Living with Disability in New Zealand

Date of publication: October 2004
ISBN 0-478-28305-9
HP 4002

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Table of Contents:
Index
Foreword
Acknowledgements
1 Introduction
2 Patterns of Disability
3 Support, Equipment and Services
4 Education
5 Employment and Income
6 House and Home
7 Travel and Transport
8 Māori and Disability
9 Pacific Peoples and Disability
10 Adults with Disability Living in Residential Facilities
11 Future Focus
Glossary
Appendix 1: Classification of Disability Type
Appendix 2: Relative Sampling Error (RSE) Cut-off Points Used for this Report and Appendix Tables
Appendix 3: Tables in Excel format
References

10 Adults with Disability Living in Residential Facilities

Within this section:
Key points
Introduction
Proportion of adult New Zealanders living in residential facilities
Proportion of adults with disability living in residential facilities
Features of adults with disability living in residential facilities
Types of residential facility
Length of stay
Patterns of disability
Need for help
Use of equipment and technology
Comparing 2001 and 1997

Key points

The 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities looked at adults with disability:

• living in rest homes and homes for older people
• occupying long-stay beds in public and private hospitals
• living in long-stay residential units (with 10 or more residents) for people with an intellectual, a psychiatric or a physical disability or multiple disabilities.

Proportion of adults living in residential facilities

• In 2001, an estimated 27,300 adults, 1 percent of the adult population of New Zealand, had disabilities and were living in residential facilities.
• Thirty-two percent of New Zealand women aged 85 and over and 17 percent of New Zealand men aged 85 and over had disabilities and were living in residential facilities.

Features of adults with disability living in residential facilities

• In 2001, 4 percent of New Zealand's estimated 653,800 adults with disability were living in residential facilities.
• Most adults with disability living in residential facilities (92 percent) were aged 65 and over, including 45 percent aged 85 and over. Eight percent were aged 16-64. Over two-thirds (69 percent) were women.
• Most adults with disability living in residential facilities were European (86 percent - an estimated 23,500 adults). Ten percent were Asian/Other (an estimated 2700 adults), 2 percent were Mäori (an estimated 700 adults) and 2 percent were Pacific (an estimated 500 adults).

Types of residential facilities

• More than two-thirds of adults with disability living in residential facilities lived in rest homes or homes for older people (69 percent or an estimated 18,900 people). A further 25 percent, an estimated 6900 people, lived in private hospitals.
• Twenty-two percent of adults aged 15-64 with disability living in residential facilities were living in mental health units. Another 21 percent were living in intellectual disability units, physical disability units or multiple disability units.

Length of stay

• More than three-quarters of adults with disability living in residential facilities (79 percent) had lived in these facilities for five years or less. Only a small proportion, 8 percent, had lived in residential facilities for 11 years or more.

Patterns of disability

• Eighty-three percent of adults with disability living in residential facilities had severe disability, meaning they required daily assistance from someone.
• Ninety-six percent of adults with disability living in residential facilities had multiple disabilities. The other 4 percent had a single disability.
• Mobility disability was the most common type of disability. Ninety-five percent of women and 86 percent of men with disability living in residential facilities had mobility disability.
• Eighty-nine percent of adults with disability living in residential facilities had agility disability.
• Over half the adults with disability living in residential facilities (55 percent) had recall or memory disability (remembering disability).
• Disease/illness was the most common cause of disability. Sixty-eight percent of adults with disability living in residential facilities had disabilities caused by disease/illness. The next most common cause was ageing (affecting 37 percent) followed by accident/injury (affecting 23 percent).

Need for assistance

• Of the estimated 27,300 adults with disability living in residential facilities an estimated:

- 22,600 (83 percent) were getting help from someone with personal care such as bathing, dressing or taking medication

- 24,300 (89 percent) were getting help with shopping for things they needed

- 24,800 (91 percent) were getting help with looking after their personal finances such as doing tax returns or banking

- 16,300 (60 percent) were getting help when communicating with others such as when they saw a doctor.

Use of equipment and technology

• An estimated 24,700 or 91 percent of adults with disability living in residential facilities used some kind of equipment or technology for disability. In particular an estimated:

- 21,600 or 79 percent used some kind of equipment to help them move about such as a walking stick or wheelchair

- 1200 or 4 percent used some kind of equipment to support, replace or help them use their hands or arms

- 21,600 or 79 percent used other kinds of equipment including shower stools, raised toilet seats, commode chairs, specialised cushions, a respirator, a ventilator, a helping hand or grabbing stick, incontinence products or lifting equipment such as belts or a hoist.

