People's Stories

We interviewed and investigated personal stories of people with disabilities to gain a greater insight of the challenges they face in health care settings. Read their stories below to learn about problems in hospitals ranging from doctors without enough knowledge of disabilities to inaccessible equipment.

RACHEL

Rachel is a kind, sweet woman with cerebral palsy. In her experience, doctors' offices don’t tend to have wheelchair scales. Once, a doctor had one of these scales, but they didn’t even bother to use it. Instead, they tried reading off of Rachel’s wheelchair for its weight. Rachel also hasn’t ever gotten a proper mammogram except for one time when there was a trained technician. Additionally, Rachel “can’t remember the last time [she] was on an examination table.”

"I can’t remember the last time I was on an examination table.”

CATHY

Kathy is a resident at New Horizons Village in Unionville who does volunteer work. She wants medical diagnostic equipment (MDE) to be more accessible, and as a patient with a wheelchair, she has faced many difficulties with MDE. For example, she was given an ultrasound instead of a mammogram because she could not be held forward in her wheelchair. Ultrasounds are not as effective as mammograms, proving to be a great disadvantage for those in wheelchairs. Also, her wheelchair can barely fit in doctors’ offices, and she believes that there should be more rolling-up equipment to accommodate for those with disabilities. 

SUZANNE

Suzanne is a Connecticut resident who owns a wheelchair and also advocates for MDE improvements. Like most other females with physical disabilities, she was given ultrasounds instead of mammograms. Furthermore, when she wanted an X-Ray, the imaging facility said that they “no longer take wheelchairs” and that “if you can’t walk in for the visit, we can’t have you here.”

They said "if you can't walk in for the visit, we can't have you here"

JAMIE

Jamie found numerous problems in doctors offices. When he had bloodwork taken, he was told that he had to stay in his wheelchair, and even thought he called in early to get a lift, there was no lift. The rooms were too small, no one was with him, and he wasn’t examined on a table. The doctors claimed that “bloodwork tells you everything,” even though this is far from true. Jamie says that he “can’t believe we’ve been waiting this long, yet we don’t have what we need. It’s just…ridiculous.”

"I can’t believe we’ve been waiting this long, yet we don’t have what we need. It’s just…ridiculous.”

RON

Ron believes that MDE discussions are always “shoved under the desk” and that action needs to be taken rather than just planned and postponed. When Ron went to a new hospital, there were tiny rooms and no ceiling lifts. The EMTS wouldn’t help him, and doctors would not directly speak to him even though he is the patient. He has repeatedly heard people saying “can this person speak” as if he isn’t his own person. 

GARY

Gary used to go to physicians for vaccines, but they did not have a lift. Once, in order to get on an examination table, someone had to pick him up, which is dangerous. Now, Gary picks and chooses which doctor’s appointments matter most because he doesn’t trust health care institutes as they have proved multiple times that they don’t have accommodations. 

DEBBIE

Debbie had her OBGYN exam in a wheelchair, which was not a proper exam. She asked for a lift several times to get onto the table, but she was not allowed this equipment. Moreover, medical professionals stopped working with her because they ran out of the funding to help her. 

JENNIFER

Like many others, Jennifer has encountered problems of medical professionals not talking to her directly about her own health problems. Her story is humourous because when doctors do this, she speaks to them in pig latin saying “o-day now-kay ig-pay atin-lay?” (do you know pig latin?) Jennifer has faced many instances where she was not treated or accommodated well in health care, yet she faces these injustices with a positive demeanor despite how horrible they really are.