Factors Associated With Disability in Ghana

Abstract

Worldwide, the proportion of aged and chronic diseases are increasing. In Ghana, rapid urbanization and social change makes disability a problem. This study seeks to identify factors associated with disability in Ghana. The WHO Study on Global AGEing and Adult Health (SAGE) Wave 1 2007-2010 dataset was used. The mean age was 60 ±13.9 years. About 33.6%, 33.7% and 33 % reported none, mild and severe disability respectively. Also, 11.9%, 11.4%, 3.4% and 1.9% were living with hypertension, arthritis, diabetes and stroke respectively. About 9 percent used tobacco daily , 41 percent were current users of alcohol, more than half had servings of fruits and vegetables less than the recommended, 53 percent had engaged in no vigorous physical activity in the week prior to the survey while one-tenth of the respondents were obese. The multinomial logistic regression results showed age, sex (being female), place of residence, education, employment status, ethnicity, religion, wealth quintile, diet, physical activity, stroke, hypertension arthritis, injuries due to road accidents as predictors of severe disability. All the aforementioned factors, in addition to marital status and alcohol use were found to be predictors of mild disability. Adoption of healthy lifestyles through educational programmes and establishment of rehabilitation centres and training of physiotherapists could help reduce disability prevalence in Ghana.