"
a.. 86% of spinal cord injured high-level quadriplegics rated their
quality of life as average or better than average. Only 17% of their ER
doctors, nurses, and technicians thought they would have an average or
better quality of life if they acquired quadriplegic (KA Gerhart et al.,
Annals of Emergency Medicine, 1994, vol. 23, 807-812).
b.. No differences were found between 190 physically disabled persons and
195 "able bodied" persons on ratings of life satisfaction, frustration with
life or mood (P Cameron et al., Journal of Consulting and Clinical
Psychology, 1973, vol. 41, 207- 214).
c.. The duration of disability was positively related with acceptance of
disability in persons with spinal cord injury-related paralysis. Severity of
disability was of no importance in accepting life with a disability (F
Woodrich & JB Patterson, Journal of Rehabilitation, 1983, July-Sept.,
26-30).
d.. 60% of paraplegics reported feelings more positively about themselves
since becoming disabled (C Ray & J West, Paraplegia, 1984, vol. 22, 75-86).
e.. Interviews and tests administered to 133 persons with severe mobility
disabilities revealed no differences between them and the nondisabled norm
on psychosocial measures. In another study, no significant difference was
found between persons with severe disabilities (requiring wheelchair use and
daily personal assistance) and persons with no disabilities on quality of
life measures (R Stensman, Scandinavian Journal of Rehabilitation Medicine,
1985, vol. 17, 87-99).
f.. In a study of life satisfaction of quadriplegics, fewer than a third
of those who used ventilators expressed dissatisfaction with their lives.
There is evidence that life satisfaction scores are higher in persons who
have had more time to adjust to disability (JR Bach & MC Tilton, Archives of
Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 1994, vol. 75, 626-632).
g.. Spinal cord injured rehabilitation patients were similar to the
general population on self-ratings of depression, yet hospital staff
consistently overestimated the patients' level of depression (LA Cushman &
MP Dijkers, Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 1990, vol. 71,
191-196.
h.. Three-quarters of persons with spinal cord injuries rated their
quality of life as good or excellent. Amount of paralysis made no
difference, but people who used ventilators rated their quality of life
higher than those not needing ventilators (GG Whiteneck et al., Rocky
Mountain Spinal Cord Injury System Report to the National Institute of
Handicapped Research, 1985, 29-33.
i.. Elderly paralyzed veterans rated their quality of life higher than
similarly aged men without disabilities (MG Eisenberg & CC Saltz,
Paraplegia, 1991, vol. 29, 514-520)." "
Taken from Not Dead Yet, http://www.notdeadyet.org/docs/disqual.html
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