Access to health care: Experiences of Korean women with disabilities

People with disabilities in Korea have long been a marginalized, even hidden, population. Recent economic and social transformation in Korean society has seen changes in the status of persons with disabilities as well. Yet significant challenges exist in many domains that prevent equal access and full participation in public life. An area of note is access to health care, a fundamental human right and one that significantly affects quality of life. Through in-depth, qualitative interviews, this research focuses on the experiences of Korean women with disabilities in accessing health care. The 36 women interviewed range in age from early 20s to late 50s and represent a range of life perspectives and disability experiences—mobility, visual, hearing, and intellectual impairments, both acquired and congenital. The women discuss accessibility of facilities, interactions with doctors and other staff, healthcare policy, and strategies they use to address challenges.

Researcher Bio
Deborah Engelen-Eigles is currently a Fulbright Senior Scholar affiliated with the Institute for Social Development and Policy Research at Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea. She holds a Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of Minnesota, USA; an MS in Consumer Studies from Virginia Tech, USA; a Graduate Certificate in European Studies from the University of Brussels, Belgium; and a BA from Wesleyan University, USA. She is on the faculty of the Sociology Department and the Women and Gender Studies Program at Century College, Minnesota, USA.

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