Study Finds 5% of Canadian Physicians Report Disability Always or Often, Researchers Call for More Accessible Workplaces
New research published October 13 in the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ) estimates that 5% of practicing physicians in Canada report a disability always or often, while a further 12% report one sometimes. The authors, led by Dr. Michael Quon, a general internal medicine specialist and clinician investigator at The Ottawa Hospital and an assistant professor at the University of Ottawa, describe physicians with disabilities as an important but often overlooked part of the medical workforce and call for more accessible working environments.
The study draws on the 2021 Canadian long-form census and reports that mental health disabilities were the most common category (40%), followed by visual (37%), hearing (15%), mobility or physical (13%) and cognitive or learning disabilities (6%). Disability was more common among women physicians, at 6.0%, than among men, at 4.5%. Prevalence generally rose with age for hearing, mobility and physical disabilities, but the researchers note that disability is not limited to older doctors: 5.18% of physicians under 35 reported one, and mental health disabilities were more common in younger age groups.
Because the long-form census is mandatory and drew on a randomly selected 25% of the population with a 97% completion rate, the researchers say the data are nationally representative, unlike earlier voluntary surveys of physicians. Physicians reported fewer disabilities than other professions examined, including law, academia, engineering and nursing, as well as the general workforce.
"Physicians with disabilities frequently face discrimination, inaccessible workplaces, and inadequate support," Dr. Quon and coauthors write. "Improving accessibility in medicine is an important consideration to improve health equity. Failure to retain physicians with disabilities in the workforce risks losing skilled providers with valuable perspectives and has negative impacts on human health resources."
The authors argue that retaining and supporting physicians with disabilities depends on removing barriers in clinical and training settings. "Ensuring accessible work environments and equitable policies can promote the wellbeing and retention of physicians with disabilities and support those seeking to return to practice," they write, adding that a workforce that better reflects the populations it serves may also improve patient care.
The study, "Prevalence and characteristics of disabilities in physicians in Canada: an analysis of Canadian census data," is published in CMAJ with the DOI 10.1503/cmaj.260075.