Excerpt

This Surgeon General's Call to Action to Improve the Health and Wellness of Persons with Disabilities emphasizes the centrality of health to the quality of our lives. Developed by the Surgeon General in collaboration with the Department's Office on Disability, it describes the particular challenges to health and wellbeing faced by persons of all ages with disabilities. It places their health squarely among the public health issues at the forefront of research, service delivery, financing, training and education and health care policy today. It also builds upon the Nation's efforts to promote wellness and disease prevention in all persons, including those with disabilities, as called for in the President's HealthierUS Initiative.

Contents

• Message from Michael O. Leavitt
• Foreword
• Acknowledgments
• I. Introduction
• II. Understanding Disability
  • Defining Disability
  • Who Are Persons With Disabilities?
  • Historical Perspective
  • Costs of Disability
• III. Health and Wellness for Persons with Disabilities Today
  • Secondary Conditions
• IV. Vision for the Future
  • Principle
  • Goals
  • GOAL 1: People nationwide understand that persons with disabilities can lead long, healthy, productive lives.
  • GOAL 2: Health care providers have the knowledge and tools to screen, diagnose and treat the whole person with a disability with dignity.
  • GOAL 3: Persons with disabilities can promote their own good health by developing and maintaining healthy lifestyles.
  • GOAL 4: Accessible health care and support services promote independence for persons with disabilities.
• V. Advancing the Call Nationwide
  • Health, Wellness and Service Professionals
  • Community Leaders and Influencers
  • The Media and Entertainment Industries
  • Policy Makers and Administrators
  • The Public
  • Persons with Disabilities, Families and Advocates
• VI. The Call to Action at a Glance
• References
• Medicare and Medicaid
• Glossary of Terms
• Resources

Suggested citation:

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The Surgeon General's Call To Action To Improve the Health and Wellness of Persons with Disabilities. US Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Surgeon General, 2005.