The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) calls for the full participation of individuals with disabilities in society, including the workforce. Yet, many barriers exist that may prevent them from staying connected or returning to employment. For instance, eligibility requirements for receiving public disability benefits or health coverage are not always consistent with helping to keep individuals at work or facilitating their return. Also, employers may not know how to accommodate employees with disabilities or may lack financial incentives to do so. This report presents policy options and actions that could be taken to help adults with a current or past work history improve their participation in the workforce. Charts and tables.
"The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)-now in its 20th year-calls for the full participation of individuals with disabilities in society, including the workforce. Yet, many barriers exist that may prevent them from staying connected or returning to employment. For instance, eligibility requirements for receiving public disability benefits or health coverage are not always consistent with helping to keep individuals at work or facilitating their return. Also, employers may not know how to accommodate employees with disabilities or may lack financial incentives to do so.GAO convened a forum on March 16, 2010, to explore policy options and actions that could be taken to help adults with a current or past work history improve their participation in the workforce. Participants included experts and officials representing a variety of views. Prior to the forum, GAO surveyed a larger group of experts to help inform the discussion. Comments expressed during the forum or on the survey do not necessarily represent the views of all participants, the organizations they represent, or GAO.Although GAO is not making recommendations, based on our prior work and consistent with a past GAO proposal to Congress, GAO agrees with forum participants that strong federal..."
The reasons why workers with disabilities continue to face the possibility of losing their jobs or being unable to return to the workforce are many and complex. In addition to challenges resulting directly from their health conditions, individuals may have trouble obtaining employment services such as job counselling or training to help them stay in their current job or find a new one. Limited access to health care or other financial supports may also make it challenging for individuals to manage their disabilities and maintain their connection to the workforce. Additionally, improving work participation for individuals with disabilities can be challenging because, beyond individuals themselves, numerous stakeholders play an important role in the process. This book examines the current research on actions that could increase work participation for adults with disabilities.
If you work with older adults who are developmentally disabled and are seeking ways to incorporate exercise, arts activities, and other activities into your program, this is the book for you! Older Adults With Developmental Disabilities and Leisure will help you improve your ability to instruct exercise and other fitness activities and, at the same time, increase your knowledge about aging and mental retardation and developmental disabilities. This combination of skills and knowledge is important to your understanding of your clients and their needs. You will assist them in leading a more active, structured life that will result in a higher sense of satisfaction in their daily living and health benefits that will speak for themselves. Older Adults With Developmental Disabilities and Leisure gives you specific guidelines for establishing fitness programs as well as ideas for offering clients goals and incentives that will evoke and maintain their enthusiasm to participate. Using a proven model, the Arts/Fitness Quality of Life Activities Program, the authors show how careful planning and sequencing can produce successful results, such as peer interaction, flexible thinking, self-expression, and improved mental health. As you learn about the key factors for programming for this group of clients, you will also learn about: the demographics of this population leisure education training and cross-training with aging specialists and mental retardation staff community integration and for whom it is appropriate inactivity in later life and the complications it causes life satisfaction and leisure participation differences in physical and cognitive functioning among this population consumer satisfaction among older adults with developmental disabilities It is never too late to introduce leisure activities into the lives of those with developmental disabilities. With encouragement and careful guidance, you can lead your elders/clients into a more active and healthy life. Use Older Adults With Developmental Disabilities and Leisure as a guide to find activities and exercise programs that are appropriate, fun, and worthwhile!
The aim of this book is to provide an overview of positive behavior supports for adults with disabilities in a written format that is directed to support providers who can immediately put the information to use. The authors have written the book in a non-technical format and include clear real-life examples for using positive behavior supports in employment, community, and residential settings. It is generic across disability labels and should be of interest to those working with adults with disabilities in any capacity. In this book each chapter follows the sequence of: Key Point Questions; Window to the World Case Studies; Best Practice Recommendations; Discussion Questions; and Employment, Community, and Residential Based Activity Suggestions. The book is intended to give support providers the knowledge and skills for providing positive behavior supports in employment, community, and residential settings and thereby improve the quality of life for the individuals that they support. The rubber meets the road, not only in how to support adults with disabilities, but also in how to implement positive behavior supports so that positive quality of life outcomes occur. An advantage of this book is that agencies and organizations preparing support providers can easily use it in courses or trainings that address positive behavior supports, as it covers methodology that is seldom covered in detail in most texts. Those who are already support providers will find the information to be practical and easily implemented in applied settings. College instructors are likely to choose this book based upon: the consistent format used throughout; the readability of the book for students in college classes or adult service providers; the comprehensive coverage of positive behavior supports; and the direct applicability to applied settings. In addition to college instructors, others providing instruction, supervision, and training to support providers will find this book useful.
In this new edition, the editors and contributors update and expand on the educational framework that was introduced in the first edition for rethinking disability in public health study and practice and for attaining the competencies that should accompany this knowledge. The second edition highlights key areas of research that have emerged since the first edition was published. This edition includes new and updated chapters that have particular relevance for public health practice: Disability, Intersectionality, and Inequity: Life in the Margins Disability and Health Programs: Emerging Partners Children with Special Healthcare Needs Disasters and Disability: Rhetoric and Reality Inter-relationship of Health Insurance and Employment for People with Disabilities Public Health, Work, and Disability Actions to Prepare a Competent Workforce Public Health Perspectives on Disability: Science, Social Justice, Ethics, and Beyond, 2nd Edition, is an essential resource for public health educators and practitioners as well as students in graduate schools of public health throughout the United States.