• Of the estimated 11,000 adults living in residential facilities with an uncorrected hearing disability 36 percent, an estimated 4000 adults, were using some kind of equipment, technology or services for people who were deaf or hard of hearing. This included 4 percent who used hearing aids with a T switch and 30 percent (an estimated 3300 people) who used other types of hearing aid.
• Fifty-six percentof adults with an uncorrected seeing disability (an estimated 7000 adults) living in residential facilities used some kind of equipment or services for people who were blind or vision impaired (mainly glasses or contact lenses).

Introduction

The 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities looked at the disability status and disability-related needs of people aged 15 years and over: [Children (aged 0-14) were not included in the 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities.]

• living in rest homes and homes for older people
• occupying long-stay beds in public and private hospitals
• living in long-stay residential units (with 10 or more residents) for people with an intellectual, a psychiatric or a physical disability or with multiple disabilities. [The 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities did not include people with disability living in hospices and acute psychiatric wards, forensic psychiatric wards or hospitals, nurses homes, night shelters, residential units run by (the former) Department of Social Welfare, orphanages, welfare facilities, penal and correction facilities, educational facilities, religious facilities, drug and alcohol recovery centres, boarding houses, supported housing or group homes, work camps, construction camps, training camps, seasonal group quarters, defence areas, vessels, police lock-ups, hotels, motels, guest houses, motor camps, communes or marae (Statistics New Zealand 2002a). People living in group homes were covered by the Household Disability Survey. For more information on the sample frame used for the 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities and the 2001 Household Disability Survey, see chapter 1.]

These kinds of facility provide disability support services to individuals who, for a variety of reasons, are unable to be supported in their own homes.

This chapter presents the main results of the survey. Key topics include:

• the age, sex and ethnicity of adults with disability in residential facilities
• facility type and length of stay
• patterns of disability, including the most common types and causes of disability, as well as duration of disability and severity
• types of support, equipment and technology used or needed.

Proportion of adult New Zealanders living in residential facilities

In 2001 an estimated 27,300 adults, 1 percent of the adult population of New Zealand, were living in residential facilities and had a disability. [The 'adult population' means adultswithandwithoutdisability.] , [A further 800 adultswithoutdisability were estimated to be living in residential facilities, making a total of 28,100 adults with and without disability living in residential facilities in 2001. Ninety-seven percent of adults living in residential facilities had a disability.]

The likelihood of having a disability and living in residential care increased with age (Figure 10.1). Almost one in three New Zealand women aged 85 and over (32 percent) and one in six New Zealand men aged 85 and over (17 percent) were living in residential facilities and had a disability.

Figure 10.1: Percentage of adult population who were living in residential facilities and had a disability, by age and sex, 2001

Source: Statistics New Zealand, 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities

Note: Data in Appendix Table 10.1.

Proportion of adults with disability living in residential facilities

In 2001, an estimated 27,300 adults with disability were living in residential facilities. This was 4 percent of New Zealand's estimated 653,800 adults with disability. ['Adults with disability' means adults with disability living in households as well as residential facilities.]

The likelihood of adults with disability living in residential facilities increased with age. A third of women with disability aged 85 and over (35 percent) were in residential facilities, as were 19 percent of men with disability aged 85 and over (Figure 10.2). [The higher female rate in the 85 and over age group is likely to reflect the relatively high numbers of very old women (for example, 90 years and over) in the New Zealand population.]

Figure 10.2: Percentage of adults with disability who were living in residential facilities, by age and sex, 2001

Source: Statistics New Zealand, 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities

Note: Data in Appendix Table 10.2.

Features of adults with disability living in residential facilities

Age

Most (92 percent) of the 27,300 adults with disability living in residential facilities were aged 65 and over, which included:

• 45 percent aged 85 and over (an estimated 12,300 people)
• 32 percent aged 75-84 (an estimated 8600 people)
• 15 percent aged 65-74 (an estimated 4200 people).

