Save the childrens rapport “The hidden impact of COVID-19 on children and families with disabilities ”reveals that there are serious differences in how the COVID-19 pandemic affects children and families with disabilities compared to those without disabilities.
From Save the Children's press release:
The report reveals that there are grave differences in how the COVID-19 pandemic affects children and families with disabilities compared to those without disabilities.
The series represents one of the largest surveys on the effects of COVID-19 on children to date with 31,683 parents / caregivers and 13,477 children aged 11–17 across 46 countries participating in the research. The results presented in this report focus on the impact of COVID-19 on children with disabilities and their parents / caregivers as well as parents / caregivers with disabilities and their children, drawing on data from our representative sample of 17,565 parents and caregivers and 8,069 children from amongst our program participants.
In the report, we learn that households with disabilities have greater needs, yet poorer access to health, hygiene and medical supplies and support and have disproportionately suffered income and job losses. Parents / caregivers observed increases in signs of distress at a higher rate among children with disabilities and chronic health conditions and children with disabilities reported playing less, sleeping less, doing more chores and caring more for siblings / others. They are also less likely to be able to interact socially with their friends. Violence was reported at a higher rate in households with parents / caregivers or children with disabilities and those households more frequently reported barriers to accessing domestic violence and mental health services. Based on the findings, the report makes recommendations for policy makers and implementers to work more inclusively to ensure that adults and children with disabilities are not left behind in any COVID-19 response or mitigation measures.
