Beyond physical access: a qualitative analysis into the barriers to policy implementation and service provision experienced by persons with disabilities living in a rural context

Dr Joanne Neille

qualifications: PhD

position: Lecturer

South Africa

Joanne Neille employed as a senior lecturer in the Department of Speech Pathology and Audiology in the School of Human and Community Development at the University of the Witwatersrand. Her work centres around the notion of providing a voice to those living on the margins of society and in so doing, contributing to evidence-based practice and clinically relevant research which has the potential to influence policy, practice, and teaching methodologies. Specifically, her research focuses on the lived experience of disability, human rights, issues pertaining to accessibility and inclusion, shared decision making, and the use of innovative research methods which have the potential to transcend cultural, linguistic and generational barriers. These projects have been carried out in rural, and peri-urban communities, using participatory methods with the intention of understanding barriers to care and in improving accessibility to, and quality of interventions.

Claire Penn

qualifications: PhD

position: Professor