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Brain computer interface (BCI) systems are used in a wide range of applications such as communication, neuro-prosthetic and environmental control for disabled persons using robots and manipulators. A typical BCI system uses different types of inputs; however, Electroencephalography (EEG) signals are most widely used due to their non-invasive EEG electrodes, portability, and cost efficiency. The signals generated by the brain while performing or imagining a motor related task [motor imagery (MI)] signals are one of the important inputs for BCI applications. EEG data is usually recorded from more than 100 locations across the brain, so efficient channel selection algorithms are of great importance to identify optimal channels related to a particular application. The main purpose of applying channel selection is to reduce computational complexity while analysing EEG signals, improve classification accuracy by reducing over-fitting, and decrease setup time. Different channel selection evaluation algorithms such as filtering, wrapper, and hybrid methods have been used for extracting optimal channel subsets by using predefined criteria. After extensively reviewing the literature in the field of EEG channel selection, we can conclude that channel selection algorithms provide a possibility to work with fewer channels without affecting the classification accuracy. In some cases, channel selection increases the system performance by removing the noisy channels. The research in the literature shows that the same performance can be achieved using a smaller channel set, with 10–30 channels in most cases. In this paper, we present a survey of recent development in filtering channel selection techniques along with their feature extraction and classification methods for MI-based EEG applications.

This paper explores how PWD's well-being is realized in disaster situations in Kisumu County of Kenya. There is a significant population of 15,760 persons with disability across Kisumu County. Their well-being is protected by the international humanitarian policy. At the national level, the well-being of persons with disability is taken care of in the Disability Act 2003 and the National Disability Policy. Despite existence of a humanitarian policy framework, the well-being of the disabled is compromised in disaster situations within Kisumu County. The humanitarian policy framework limits humanitarian action to response, which compromises the well-being of PWD. The study employed semi-structured questionnaire instruments to gather information on humanitarian policies applicable to PWD in disaster context. From the key findings, the study concludes that the international humanitarian policies as well as national humanitarian policies are restrictive in nature. The policy lacks enforcement and implementation mechanisms to support the wellbeing of persons with disability in disasters.

Background Recent advances in wearable sensor technologies enable objective and long-term monitoring of motor activities in a patient’s habitual environment. People with mobility impairments require appropriate data processing algorithms that deal with their altered movement patterns and determine clinically meaningful outcome measures. Over the years, a large variety of algorithms have been published and this review provides an overview of their outcome measures, the concepts of the algorithms, the type and placement of required sensors as well as the investigated patient populations and measurement properties. Methods A systematic search was conducted in MEDLINE, EMBASE, and SCOPUS in October 2019. The search strategy was designed to identify studies that (1) involved people with mobility impairments, (2) used wearable inertial sensors, (3) provided a description of the underlying algorithm, and (4) quantified an aspect of everyday life motor activity. The two review authors independently screened the search hits for eligibility and conducted the data extraction for the narrative review. Results Ninety-five studies were included in this review. They covered a large variety of outcome measures and algorithms which can be grouped into four categories: (1) maintaining and changing a body position, (2) walking and moving, (3) moving around using a wheelchair, and (4) activities that involve the upper extremity. The validity or reproducibility of these outcomes measures was investigated in fourteen different patient populations. Most of the studies evaluated the algorithm’s accuracy to detect certain activities in unlabeled raw data. The type and placement of required sensor technologies depends on the activity and outcome measure and are thoroughly described in this review. The usability of the applied sensor setups was rarely reported. Conclusion This systematic review provides a comprehensive overview of applications of wearable inertial sensors to quantify everyday life motor activity in people with mobility impairments. It summarizes the state-of-the-art, it provides quick access to the relevant literature, and it enables the identification of gaps for the evaluation of existing and the development of new algorithms.

Youth with disabilities often encounter many challenges in securing employment. Although the common barriers that youth face are well documented, little is known about the experiences of youth who have multiple minoritized identities in finding and maintaining employment. Youth with disabilities who belong to racial minoritized groups may encounter ableism and racism and other forms of discrimination at work. Exploring the experiences of racial minoritized youth with non-apparent disabilities is important given the growing concern about social inequities that are linked to disadvantage and differential access to resources such as employment. We used a qualitative design involving semi-structured interviews with 19 youth (13 women, 3 non-binary, 3 men), aged 17–30 (mean 23.5 years). An inductive thematic analysis was applied to analyze the data. We identified the following themes: (1) challenges finding and maintaining employment; (2) the extent of safety and comfort with disclosing minoritized identities in the workplace (i.e., comfortable disclosing; uncomfortable disclosing; did not need to disclose and/or hiding identities); (3) workplace discrimination based on minoritized identities (i.e., ableism, racism, ableist racism, gendered ableism, racist and gendered ableism); (4) impact of discrimination (i.e., negative affective outcomes, social and work adjustment, impact on professional development) and coping strategies (i.e., advocacy, networking, peer support); and (5) advice for youth and employers. Our study highlights the extent of racism and ableism that racial minoritized youth with non-apparent disabilities experience in the workplace and the importance of rehabilitation clinicians supporting their inclusion.

