| dc.description.abstract | The study aimed at exploring the lived experiences of women with
disabilities in accessing sexual and reproductive health services in Lira district,
Northern Uganda.
This study utilised a phenomenological study design. Ten women,
aged 15 - 49 years, were purposively selected from Lira District Union of Persons
with Disabilities. They were accessing sexual and reproductive health services
across the district. Data was collected using an in-depth interview guide, and
thereafter thematic analysis was done.
More than half (60%) of the participants were 40-50 years old and
had more than 2 children. Half of them (50%) were married; the majority (70%)
resided in the rural area and had a physical disability. They related their positive
and negative experiences. On the positive side, they indicated the existence
of supportive stakeholders, availability of services, and being served with no
discrimination in some health facilities. Negatively, they experienced difficulty
in navigating the physical environment in health facilities, lack of transport,
negative healthcare provider attitudes, long waiting time, side effects of family
planning methods, lack of privacy and unhygienic sanitary environments in
health facilities.
Women with disabilities in Lira district
had both positive and negative experiences in accessing sexual and reproductive health services. Recommendations of this study include counselling women with
disabilities about side effects of hormonal family planning methods, incorporating
disability studies in curricula for health workers, on-the-job training for health
workers on care for persons with disabilities, and enforcing policies that favour
access to sexual and reproductive health services for women with disabilities.
The government should empower the local leadership to supervise every new
health facility that is being constructed, and ensure that accessibility standards
for women with disabilities are met. | en_US |
