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      Socio-Demographic Factors Influencing the Use of Assistive Technology among Children with Disabilities in Malawi

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          Abstract

          This paper aims to address the information gap on the influence of socio-demographic factors on access and utilization of Assistive Technology (AT) among children with disabilities in Malawi. Thus, it contributes towards the realization of the recommendations of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with disabilities and the development of a framework for creating an effective national AT policy. The paper used two statistically matched datasets, namely, the 2017 survey on Living conditions among persons with disabilities in Malawi and the 2015-16 Malawi Demographic and Health survey. Logistic regression and structural equation modeling techniques were utilized to assess the influence of socio-demographic factors on the use of AT among children with disabilities. The results indicate that there is a high level of unmet need for AT among young children aged 2 to 9 and those living in urban areas. The results further indicate that children with multiple disabilities have lower odds (OR = 0.924) of using AT for personal mobility compared to children with a single functional difficulty. These results entail that AT needs for children with multiple disabilities are not adequately addressed. Therefore, when developing policies on AT, younger children and those with multiple disabilities need to be specifically targeted.

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          Applied Logistic Regression

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            Assistive products and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

            The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have placed great emphasis on the need for much greater social inclusion, and on making deliberate efforts to reach marginalized groups. People with disabilities are often marginalized through their lack of access to a range of services and opportunities. Assistive products can help people overcome impairments and barriers enabling them to be active, participating and productive members of society. Assistive products are vital for people with disabilities, frailty and chronic illnesses; and for those with mental health problems, and gradual cognitive and physical decline characteristic of aging populations. This paper illustrates how the achievement of each of the 17 SDGs can be facilitated by the use of assistive products. Without promoting the availability of assistive products the SDGs cannot be achieved equitably. We highlight how assistive products can be considered as both a mediator and a moderator of SDG achievement. We also briefly describe how the Global Cooperation on Assistive Technology (GATE) is working to promote greater access to assistive products on a global scale.
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              Assistive technology policy: a position paper from the first global research, innovation, and education on assistive technology (GREAT) summit.

              Increased awareness, interest and use of assistive technology (AT) presents substantial opportunities for many citizens to become, or continue being, meaningful participants in society. However, there is a significant shortfall between the need for and provision of AT, and this is patterned by a range of social, demographic and structural factors. To seize the opportunity that assistive technology offers, regional, national and sub-national assistive technology policies are urgently required. This paper was developed for and through discussion at the Global Research, Innovation and Education on Assistive Technology (GREAT) Summit; organized under the auspices of the World Health Organization's Global Collaboration on Assistive Technology (GATE) program. It outlines some of the key principles that AT polices should address and recognizes that AT policy should be tailored to the realities of the contexts and resources available. AT policy should be developed as a part of the evolution of related policy across a number of different sectors and should have clear and direct links to AT as mediators and moderators for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. The consultation process, development and implementation of policy should be fully inclusive of AT users, and their representative organizations, be across the lifespan, and imbued with a strong systems-thinking ethos. Six barriers are identified which funnel and diminish access to AT and are addressed systematically within this paper. We illustrate an example of good practice through a case study of AT services in Norway, and we note the challenges experienced in less well-resourced settings. A number of economic factors relating to AT and economic arguments for promoting AT use are also discussed. To address policy-development the importance of active citizenship and advocacy, the need to find mechanisms to scale up good community practices to a higher level, and the importance of political engagement for the policy process, are highlighted. Policy should be evidence-informed and allowed for evidence-making; however, it is important to account for other factors within the given context in order for policy to be practical, authentic and actionable. Implications for Rehabilitation The development of policy in the area of asssitive technology is important to provide an overarching vision and outline resourcing priorities. This paper identifies some of the key themes that should be addressed when developing or revising assistive technology policy. Each country should establish a National Assistive Technology policy and develop a theory of change for its implementation.
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                Author and article information

                Contributors
                Role: Academic Editor
                Role: Academic Editor
                Role: Academic Editor
                Journal
                Int J Environ Res Public Health
                Int J Environ Res Public Health
                ijerph
                International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
                MDPI
                1661-7827
                1660-4601
                16 March 2021
                March 2021
                : 18
                : 6
                : 3062
                Affiliations
                [1 ]Centre for Social Research, University of Malawi, Zomba, Malawi; jkafumba@ 123456cc.ac.mw (J.A.K.); amunthali@ 123456cc.ac.mw (A.M.)
                [2 ]Assisting Living & Learning (ALL) Institute, Department of Psychology, Maynooth University, W23 F2K8 Maynooth, Ireland; ikenna.ebuenyi@ 123456mu.ie (I.D.E.); Emma.Smith@ 123456mu.ie (E.M.S.); Mac.MacLachlan@ 123456mu.ie (M.M.)
                [3 ]Olomouc University Social Health Institute (OUSHI), Palacký University, 779 00 Olomouc, Czech Republic
                Author notes
                [* ]Correspondence: mjamali@ 123456cc.ac.mw
                Author information
                https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3329-6296
                Article
                ijerph-18-03062
                10.3390/ijerph18063062
                8002356
                537dcba2-15e3-4cfa-bc31-8c70463d8151
                © 2021 by the authors.

                Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

                History
                : 12 November 2020
                : 23 February 2021
                Categories
                Article

                Public health
                assistive technology,disability,children,socio-demographic factors
                Public health
                assistive technology, disability, children, socio-demographic factors

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