Just 8 percent were aged 15-64 (an estimated 2200 people), which included 700 adults aged
25-44 and 1500 aged 45-64 (Figure 10.3). [The number of adults aged 15-24 is too small to report. Also note that, throughout this chapter, it has often been necessary to combine the results for younger age groups because of the small numbers of younger people covered by the 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities.]

Sex

Just over two-thirds of adults with disability living in residential facilities were women (an estimated 18,700 or 69 percent), which included an estimated:

• 5900 women aged 75-84
• 9800 women aged 85 and over.

Men made up a nearly a third of the adults with disability living in residential facilities (an estimated 8500 or 31 percent), which included an estimated:

• 2700 men aged 75-84
• 2400 men aged 85 and over.

Figure 10.3 shows the much higher numbers of women than men living in residential facilities in the older age groups.

Figure 10.3: Number of adults with disability living in residential facilities, by age and sex, 2001

Source: Statistics New Zealand, 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities

Note: Data in Appendix Table 10.3.

Ethnicity

The majority of adults with disability living in residential facilities were European (86 percent or an estimated 23,500 adults). Ten percent (an estimated 2700 adults) were Asian/Other adults. Only a small proportion were Mäori adults (2 percent or an estimated 700 adults) or Pacific adults (less than 2 percent or an estimated 500 adults).

Types of residential facility

Adults with disability living in residential facilities were most likely to live in rest homes or homes for older people. Of the 27,300 adults with disability living in residential facilities, 69 percent, an estimated 18,900 adults, lived in rest homes or homes for older people (Table 10.1).

The next largest group resided in private hospitals (25 percent or an estimated 6900 adults with disability).

Two percent of adults with disability living in residential facilities lived in mental health units, one percent in public hospitals and a further one percent in physical disability units. [The number of adults with disability living in intellectual disability units and multiple disability units was too small to report.]

As might be expected, older people were more likely than younger people to live in rest homes or homes for older people. Seventy-two percent of people aged 65 and over with disability living in residential facilities were in rest homes or homes for older people, compared with 44 percent of adults aged 15-64 with disability living in residential facilities.

Twenty-two percent of adults aged 15-64 with disability living in residential facilities were living in mental health units; another 21 percent were living in other types of residential facility including intellectual disability units, physical disability units and multiple disability units. [The number of adults aged 15-64 living in each of these types of residential facility was too small to report separately.]

Table 10.1: Number of adults with disability living in residential facilities, by facility type and age group, 2001

Type of facility	Age group
	65 and over		15-64		Total
	Number (estimate)	Percent (%)	Number (estimate)	Percent (%)	Number (estimate)	Percent (%)
Rest homes or home for older people	17,900	72	1,000	44	18,900	69
Private hospitals	6700	27	300	11	6,900	25
Public hospitals	300	1	-	-	400	1
Mental health units	-	-	500	22	500	2
Other	-	-	500	21	500	2
Total	25,000	100	2,200	100	27,300	100

Source: Statistics New Zealand, 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities

- Number or percentage too small to report (estimated frequencies outside the 70 percent relative sampling error cut-off point).

Notes:

- The 'Other' category comprises intellectual disability units, physical disability units and multiple disability units.

- The sum of the values for each category may differ from the total due to rounding.

Sixty-nine percent of European and 75 percent of both Mäori and Asian/Other adults living in residential facilities were living in rest homes or homes for older people, compared with just 51 percent of Pacific adults living in residential facilities.

Length of stay

Of the estimated 27,300 adults with disability living in residential facilities, an estimated 21,500 or 79 percent had been living in these kinds of facility for five years or less (Figure 10.4).

Only a relatively small proportion, 8 percent or an estimated 2100 people, had been living in residential facilities for 11 years or more.

Figure 10.4: Number of adults with disability living in residential facilities, by length of stay, 2001

Source: Statistics New Zealand, 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities.

Note: Data in Appendix Table 10.5.

Adults in the 25-44 and 45-64 age groups were more likely than those in the 65 and over age group to have lived in residential facilities for 11 years or more. Thirty-eight percent of adults aged 45-64 had lived in residential facilities for 11 years or more, compared with just 17 percent of adults aged 65-74 and 3 percent of adults aged 75 and over. [The number of adults aged 15-24 living in residential facilities for 11 years or more was too small to report.]

