Co-designing hospital improvements for people with hidden disabilities: Recommendations for enhancing patient experience
Karen Roberts1, Rusty Benson1, Tully Zygier1, Samantha Jones1, Nadeera Seedat1, Muskaan Ahuja1, Anne North2, Kristen Lenehan2, Janine Standen1, Claire Nailon 21Alfred Health, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia2South West Healthcare, Warrnambool, Victoria, Australia
Abstract
Background/Introduction: People with a ‘hidden’ disability (such as autism, intellectual disability, and communication support needs) often experience challenges, poorer outcomes and disparities in hospital care compared to the general population. To address these issues, a project was initiated to co-design hospital improvements for and with people with disabilities (PWD).
Purpose: To improve hospital services for PWD through collaboration with individuals with lived experience of ‘hidden’ disabilities, as well as their support people.
Method: Co-design workshops were conducted with 41 PWD and 12 support people to explore hospital experiences, barriers and opportunities for service improvement. To create ‘safe’ spaces for participants, workshops were facilitated by people with lived experience of disability. Workshop discussions and activity outputs were collated and themed.
Results: Findings highlighted that individuals with hidden disabilities often have negative experiences in hospitals due to (i) a lack of respect and compassion from hospital staff and (ii) poor knowledge about disability and support needs. Other key themes highlighted: (iii) the overwhelming sensory environment in hospitals, and (iv) the lack of partnering with support people who hold vital knowledge about supporting PWD.
Conclusion: Participants in this project felt that PWD did not receive equitable care and believed that the lack of disability awareness amongst hospital staff leads to increased risk. The collaborative co-design approach was effective in learning from the experiences of PWD in hospitals and identifying hospital service design initiatives. This presentation will outline recommendations that can assist hospitals in making changes to meet the needs of PWD.
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