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Disability associated with exposure to traumatic events: results from a cross-sectional community survey in South Sudan

Abstract

There is a general lack of knowledge regarding disability and especially factors that are associated with disability in low-income countries. We aimed to study the overall and gender-specific prevalence of disability, and the association between exposure to traumatic events and disability in a post-conflict setting.
We conducted a cross-sectional community based study of four Greater Bahr el Ghazal States, South Sudan (n = 1200). The Harvard Trauma Questionnaire (HTQ) was applied to investigate exposure to trauma events. Disability was measured using the Washington Group Short Measurement Set on Disability, which is an activity-based scale derived from the WHO’s International Classification of Disability, Functioning and Health.
The estimated prevalence of disability (with severe difficulty) was 3.6% and 13.4% for disability with moderate difficulties. No gender differences were found in disability prevalence. Almost all participants reported exposure to at least one war-related traumatic event. The result of a hierarchical regression analysis showed that, for both men and women, exposure to traumatic events, older age and living in a polygamous marriage increased the likelihood of having a disability.
The finding of association between traumatic experience and disability underlines the precariousness of the human rights situation for individuals with disability in low-income countries. It also has possible implications for the construction of disability services and for the provision of health services to individuals exposed to traumatic events.
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Category

Academic article

Language

English

Author(s)

  • Touraj Ayazi
  • Lars Lien
  • Arne Henning Eide
  • Rachel Jenkins
  • Rita A. Albino
  • Edvard Hauff

Affiliation

  • SINTEF Digital / Health Research
  • King's College London
  • University of Oslo
  • Innlandet Hospital Trust
  • Oslo University Hospital
  • University of Inland Norway
  • Ahfad University for Women

Year

2013

Published in

BMC Public Health

Volume

13

Issue

1

View this publication at Norwegian Research Information Repository