People with intellectual disability were most likely to have lived for a long period in residential facilities. Sixty percent of the estimated 800 adults whose main disability was an intellectual disability had lived in residential facilities for 11 years or more. By contrast, only 4 percent of the estimated 10,200 adults whose main disability was a mobility disability had lived in residential facilities for this length of time.

Half (51 percent) of all people with a main disability caused by conditions present at birth had been living in residential facilities for 11 years or more. However, it was uncommon for people whose main disability was caused by disease/illness (4 percent), accident/injury (10 percent) or ageing (6 percent) to have lived in residential facilities for 11 years or more.

Patterns of disability

Disability type

Mobility

Mobility disability was the most common type of disability experienced by adults living in residential facilities. Ninety-five percent of women and 86 percent of men with disability living in residential facilities had mobility disabilities (Figure 10.5). [By comparison, 63 percent of women and 46 percent of men with disability living in households had mobility disabilities (see chapter 2).]

Sixty-four percent of adults with disability living in residential facilities (about two in every three people) could not walk a distance of 350 metres. Another 18 percent could do this only with difficulty. Sixty-eight percent could not carry a 5 kilogram weight for 10 metres. A further 13 percent could do this only with difficulty.

Figure 10.5: Percentage of adults with disability living in residential facilities with different types of disability, by sex, 2001

Source: Statistics New Zealand, 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities

Notes:

- Data in Appendix Table 10.6.

- If individuals reported more than one disability type, they were counted in each applicable disability group.

- The 'Other' category includes other types of long-term condition or health problem that cause people ongoing difficulty with, or stops them from doing, everyday activities that people their age can usually do.

Agility

Eighty-nine percent of adults with disability living in residential facilities, an estimated 24,300 people, had agility disabilities. [This compared with 12 percent of adults with disability living in households.] This included 45 percent (an estimated 12,300 people) who were not able to bend down to pick up objects off the floor and 37 percent (an estimated 10,000 people) who were not able to dress and undress themselves (Figure 10.5).

Other disabilities

While physical types of disability (that is, mobility and agility disability) were the most common among adults in residential facilities, other types were also prevalent (Figure 10.5).

An estimated 13,700 adults with disability living in residential facilities (50 percent) had learning disability. [Compared with 11 percent of adults with a seeing disability living in households.]

Fifty-five percent (an estimated 10,400 women and 4600 men) had disabilities related to recall or memory, defined as an ongoing difficulty with remembering because of a long-term condition or health problem. [Compared with 14 percent of adults with disability living in households.]

Almost half (45 percent or an estimated 12,200 adults) had a seeing disability, including 24 percent who could not see newspaper print and 13 percent who could not see someone's face across a room. [Compared with 11 percent of adults with disability living in households.]

Forty percent (or an estimated 11,000 adults) had a hearing disability. [Compared with 34 percent of adults with disability living in households.] This included 13 percent who could not hear a conversation with three others and 4 percent who could not hear a conversation with one other person.

Just over a third of adults with disability living in residential facilities (35 percent or an estimated 9600 adults) had a psychiatric/psychological disability. [Compared with 15 percent of adults with disability living in households.] This included an estimated 9100 people with long-term emotional, psychological or psychiatric conditions limiting their everyday activity, and an estimated 6600 people with long-term emotional, psychological or psychiatric conditions limiting their communicating, mixing and socialising.

Thirteen percent of adults with disability living in residential facilities, an estimated 3500 people, had an intellectual disability. [Compared with 5 percent of adults with disability living in households.]

As shown in Figure 10.6, adults aged 15-64 had a somewhat different disability profile compared with adults aged 65 and over. In the 15-64 age group there was a greater prevalence of intellectual and psychiatric/psychological disabilities and a lower prevalence of seeing, hearing and physical disabilities.

Figure 10.6: Percentage of adults with disability living in residential facilities, by disability type and age, 2001

Source: Statistics New Zealand, 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities

Notes:

- Calculated from data in Appendix Table 10.7.

- If individuals reported more than one disability type, they were counted in each applicable disability group.

- The 'Physical' category includes mobility disability and agility disability.

- The 'Other' category includes speaking, learning and remembering disabilities, and other types of long-term condition or health problem that cause people ongoing difficulty with, or stops them from doing, everyday activities that people their age can usually do.

