Disabilities and medical emergencies: a population-based study in Peru

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Epidemiology
• Disability Studies

Background:

• Disability significantly impacts healthcare access and utilization.
• Understanding the demand for emergency medical care among disabled populations is crucial for resource allocation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To estimate the association between disability and medical emergency care demand in adults in Peru.
• To quantify the risk of medical emergencies for individuals with varying degrees of disability.

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional analysis of the 2019 National Survey of Budgeted Programs (ENAPRES).
• Disability assessment based on Washington Group on Disability Statistics criteria.
• Poisson regression analysis to calculate prevalence ratios for medical emergencies.

Main Results:

• The study included 62,959 adults; 4.3% reported a disability and 8.7% reported a medical emergency.
• Individuals with three or more disabilities were 2.97 times more likely to experience a medical emergency.
• Adjusted analyses confirmed a significant association between disability and medical emergency demand.

Conclusions:

• Disabled individuals in Peru face a higher likelihood of requiring medical emergency care.
• The risk of medical emergencies escalates with the number of disabilities reported.