The Rapid Assessment of Disability – Informing the Development of an Instrument to Measure the Effectiveness of Disability Inclusive Development Through a Qualitative Study in Bangladesh

Nafisa Lira Huq (1), Tanya Jane Edmonds (2), Sally Baker (3), Lucy Busjia (4), Alexandra Devine (5), Kathy Fotis (6), Manjula Marella (7), Nicolas Goujon (8), Jill Keeffe (9)
(1) Centre for Reproductive Health, International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh,
(2) Nossal Institute for Global Health, The University of Melbourne, Australia,
(3) Nossal Institute for Global Health, The University of Melbourne, Australia,
(4) Melbourne Brain Centre, Royal Melbourne Hospital, Australia,
(5) Nossal Institute for Global Health, The University of Melbourne, Australia,
(6) Centre for Eye Research Australia, The University of Melbourne, Australia,
(7) Nossal Institute for Global Health, The University of Melbourne, Australia,
(8) Departement de Medicine Generale, Universite Bordeaux Segalen, France,
(9) Centre for Eye Research Australia, The University of Melbourne, Australia
https://doi.org/10.5463/dcid.v24i3.174

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Issue
Vol. 24 No. 3 (2013): Autumn
Submitted
September 14, 2020
Published
November 6, 2013
Keywords:
    Questionnaire development, disability, developing countries
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Abstract

Purpose: The Rapid Assessment of Disability (RAD) questionnaire was developed to provide governments and development agencies with an appropriate instrument to determine the prevalence of people with disability within their target populations, and to design and evaluate the effectiveness of disability inclusive activities in addressing their priorities and needs.

Method: The RAD questionnaire was developed using two conceptual frameworks: the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), and the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF). Existing instruments were reviewed to inform the structure and content of the RAD questionnaire. The RAD questionnaire that was developed for field testing in Bangladesh comprised both a household questionnaire and a questionnaire for individuals within each household, with 5 sections: 1) Demographic information, 2) Assessment of functioning, 3) Awareness of rights of people with disability, 4) Well-being and quality of life, 5) Participation in the community.

Prior to field-testing the RAD questionnaire in Bangladesh, a qualitative study was conducted to ensure the relevance of the questionnaire in the context of a developing country. In-depth interviews with 9 people with disability and a focus group of 8 parents of children with disability were conducted in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Results: Qualitative findings highlighted factors relevant to the lives of people with disability in Bangladesh, including discrepancies between the awareness and attainment of rights for people with disability, the wellbeing of people with disability and their families, as well as numerous barriers to full participation in their community. While the findings confirmed that the design and content of the questionnaire reflected all these aspects, some changes were made to the items in the questionnaire to ensure that it reflected the views of people with disability from the context of a developing country.

Conclusion and Implications: This qualitative study was an important step in the development of the RAD questionnaire as it helped to achieve its aim - namely, to establish the prevalence of disability and to assist in the design and evaluation of disability inclusive interventions in the setting of a developing country.

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Authors

Nafisa Lira Huq
Centre for Reproductive Health, International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research
lira@icddrb.org (Primary Contact)
Tanya Jane Edmonds
Nossal Institute for Global Health, The University of Melbourne
Sally Baker
Nossal Institute for Global Health, The University of Melbourne
Lucy Busjia
Melbourne Brain Centre, Royal Melbourne Hospital
Alexandra Devine
Nossal Institute for Global Health, The University of Melbourne
Kathy Fotis
Centre for Eye Research Australia, The University of Melbourne
Manjula Marella
Nossal Institute for Global Health, The University of Melbourne
Nicolas Goujon
Departement de Medicine Generale, Universite Bordeaux Segalen
Jill Keeffe
Centre for Eye Research Australia, The University of Melbourne
Author Biographies

Nafisa Lira Huq, Centre for Reproductive Health, International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research

Dr. Nafisa Lira Huq has been associated since 1999 as an Assistant Scientist with Centre for Reproductive Health (CRH). She is working at ICCDRB on studies related to married women, adolescents, youth and sex workers. At present she is involved in maternal and neonatal health interventions that aim to improve the maternal and neonatal health status in Bangladesh. She was responsible for the field testing component in Bangladesh of the AusAID funded research project to develop the Rapid Assessment of Disability Toolkit. Dr. Huq is also a reviewer in the ethical review committee of ICDDR. Her research has been published as scientific papers and journal articles.

Tanya Jane Edmonds, Nossal Institute for Global Health, The University of Melbourne

Tanya Jane Edmonds is the Manager of the Program Management Team at the Nossal Institute for Global Health where she has responsibility for management and quality assurance of the Institute's major development assistance and research activities.   In addition, Tanya coordinated the AusAID funded research project to develop the Rapid Assessment of Disability Toolkit which aims to measure the effectiveness of development activities which target or include people with disabilities.  Prior to joining the Nossal in 2008, Tanya managed AusAID-funded health projects in East Timor and Papua New Guinea and worked for AusAID on their Indonesia program, including the response to the 2004 tsunami.

