THE SOCIAL DISTANCE AND DAILY LIFE OF PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES: Social distance and people with disabilities

ABSTRACT

Covid-19 has manifested itself as a highly infectious disease. In this sense, People with Disabilities were advised to redouble their precautions to prevent Covid-19, such as social withdrawal, because they are considered to be in the risk group. The purpose of this study was to understand the interference of social distancing in the daily lives of people with physical disabilities during the Covid-19 pandemic period. This study is of an applied nature and descriptive observational character. The data analysis and discussion was carried out under the qualitative paradigm. As for the technical procedures, it is characterized as a field research. The group of collaborators was composed of ten People with Disabilities. The results indicated that the greatest impacts of the distancing were the difficulties of access to health and rehabilitation activities, as well as the changes in hygiene habits due to the danger of contamination. On a personal level, some perceived the distance as a factor of introspection and reflection on the relationships with oneself and with others, putting into perspective the world in a post-pandemic future.