The medical field has been viewed as an area where all human lives are treated equally with no discrimination and prejudice. However, even though doctors and healthcare professionals believe they are being fair and equal, they unconsciously hold stereotypes and biases against people, including those with disabilities. As a result, those in the health field end up treating those with disabilities differently than others. Disabled people are commonly subject to discrimination from health care professionals, some of whom hold ableist attitudes. Medical ableism refers to the assumption that bodies without disabilities, who are viewed as “normal,” are better than bodies with disabilities. These professionals believe that since able-bodied individuals fit society’s definition of normal, they are better than the bodies of disabled people, who have certain physical or mental restrictions.
Ableist medical professionals also commonly believe that disabled people have a lower quality of life, even though many disabled people lead happy lives, such as those with Down Syndrome. They also assume that the disabled, want to ultimately live a normal life with an able body. This assumption is commonly held for wheelchair patients. In reality, however, many people come to terms with their illness and are growing to appreciate it.
This ableist mindset becomes extremely dangerous because doctors believe that their mindset and assumptions are just common sense, even though many of their preconceived ideas are false. The ableist mindset and reality of the patient often lead to poor patient-clinician communication regarding the experiences of the disabled and their symptoms. A combination of ableist intuitions and poor communication in the medical field also lead to incorrect judgments of treatment. Many doctors limit or completely eliminate treatment options for disabled people who need medical help. This can further damage the disabled patient. For example, in March 2020, an intellectually disabled woman who had the contracted COVID from Oregon was denied the ventilator she needed even though she struggled to breathe. The doctor, citing her "low quality of life," wanted her to sign a legal form to allow the hospital to deny her care. The doctor proceeded to write do-not-resuscitate (DNR) and do-not-intubate orders even though her conditions were dire. The woman didn’t receive any care for over two days from that hospital so she was moved to the intensive care unit in a different hospital as her life was in danger. Later in April 2020, a disabled 64-year-old man who was quadriplegic, couldn’t speak, and had to eat through tubes was refused to be tested for the coronavirus even though he suffered from high fever. The medical staff claimed that “it would be a waste of valuable PPE” or personal protective equipment. A physician later recommended that his group home should stop the man's care and nutrition and begin end-of-life hospice care. Due to the physician's assumption that the man had a low quality of life, the physician made a judgment that the man’s life didn’t matter. These are just two cases out of many where the disabled do not get treatments due to the ableist mindset.
As seen through the effects, the ableist mindset is dangerous. So what can be done to fix this mindset? Many disability advocates say that there need to be more perspectives of disabled people in the health field and more knowledge about the reality of the daily lives of disabled people. This can be achieved if doctors and healthcare officials spend time with disabled people and observe their daily life first-hand. Such an experience will definitely help break false conceptions about how disabled people have a low-quality life. Additionally, the dangers and existence of medical ableism must also be shared through a mandatory curriculum for healthcare students. If more people are aware of medical ableism before dealing with patients, then those healthcare professionals will be more conscious about the nature of their judgments and if they are being biased or not.
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