Yesterday I read a Facebook post by a mother who took her disabled son to the emergency room. Her son needed a chest X-ray. For a nondisabled person, an X-ray is a relatively simple procedure. However, her son uses a wheelchair and has complex medical needs.
There was no lift available to transfer him safely. His family members had to hold him up. It took four attempts to complete the X-ray successfully.
They wanted to examine him further. Initially, several people offered to lift him themselves, but he could not be safely transferred without a lift. The staff eventually found a lift that did not work with his sling, and when they tried to use it, the battery died. The staff then suggested that his family bring their own lift next time.
Hospitals do not ask patients to bring their own saline, bandages, or gauze. They should not suggest that someone bring their own lift, especially in an emergency. A hospital should be equipped to treat everyone, including disabled people.
Accessibility is about more than being able to enter a hospital or doctor’s office. It means being able to actually receive medical care once you are there. Having an accessible entrance means little if a disabled patient cannot safely get onto an exam table, be weighed, or have a test done because the necessary equipment is not available.
I have cerebral palsy and, in my experience, medical care is difficult to access. I have visited two medical facilities with wheelchair-accessible scales, but neither had any other accessible equipment. I cannot transfer independently onto an exam table, and without a personal care assistant (PCA) or family member, I would not be able to complete my appointment.
My spasticity makes getting medical care a challenge. If someone tells me to “relax” during a procedure, it is nearly impossible. Last year during my annual physical, a medical student suggested that I take anti-anxiety medication before a medical procedure to help me relax. I had to explain to him that spasticity is a neurological condition that would not be helped by anti-anxiety medication.
Medical care can be difficult because being able to physically enter an office does not necessarily mean the office has what is needed to examine you. That is difficult enough when you are attending a routine appointment. In an emergency, you do not have the ability to plan ahead.
A disabled person should not be responsible for anticipating what equipment the hospital might be missing and finding a way to bring it in themselves. Disabled people already spend enough of our lives figuring out how to navigate places and systems that were not designed with us in mind. We should not have to do the same when we need medical care.
Hospitals and medical offices know that disabled patients exist. Some of us need lifts or adjustable exam tables. Some of us need assistance transferring or positioning our bodies safely. Medical facilities need to treat all patients with dignity and respect.
Access to healthcare should not depend on how well you can plan around an inaccessible medical system. Disabled people should be able to go to the doctor or the emergency room and know that the places that are supposed to provide medical care are prepared to care for us.
Source:
Lowman, Ann. “Yesterday’s ER adventure with Eliah….You really can’t make this stuff up!” Facebook, 25 Oct. 2026, 1:28 p.m., https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1BkvkyKa4f/.