Barriers to the Participation of Hispanic/Latino Individuals in Community Rehabilitation Programs

People of racial and ethnic minorities receive disparate treatment in state vocational rehabilitation agencies, yet little research exists to explore whether this is also true for their experiences in community rehabilitation programs (CRP's). Individuals of Hispanic/Latino ethnicity are the largest and fastest growing minority group in the nation, yet their employment rates are lower than for White non-Hispanic/Latinos. This article examines barriers to the participation of Hispanic/Latino individuals with disabilities in CRP's. It provides a historical framework to the problem, presents empirical findings from qualitative research, and concludes with Web-based resources for diversity training in CRP's, and recommendations for future research.

Assessment of Contributions to Disability in People with Schizophrenia during Rehabilitation

The aim of this study was to assess a number of the components of disability in patients diagnosed with DSM-IIIR residual schizophrenia. Forty-one patients undergoing hospital and community rehabilitation programs were tested. A range of disability levels was defined with a measure of global assessment of function. A large proportion of the patients also had poor results on frontal lobe testing, persistent positive symptoms, and high levels of emotional distress. There was a trend for higher levels of positive symptoms to be associated with increases in global levels of disability, frontal lobe impairment and emotional distress. The work suggests that rehabilitation programs could be more focused if patients were assessed not only for their overall level of functional disability but also for the level of treatment resistant positive symptoms, frontal lobe impairment and the amount and type of emotional distress and insight.