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People with disabilities often feel isolated from their communities, which in turn affects their emotional well-being and their overall quality of life. Access to transportation is a substantial barrier to community participation and an improved quality of life for individuals with disabilities. Transportation voucher programs represent a cost-effective way to provide access to transportation for people with disabilities, but few studies have empirically examined the effectiveness of such programs. The present study examined the perceived benefits of participating in a transportation voucher program in Michigan, a midwestern state in the United States with limited public transportation. Cross-sectional survey data collected from a convenience sample of 73 participants of the transportation voucher program, funded by the state's Developmental Disabilities Council from 2005 to 2008, were analyzed. Participation outcomes were differentiated by age, sex, employment status, and type of disability using multivariate logistic regression analysis. More than two-thirds (70%) of participants reported that their emotional well-being and community participation had improved, and 54% of participants indicated that participation in the voucher program had resulted in better overall quality of life. The type of disability was an important factor in determining the degree of gain experienced, particularly in terms of community participation and overall quality of life. Findings suggest that resources spent on developing voucher programs have the potential to enrich the lives of persons with disabilities and their families. However, future longitudinal research along with a comparison group may be necessary to validate these preliminary findings on the benefits of vouchers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transportation services involving travel training provide 1 means of improving the community inclusion of persons with disabilities. Looking at 2 distinct situations, Hong Kong and the United States, this study made inquiries about the properties of the differing systems in place to improve this inclusiveness. Patterns can be identified concerning their approaches for increasing the use of fixed route transportation systems, but each had differences concerning enabling legislation, scope, and funding mechanisms. We provide generalizable suggestions for increasing the use of fixed route transportation. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article offers information on the 2011 Growing Older with a Disability (GOWD) Conference which was held in Toronto, Canada on June 5-8. Topics include the difficulties experience by people with disabilities, the challenges for the 21st century on pension and social security systems, and the Barcelona Declaration on Bridging Knowledge in Long-Term Care and Support. Moreover, the income security, research on bridging aging and disability, and abuse prevention are discussed.

Persons with physical disabilities have difficulty accessing health care. This has become more pronounced with the emergence of managed care and other efforts to limit growing healthcare costs. In responding to a state's Medicaid office interest in designing accessible health services, a consumer-based evaluation including a series of nine focus groups (96 participants) was conducted using an emergent design method. Our inductive analysis approach identified difficulties and provided the basis for recommending strategies to improve access. Two sets of consumer recommended strategies consistently were expressed during this process: (1) initiating one-to-one advocacy to improve local service coordination and (2) performing person-centered planning at enrollment in a managed care plan to facilitate appropriate and prompt access. These access strategies formed the basis for a later intervention design. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

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