Disabilities Among Gays, Lesbian Etc. Disparities, Essay Example

The following summary and critique is based on the journal article “Disability Among Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Adults: Disparities in Prevalence and Risk” by K.I. Fredriksen-Goldsen, H. Kim, and S.E. Barkan of the School of Social Work, University of Washington, Seattle, and was published in the peer-reviewed American Journal of Public Health (Vol. 102, no. 1, pgs. 16-21) in January of 2012.

First of all, the authors maintain that disability is an important and ever-growing public health issue in the United States and one that must be addressed in order to help improve the health of the public. Statistically, the number of adults living with some type of disability continues to expand with almost fifty million American adults affected by either a physical or mental disability. The costs associated with this are extremely high, exceeding $300 billion yearly, due to spiraling medical care costs and the loss of their ability to work and earn a living.

One of the hardest hit groups are American lesbians, gays, and bisexuals that experience higher rates of disease and more mental stress as compared to other groups. Recent studies have shown that this group of Americans tend to experience more physical problems and are at a higher risk of developing life-threatening illnesses, such as asthma, obesity, heart disease, and even cancer.

In order to determine the extent of disabilities among lesbians, gays, and bisexuals in the United States, the authors analyzed data provided by the BRFSS (Washington State Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System) and through responses from disabled individuals at least eighteen years of age that live in the state of Washington. This data was collected on a yearly basis through extensive telephone interviews with randomly selected persons that at the time were not institutionalized because of a disability and who could speak and write either English or Spanish. Disability itself was measured by asking these persons if their disabilities, whether based on physical, mental, or emotional factors, restrict them from doing normal activities. As part of this survey, the authors included sociodemographic traits like race and ethnicity, age, marital or single/partnered status, household income, and educational levels.

In order to analyze their findings from these surveys, the authors used a complicated computer-based analysis system and then examined the means and percentages of the sociodemographic traits found in the persons interviewed via their sexual orientation; the authors then used either linear or logistic regression in order to fully examine the links between sexual orientation and background traits. Not surprisingly, the end result of all of this analysis demonstrated that lesbian, gay, and bisexual adult Americans showed a greater prevalence of disability than heterosexual Americans with 25% of heterosexual women, 36% of lesbians, and 36% of bisexual women being either partially or fully disabled.

In summation, the authors point out many reasons for the disparities related to disability between heterosexual Americans and lesbian, gay, and bisexual Americans; however, they fail to mention that one pivotal reason for this disparity is due to the fact that lesbians, gays, and bisexual Americans have been left out of the loop of American society simply because of their sexual orientation which most Americans view as abnormal and morally unacceptable. But one fact related by the authors is quite relevant, being that lesbians, gays, and bisexual Americans do not take care of themselves in relation to their health needs and concerns as compared to heterosexual Americans. Exactly why this is so remains unclear, yet it could be due to the absence of self-esteem in these kinds of individuals. In addition, as referenced by S.D. Cochran and V.M. May,

“elevated levels of psychological distress among disabled individuals” identified as gay, lesbian, or bisexual (2007, p. 2054) have been demonstrated in other studies, a possible indication that distress levels are closely linked to sexual orientation and society’s view that the lifestyles of these individuals are unacceptable and morally wrong.

References

Cochran, S.D., & Mays, V.M. (2007). Physical health complaints among lesbians, gay men, and bisexual and homosexually experienced heterosexual individuals: Results from the California quality of life survey. American Journal of Public Health, (97) 11: 2048-2055. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2040376

Fredriksen-Goldsen, K.I., Kim, H., & Barkan, S.E. (2012). Disability among lesbian, gay, and bisexual adults: Disparities in prevalence and risk. American Journal of Public Health, (102) 1: 16-21.