impairments increase the severity of their disorder by stressing out about it. Relaxing and explaining your situation to concerned individuals around you might help improving your condition.
• Support groups: It is important to remember that you are not the only one suffering from a speech disability. There are many others and many support groups have been set up to help individuals like you.

Thus we see that speech disability can be of many different types. There are many treatment and help options available for individuals suffering from speech disabilities. Numerous devices are being created everyday to make the lives of these individuals with communication disabilities to lead a close to normal life. Various support groups and organizations have been set up to help with speech disabilities. Although in a lot of cases this speech impairment might be permanent, without a chance of ever gaining the speech ability back, these helpful tips might at least improve their lives and help them better cope with their speech difficulties.

References:

1. Typical Speech and Language Development – American Speech-Language-Hearing Association