Purpose This review aimed to identify factors that acted as facilitators or barriers for returning to work (RTW) for people with chronic conditions following medical or vocational rehabilitation during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods A scoping review was conducted on PubMed, Web of Science, EBSCOHost and Epistemonikos. Additional articles were identified via Google Scholar and citation tracking. All retrieved reports were screened, narratively reported and consolidated into a model aligned with the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF). This model illustrates how the COVID-19 pandemic may have influenced RTW for people with chronic health conditions. Results The search yielded n  = 1,720 hits. After removing duplicates ( n  = 807) and screening for eligibility, n  = 57 articles met the inclusion criteria. Further articles were identified via Google Scholar ( n  = 23) and citation tracking ( n  = 18), resulting in a total number of n  = 98 included reports. n  = 3 articles explicitly examined RTW during the pandemic. Further articles addressed medical rehabilitation ( n  = 39), occupational health management ( n  = 21), work ability and labor market ( n  = 17), health services ( n  = 10) and vocational rehabilitation ( n  = 7). Most reports were published in scientific journals (83%). A variety of possible barriers and facilitators of RTW during the pandemic were identified, clustered according to the ICF components and integrated into a corresponding model. Conclusion RTW during the COVID-19 pandemic has not been extensively studied yet. However, several facilitators (e.g., flexibility, remote work, time for recovery) but also barriers (e.g., therapy interruptions, increased stress, risk of infection) for RTW of people with chronic health conditions were identified. Despite mixed outcomes, these findings provide a broad overview of how the pandemic likely impacted RTW processes. Further research is needed to directly assess its effects on RTW outcomes.

Chapter one and chapter two of the issue provide a detailed history of education for children and adults with disabilities and explore themes and controversies that have defined the educational structures and opportunities from their earliest incarnations. The following three chapters support and enhance the depth of the discussion in the first two chapters by providing additional detail regarding the time line of historical events, biographies of some of the field's most influential people, and annotated data, statistics, tables and graphs that reflect the constitution of the field today. The last two chapters of the book provide additional information and resources related to education for persons with disabilities. (DIPF/Orig.).

Background Adults with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) experience challenges in participating in the labour market and struggle to achieve and maintain appropriate professional positions, possibly due to impairments of communication and social interaction. Studies have shown high rates of unemployment as well as evidence of inadequate employment. As knowledge on the participation in the German labour market is scarce, the aim of our study was to examine employment status, type of occupation and inadequate employment in a sample of clinically mostly late-diagnosed and most likely not intellectually disabled adults with ASD in Germany. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional-survey in clinically mostly late-diagnosed adults with ASD. Employment status, type of occupation, and the level of formal education and training were examined through a postal questionnaire. Inadequate employment regarding participants’ current and longest practised occupation was assessed by transforming participants’ information into skill levels of the “Classification of Occupations 2010” of the German Federal Employment Agency, and comparing these with participants’ level of formal education and training. Results The response rate was 43.2% ( N  = 185 of N  = 428 potential participants). 94.6% were first-time diagnosed when being 18 years of age or older. 56.8% held a general university entrance-level qualification and 24.9% had obtained a Masters’ or diploma degree as their highest vocational qualification. 94.1% had been employed at some time. Of these, 68.4% reported being currently employed, 13.5% being currently unemployed and 17.0% being retired for health reasons. Regarding the longest-practised and the current occupation, the highest proportion of participants was found in the occupational area “health and social sector, teaching and education” (22.4% and 23.3%, respectively). With respect to inadequate employment, 22.1% were found to be overeducated in relation to their longest-practised occupation and 31.3% in relation to their current occupation. This is significantly higher than the percentage of overeducation in the general population. Conclusions Despite largely high formal qualifications, the clinically mostly late-diagnosed adults with ASD represented in our sample are disadvantaged regarding their participation in the German labour market, especially with respect to rates of unemployment, early retirement and overeducation. Employment support programs should be developed to improve employment outcomes.

To what extent does higher education promote labour market participation for disabled people in school-to-work transitions and early career trajectories? This article argues that the effect of higher education on labour market outcomes for disabled people must be studied in correlation to gender. Intersectional theory warns against the generalisability of the female and male experiences, and predicts that disability may influence sexism, and that gender may influence disableism. Norwegian full-population register data on recipients of disability benefits are used to explore the effect of higher education on three labour market outcomes for men and women with disabilities. Contrary to common intersectionality expectations, the results show that men experience more extreme employment disadvantages related to their disabilities than women. Higher education has a stronger effect on participation for disabled women than for disabled men. However, gender differences in participation are smaller for people with disabilities than for the general population.

Intellectual disability (ID) affects approximately 1% of the population. Some patients with severe or profound ID are essentially non-communicating and therefore risk experiencing pain and distress without being able to notify their caregivers, which is a major health issue. This real-world proof of concept study aimed to see if heart rate (HR) monitoring could reveal whether non-communicating persons with ID experience acute pain or distress in their daily lives. We monitored HR in 14 non-communicating participants with ID in their daily environment to see if specific situations were associated with increased HR. We defined increased HR as being > 1 standard deviation above the daily mean and lasting > 5 s. In 11 out of 14 participants, increased HR indicated pain or distress in situations that were not previously suspected to be stressful, e.g. passive stretching of spastic limbs or being transported in patient lifts. Increased HR suggesting joy was detected in three participants (during car rides, movies). In some situations that were previously suspected to be stressful, absence of HR increase suggested absence of pain or distress. We conclude that HR monitoring may identify acute pain and distress in non-communicating persons with ID, allowing for improved health care for this patient group.

This paper exploits the effectively random assignment of judges to Disability Insurance cases to estimate the causal impact of Disability Insurance receipt on labor supply. We find that benefit receipt reduces labor force participation by 26 percentage points three years after a disability determination decision, although the reduction is smaller for older people, college graduates, and those with mental illness. OLS and instrumental variables estimates are similar. Furthermore, over 60 percent of those denied benefits by an administrative law judge are subsequently allowed benefits within ten years, showing that most applicants apply, reapply, and appeal until they get benefits.