The fear, uncertainty, and isolation of the pandemic era have been hard for many to cope with since Spring 2020. A new study from Oregon State University indicates that people with disabilities experienced a more significant emotional burden during the pandemic and its lockdowns.
Research published in February 2022 and spearheaded by Dr. Katie Wang and Dr. Kathleen Bogart at OSU provides concrete data for something many already suspected: people with disabilities experienced severe depression and anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic at much higher rates than non-disabled peers and at higher rates than were recorded for people with disabilities pre-COVID.
The OSU study surveyed 441 adults who identified as having a disability between October and December 2020. Within that composite, approximately 61% met the criteria for major depressive disorder and 50% for probable generalized anxiety disorder. These numbers are significantly higher than the pre-pandemic baseline among people with and without disabilities. Previous research found that around 22% of PWDs are diagnosed with depression in their lifetime. Before the pandemic, approximately 7% of U.S. adults had major depressive disorder and 3% had generalized anxiety disorder, according to the Anxiety & Depression Association of America.
Why were people with disabilities more vulnerable to mental health issues during the pandemic? The study offered some answers.
Social isolation
The OSU research indicates that social isolation was the driving force behind increased depression and anxiety for people with disabilities during the pandemic. Many of us experienced grief at losing social connections and activities during pandemic lockdowns. Still, for people with disabilities, isolation was more intense and enduring because it was often medically critical.
People with disabilities can often be immunocompromised or have preexisting conditions that would put them at risk for more severe infection from COVID-19 and a higher likelihood of a fatal outcome. This situation would require strict isolation to avoid exposure.
In other words, COVID lockdowns amplified the existing isolation many already found themselves in before the pandemic. And when individuals were pushed further into social isolation, many experienced depression and anxiety.
Access to health care
Because COVID surges occasionally made medical staff and care finite and invaluable resources, hospitals would choose to ration healthcare by delaying or canceling all “non-essential” care to conserve resources and limit transmission of COVID within their facilities. During these times, people with disabilities could not access their regular medical visits like physical therapy or essential surgeries.
For people with chronic conditions that need regular medical attention, missing the appointments that help ease pain or speed up recovery prolongs recovery and discomfort. Physical discomfort like this, especially with no end in sight, is likely to lead to a mental state to match.
Looking back
The OSU research comes on the heels of decades of research highlighting a solid correlative relationship between disability and depression long before the pandemic. The isolation and stigma took different forms pre-COVID but still had the same chilling effects.
Recent studies also indicate that pregnant people with disabilities are at risk for more complications and higher mortality rates for similar reasons.
Solutions for the future
The OSU researchers behind the new study are optimistic that the problems of isolation and lack of medical access can be addressed efficiently as virtual meetups via apps like Zoom gain popularity and telehealth medical visits become more common.
Accessibility improvements some systems may need include adding automatic captioning and sign language interpreters and using tech and interfaces that meet general website accessibility thresholds. Researchers also indicate that ideally home visits and in-home assistance should be more readily available to make health care accessible and safe for people with disabilities when their medical needs require in-person care.
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