Welcome to ODHP! We are a partnership between The Ohio State University Nisonger Center, the Ohio Department of Health, the University of Cincinnati University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities, Disabilities and Health Partners, and the Ohio Colleges of Medicine Government Resource Center.  For more about our organization, visit our “About” page!

Needs Assessment Fact Sheets

ODHP has developed 6 fact sheets based off of the 2022 needs assessment findings. Check them out and share them with your networks!

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ODHP Releases 2022 Needs Assessment Report of Ohioans with Disabilities

As part of our CDC funding, ODHP conducted a statewide needs assessment. The purpose of this report is to understand the healthcare needs of Ohio adults with disabilities. This report explains the differences in health between Ohio adults with disabilities and Ohio adults without disabilities. ODHP used a mixed-methods approach, by analyzing existing public health survey data, hosting listening sessions with disabled Ohioans, and speaking with key informants. Key takeaways include:

• Mental health is the biggest healthcare need for Ohio adults with disabilities.
• Adults with disabilities have worse mental health, physical health, and chronic condition
outcomes compared to adults without disabilities.
• Ohio adults with disabilities report being treated unfairly by healthcare providers
because of disability bias.
• The most common barriers to healthcare for people with disabilities include: a lack of
healthcare provider understanding about disability, being denied accommodations,
physical inaccessibility of building and places, inaccessibility of equipment like exam
tables, inadequate insurance coverage, and lack of transportation.
• Ohio adults with disabilities and the statewide advisory group of people with disabilities,
family members, support staff, and other disability experts say that healthcare
professionals need better training on caring for people with disabilities. This includes
knowledge about disabilities and skills for interacting with patients with disabilities.

To read the full report, please click here: https://go.osu.edu/odhpassessment2022

To read the plain language summary and infographic, please click here: https://go.osu.edu/needsassessmentinfographic

ODHP Team Member Develops Disability Resource Guide for Physical Therapists and Other Professionals

ODHP team member, Dr. Cara Whalen-Smith, has developed a resource guide as part of the APTA Centennial Scholars Program. This resource guide is intended to provide clinicians and students with tools and resources to develop their disability competency. The referenced materials include topics such as conceptual frameworks of disability, civil rights history of people with disabilities, social determinants of health, barriers to accessing care, and disability as a cultural identity.

Access the resource guide here

DD Council Releases Report on Transportation Access for Ohioans with Disabilities

The Ohio Developmental Disabilities Council and the Ohio Colleges of Medicine Government Resource Center surveyed Ohioans with disabilities and transportation providers about how they use transportation, and what challenges they face accessing transportation. Responses revealed themes including the inability to find rides, lack of reliability, wanted updates to policy, and more. Access the summary and factsheets of the report here.

Download a PDF copy of the full report here

Unmet Needs of the Disability Community During the Pandemic

The “Breaking Silences” advocacy committee, Access Center for Independent Living, and The Ability Center of Greater Toledo have combined efforts to survey Ohioans with disabilities and their family members/direct support professionals about their experiences and unmet needs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Major themes found in the results included the following: 1) Disruption in daily activities and life situations; 2) Issues in finding or securing qualified caregivers; 3) Concerns, fears, and behavioral health issues during COVID-19; 4) Barriers and issues in meeting healthcare needs; 5) Issues in how the healthcare system interfaces with people with disabilities; and 6) Perceptions of the health department’s response. Over 60% of respondents with disabilities reported fearing for their lives during the pandemic. Breaking Silences is currently sharing this report with various state agencies and are advocating for more home and community based services.

(ODHP provided technical assistance in analysis of the data but does not own or conduct advocacy work based on this data.)

Read the report here

New publication: What should we teach about disability?

ODHP has a new publication, “What should we teach about disability? National consensus on
disability competencies for health care education.” This paper details the process of the creation of the Core Competencies on Disability for Health Care Education.

Read the publication in the Disability and Health Journal here

ODHP Releases Plain Language Flu Shot Flyer

Common questions and answers as to why you should get your flu shot this year!

DON’T SAY _ACHOO._ DO YOUR PART TO STOP THE FLU. Flyer

Ohio’s COVID-19 Populations Needs Assessment

The OSU College of Public Health, the Ohio Department of Health, and various experts and stakeholders collaborated to produce the Ohio’s COVID-19 Populations Needs Assessment report. 363 Ohioans, representing elevated risk communities, were surveyed about the barriers and experiences of their communities during the pandemic, and suggested potential solutions. These communities included Black/African American, Latino/Hispanic American, Asian/Asian American, Immigrant & Refugee, Rural, and People with Disabilities. Two ODHP members helped analyze and interpret the data. View summaries as well as the full report here.

Updates on ODHP Publications

Check out new publications outlining recent work to improve disability training for medical students and identify learning standards on disability for health professional training programs:

Crane, J. M., Strickler, J. G., Lash, A. T., Macerollo, A., Prokup, J. A., Rich, K. A., Robinson, A. C., Whalen Smith, C. N., & Havercamp, S. M. (2020). Getting comfortable with disability: The short- and long-term effects of a clinical encounter. Disability and Health Journal, 100993. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dhjo.2020.100993

Havercamp, S. M., Barnhart, W. R., Robinson, A. C., & Whalen Smith, C. N. (2020). What should we teach about disability?: National consensus on disability competencies for health care education. Disability and Health Journal, 100989. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dhjo.2020.100989

New document outlining ethical principles and fairness in medical treatment

Ohio Disability and Health Program contributed to guidance for Ohio hospitals to develop policies to ensure that patients with disabilities have the same access to life-saving medical treatment as patients without disabilities, in compliance with legal and ethical guidelines.

Ohio Hospital Ethics Committees document

Coronavirus outbreak: “COVID-19 Information By and For People with Disabilities”

Check out this plain language informational guide about the novel coronavirus, and steps you can take to protect yourself and others, created by the Green Mountain Self-Advocates.

Plain Language Information on Coronavirus

New ODHP Publication about the Health of Caregivers

ODHP examined the health of the caregivers of those with developmental disabilities (DD) and caregivers of those with mental illnesses (MI). Overall, caregivers have worse health, and more poor physical and mental health days than non-caregivers. However, there were significant differences between the two groups: DD caregivers reported providing more intense care of a longer duration than MI caregiver. Despite this, however, MI caregivers had worse health statuses, and more poor physical and mental health days than DD caregivers. MI caregivers’ health was also more sensitive to the length and duration of care.

Read the article here

State Health Assessment Tool

The Ohio Department of Health has released an interactive online tool to view state-wide and county-specific data on demographic trends, public health, healthcare spending, and more.

Check it out here