Sally Baker, Nossal Institute for Global Health, The University of Melbourne

Sally Baker is a Senior Technical Advisor in Disability Inclusive Development at the Nossal Institute for Global Health. Sally works with NGOs, Disabled Persons Organisations, Governments, Managing Contractors, UN Agencies and Donors to provide technical assistance and capacity development support for disability inclusion across development programs and research in a variety of sectors. Sally has a particular interest in supporting and measuring effective disability inclusive development programs in the education and health sectors. Sally has spent many years living and working in the Pacific and South Asia towards disability inclusion, and is currently based in Vanuatu

Lucy Busjia, Melbourne Brain Centre, Royal Melbourne Hospital

Dr. Lucy Busija is a senior biostatistician at Deakin University Biostatistics Unit. She is a skilled research methodologist, with experience and training in both quantitative and qualitative research methods. Dr Busija has special interest in the area of psychometrics and was involved in the development and evaluation of a number of self-reported outcome measures, including the Influenza Intensity and Impact Questionnaire, Health Literacy Measurement Scales, and the Burden of Osteoarthritis Questionnaire.

Alexandra Devine, Nossal Institute for Global Health, The University of Melbourne

Alexandra Devine is a Senior Research Officer with the Nossal Institute of Global Health. Her local and international research experience spans the area of HIV, disability, mental health and sex work. Recent studies include involvement in an AusAID funded study to develop a toolkit to measure the effectiveness of disability inclusive development, and; an AusAID funded study to improve access to high quality sexual and reproductive health for women and girls with disability in the Philippines.

Kathy Fotis, Centre for Eye Research Australia, The University of Melbourne

Kathy Fotis is a research assistant in the Population Health Unit at the Centre for Eye Research Australia. Her key areas of interest and experience are in research, program management, health promotion, and disability inclusive and Indigenous development, predominantly in the South East Asia and Western Pacific regions. Kathy has worked in population health for six years, and is based in Melbourne, Australia

Manjula Marella, Nossal Institute for Global Health, The University of Melbourne

Dr. Manjula Marella is currently a Senior Research Officer in the CBM-Nossal Partnership for Disability Inclusive Development. Her current work involves conducting baseline surveys to plan sexual and reproductive health interventions for women with disabilities in the Philippines and to plan inclusive education programs for children with disabilities in Fiji. Manjula is an optometrist from India specialised in low vision rehabilitation. She completed her PhD from the University of Melbourne and her doctoral thesis involved developing an evaluation framework for community-based rehabilitation (CBR) programs. Her postdoctoral research primarily involved in developing and validating a rapid assessment of disability (RAD) toolkit to measure disability and its impact in terms of participation and inclusion in the community. Manjula also has an extensive experience in patient-reported outcome research, particularly in the development and validation of questionnaires using qualitative and quantitative (Rasch analysis) techniques

Nicolas Goujon, Departement de Medicine Generale, Universite Bordeaux Segalen

Dr Nicolas Goujon is a medical doctor with special interests and experience in epidemiology and public health, women’s and children’s health, and health systems strengthening. Dr Goujon has worked as a general practitioner in urban and rural France, was manager of a rehabilitation programme in Madagascar, and was an International Health Research Fellow at the Centre for Eye Research Australia (CERA). At CERA he led and participated in disability inclusive development, community-based low vision services, and the National Indigenous Eye Health Survey. Dr Goujon currently resides in France.

Jill Keeffe, Centre for Eye Research Australia, The University of Melbourne

Professor Jill Keeffe OAM, PhD, holds current positions at the University of Melbourne Department of Ophthalmology and the L V Prasad Eye Institute in Hyderabad, India. Professor Keeffe was head of the Population Health Unit at the Centre for Eye Research Australia for almost 20 years and describes her work as translating research to provide evidence for best practice in eye care and low vision services. She has published over 180 articles in international journals and written numerous chapters. Professor Keeffe received an Order of Australia Medal in 2007 for services to eye care education and practice.

1.
Huq NL, Edmonds TJ, Baker S, Busjia L, Devine A, Fotis K, Marella M, Goujon N, Keeffe J. The Rapid Assessment of Disability – Informing the Development of an Instrument to Measure the Effectiveness of Disability Inclusive Development Through a Qualitative Study in Bangladesh. DCIDJ [Internet]. 2013 Nov. 6 [cited 2025 Jun. 22];24(3):37-60. Available from: https://dcidj.uog.edu.et/index.php/up-j-dcbrid/article/view/122
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