People with disabilities: between needs and health care

This study traces the profile of people with disabilities, as well as their health needs, in a neighborhoodof Salvador, State of Bahia. In this, the life and health conditions of people with disabilities in the context theylive were studied. The research was carried out in two coverage areas of the Community Health Workers Program(“Programa de Agentes Comunitários de Saúde”), where open-ended questionnaires were conducted with peoplewith physical and sensory disabilities. Socio-demographic variables on disability and access to services and projectsfor future life were selected. Results showed that the population is comprised predominantly of adults and elderly,African descent, female, with average income between half and three minimum wages, poorly educated, presentingdifficulties in relation to access to health services in the neighborhood and the city. People with disabilities refer tothe need of specialized health care in the neighborhood, improvements in life conditions, and expressed the desireto resume the activities they used to perform before the disability. These data reveal a population characterizedby a multifaceted complex of collective exclusion and deprivation and point to the need for understanding socialprocesses when improving the assistance offered to the population. To this end, it is necessary to rehabilitate thePrimary Health Care as a strategy of relevance to changes in health care for people with disabilities.