Quality of life among persons with intellectual and physical disability in northwestern Turkey

Abstract

Purpose: The aim of this study was to determine the factors that affect the quality of life (QoL) among persons with intellectual and physical disabilities. Materials and Methods: This study is descriptive. The study involved 157 persons with intellectual or physical disabilities who were 18 years of age or over in Kirklareli, a province in northwestern Turkey. The study data were collected Turkish versions of World Health Organization (WHO) Quality of Life Brief Version (WHOQOL-BREF) and Turkish versions of WHO Quality of Life Disability Module (WHOQOL-DIS-TR). Results: According to the results of the multivariate linear regression analysis, high education level, living in an urban area, living alone, good-moderate perceived income, good- moderate health level and presence of a physical disability led to an increase in the WHOQOL-BREF and WHOQOL-DIS module scores obtained by the people with disabilities whereas increasing age led to a decrease in their WHOQOL-BREF and WHOQOL-DIS module scores. Conclusion: People with intellectual disabilities obtained lower scores from the psychological health and social relationships domains of the WHOQOL-BREF, and from the WHOQOL-DIS disability module and its independence module than did people with physical disabilities, and that low education level, living in a rural area, poor income and poor perceived health were among the changeable risk factors leading to poor QoL.