Developmentally Disabled Population, Essay Example

Developmentally Disabled individuals are a very significant portion of the population in the United States. These individuals receive government, private and familial care to help enable them to engage with sects of the population as normally-functioning persons.  In a study performed on 2,663 developmentally disabled children, over 2.6% of children were found to engage in self-injurious behaviors (Griffin et al., 1987).  Furthermore, the mass media has presented these individuals in a light that allows for society to believe that developmentally disabled people are unable to provide for themselves or think rationally.  Several of the aforementioned programs do greater damage in the long run than good for these people because it continues to reinforce the concept that they are separate and “special” from the rest of the American culture.  There are several vulnerability factors that are present by the mass media for developmentally disabled individuals and must be addressed in order for a quality of health care to be provided.

There are several movies that present developmentally disabled individuals in a particular viewpoint.  The mass media in Hollywood has determined that the best way to present these individuals is through images of such characters portrayed by Cuba Gooding, Jr. in the film “Radio.”  In this film, Gooding stars as Radio who is the protagonist of the film and struggles with coping with the normal world around him and trying to find his own place in the world.  Ed Harris plays a football coach who is plagued by his own past and takes pity on Radio.  The entire film is based on the concept that Radio is unable to take care of himself and must have assistance from those around him to fit into society.  This same concept is portrayed throughout mainstream America through the rest of the mass media.

Developmentally Disabled individuals are often viewed and portrayed as “retarded” and unable to operate as functional beings.  They are outcasts and are continuously considered to be separate from the rest of the culture.  For this reason, the treatment awarded to these individuals of all ages is a major vulnerability factor.  This is clearly evident through the research performed by Jacobsen (2002) in which the results showed that older developmentally disabled teenagers and adults engaged in more problematic behaviors than younger children.  Furthermore, these results emphasized that individuals with a more restrictive living situations were more likely to engage in less-problematic behaviors than those with many restrictions and who were required to be constantly supervised.  In other words, the national view on developmentally disabled persons is that they are unable to function.  However, when these individuals are treated differently over time or have their personal rights and wishes restricted, they begin to lash out through problematic behaviors.

In addition, care programs are provided to assist these individuals to better cope with the world around them and provide scenarios where they are able to fit in as a member of a social environment. Wehman (1979) described a program that began in Virginia where developmentally disabled persons were provided job training and employment guides to become working members of their local communities.  These same programs still exist today and continue to work towards narrowing the gap between how these individuals are perceived and how they are treated.  State and federal Medicaid is a major source of funding for these programs and private care for developmentally disabled persons. Nevertheless, financial and structural barriers restrict the ability of these individuals to receive proper health care (HealthyPeople.gov). Financial barriers can include lack of Medicaid finances or even having no insurance; meanwhile, structural barriers can include having no personal care provider or having very poor personal care (HealthyPeople.gov).  These programs are critical to the success of incorporating these individuals within their local communities and breaking down the walls of ignorance that are portrayed through the mass media. While many persons believe that films and images such as those found in “Radio” are entertaining and heart-felt, they essentially destruct the work being performed to incorporate developmentally disabled persons into society.  This negative treatment is by far the largest vulnerability factor for all health considerations with developmentally disabled persons.

Bibliography

Griffin, J.C., Ricketts, R.W., Williams, D.E., & Locke, B.J. (1987). A Community survey of self-injurious behavior among developmentally disabled children and adolescents. Hospital & Community Psychiatry, 38, 959-963.

HealthyPeople.gov. (n.d.) Leading health indicators. Retrieved from http://www.healthypeople.gov/Document/HTML/uih/uih_4.htm

Jacobson, J.W. (2002). Problem behavior and psychiatric impairment within a developmentally disabled population i: behavior frequency. Applied Research in Mental Retardation, 3(2), 121-139.

Wehman, P. (1979). Placement of developmentally disabled individuals into competitive employment: three case studies. Education and Training of the Mentally Retarded, 14(4), 269-276.