Reproductive and Sexual Health of People with Physical Disabilities: A Metasynthesis

‘You’re disabled, why did you have sex in the first place?’ An intersectional analysis of experiences of disabled women with regard to their sexual and reproductive health and rights in Gujarat State, India

“…All participants encountered assumptions about their sexuality and reproductive capacities by both family members and professionals. These assumptions were based on notions of their body as impaired, simultaneously drawing on and reinforcing discourses that construct disabled women as non-sexual and, therefore, unable to fulfil the gendered role of a wife and mother [2,8,13,14,28,44]. Although some of our participants challenged these discourses, their opportunities to effectively contest them in their own lives were shaped by intersecting power dynamics including: gender, type and severity of impairment, marital status, and SES [18].…”

“…Globally, the few qualitative studies exploring the SRH needs and rights of disabled people identify a gap between SRH needs and ability to access SRH services [2]. 1 1

SRH services include but are not limited to: maternal and child health services; family planning services; S.T.I screening; and gynaecology services.​

Limited access derives from similar social, infrastructural, and economic barriers that ‘non-disabled’ women typically experience.…”

“… 1 1

SRH services include but are not limited to: maternal and child health services; family planning services; S.T.I screening; and gynaecology services.​

Limited access derives from similar social, infrastructural, and economic barriers that ‘non-disabled’ women typically experience. However, some studies argue that these issues are compounded when they intersect with negative stereotypes of disabled women’s sexuality [2–5,8–12,42]. A study in north India with disabled women identified similar barriers in that context, though differences within the group of disabled women were underexplored [8].…”

“…Unmet need is significantly shaped by discourses that construct disabled people, in particular disabled women, as having no sexual desires or agency and therefore as unlikely to have SRH needs [2–5]. Neglect of SRH is a violation of disabled women’s rights [6].…”

“…Neglect of SRH is a violation of disabled women’s rights [6]. In addition, disabled women often face numerous demand- and supply-side barriers in accessing SRH care, including physical barriers, lack of adaptable equipment, negative treatment from staff, unequal allocation of time and money within the household for their care, and lack of affordability of care through exclusion from employment or income-generating activity [2,7–12]. At the same time, gendered norms in India place an expectation on women to become childbearing wives, but the stigma disabled women face frequently excludes them from performing this social role [13,14].…”