A postgraduate research opportunity at the University of Otago.
Details
- Academic background
- Sciences, Humanities, Health Sciences
- Host campus
- Wellington
- Qualifications
- Master’s, PhD
- School
- School of Physiotherapy
- Supervisor
- Dr Meredith Perry
Overview
Over 25% of New Zealanders report having a disability. When adjusted for age, the rate of Māori disability is 32%. Disabled people experience poorer social, economic and health outcomes in New Zealand, which is compounded in Māori, the indigenous people of Aotearoa.
Various models of disability exist. One model, the social model of disability, suggests that it is not someone’s diagnosis or impairments that makes someone disabled but the attitudes and structures of the society in which they live. While health and disability are not necessarily inter-twinned, i.e. disabled people can have good health, health professionals are one sector of society which can spend considerable time interacting clinically with disabled people and whānau (family). Furthermore, health professionals have a responsibility to advocate for policy and service delivery which reduces inequities. Therefore, it is important to understand pre-registration and registered health professionals’ attitudes towards disability and disabled people, as well as their knowledge and understanding of disability models and frameworks.
There is Master’s and PhD opportunities in this inter-professional team to:
- Explore health professionals’ attitudes towards disability and disabled people, as well as their knowledge and understanding of disability models and frameworks
- Explore the balance of power between health professionals and disabled patients
- Determine the prevalence of disability in the pre-registration and registered health professional population in New Zealand
This body of work will look to ultimately develop a health professional pre-registration inter-professional curriculum promoting experiential learning of disability concepts, designed and taught by people with lived experience of disability.
This programme of research is led by Dr Meredith Perry.