Main disability

After identifying the different types of disability experienced by adults living in residential facilities, the 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities sought to determine each person's main disability. Main disability was defined as the disability that most limited a person's everyday activities.

Mobility disability was the most common type of main disability among adults living in residential facilities. Thirty-eight percent of residents with disability, an estimated 10,200 people, had mobility disability as their main disability (Figure 10.7). [A similar proportion of adults with disability living in households (34 percent) had a mobility disability as their main disability (see chapter 2).]

Figure 10.7: Percentage of adults with disability living in residential facilities, by main disability and sex, 2001

Source: Statistics New Zealand, 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities

Notes:

- Data in Appendix Table 10.8.

- The 'Other' category includes speaking, learning and remembering disabilities, and other types of long-term condition or health problem that cause people ongoing difficulty with, or stops them from doing, everyday activities that people their age can usually do.

The second most common type of main disability was psychiatric/psychological disability. Ten percent of adults with disability living in residential facilities, an estimated 2800 people, had a psychiatric/psychological disability as their main disability.

Seven percent of adults with disability living in residential facilities, an estimated 1900 people, had a hearing disability as their main disability. A similar number, 1800, had a seeing disability as their main disability.

Five percent had agility disability as their main disability, despite a considerably higher proportion, 89 percent, having some kind of agility disability (see previous section). Thus, for the majority of adults in residential facilities with agility disability, it was not the agility disability that most limited their everyday activities but another type of disability.

For three percent of adults with disability living in residential facilities, an estimated 800 people, their main disability was an intellectual disability.

Main disability and age

A mobility main disability was substantially more common in the 65 and over age group than in the 15-64 age group (40 percent compared with 16 percent).

Other types of main disability were more prevalent in the 15-64 age group. Twelve percent of adults aged 15-64 had a main disability that was an intellectual disability, compared with only 2 percent of adults aged 65 and over. Sixteen percent of adults aged 15-64 had a main disability that was a psychiatric/psychological disability, compared with 10 percent of adults aged 65 and over.

Main disability and type of residential facility

Almost 9 in every 10 adults living in residential facilities whose main disability was a hearing disability (89 percent) were living in rest homes or homes for older people, rather than in private or public hospitals or other kinds of residential facility. By contrast, only 65 percent of adults whose main disability was an intellectual disability and 58 percent of adults whose main disability was a psychiatric/psychological disability were living in rest homes or homes for older people, rather than other kinds of residential facility.

Twenty-four percent of adults living in residential facilities whose main disability was a psychiatric/psychological disability were living in private hospitals, as were 24 percent of adults whose main disability was a mobility disability. Twenty-two percent of adults whose main disability was a seeing disability and 18 percent of adults whose main disability was an agility disability were living in private hospitals.

Ten percent of adults living in residential facilities whose main disability was a psychiatric/ psychological disability were living in mental health units.

Multiple disability

Almost all adults living in residential facilities (96 percent) had multiple disabilities (that is, more than one type of disability). Even in the two youngest age groups, 15-44 and 45-64, most had multiple disabilities (82 percent and 94 percent respectively).

Women were slightly more likely to have multiple disabilities than men (97 percent compared with 93 percent).

Cause of disability

Disease/illness was the most common cause of disability. Sixty-eight percent of adults with disability living in residential facilities, an estimated 18,600 people, had disabilities caused by disease/illness (Figure 10.8).

Thirty-seven percent, an estimated 10,100 adults, had disabilities caused by ageing, while 23 percent (6300 adults) had disabilities caused by accident/injury. Five percent (1500 adults) had disabilities already existing or occurring at birth.

Figure 10.8: Number of adults with disability living in residential facilities, by cause of disability and sex, 2001

Source: Statistics New Zealand, 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities

Notes:

- Data in Appendix Table 10.10.

- If individuals reported more than one disability type, they were counted in each applicable cause group.

Women outnumbered men for each of the five kinds of disability cause. In particular, far more women than men had disabilities caused by disease/illness and ageing.

Cause of disability and age

Disabilities caused by disease/illness and ageing were increasingly prevalent in the older age groups. Fifty percent of adults aged 15-64 had disabilities due to disease/illness, but this increased to 71 percent in the 75 and over age group (Figure 10.9).

By contrast, the prevalence of disabilities caused by conditions existing or occurring at birth decreased with age. [Because of the relatively small number of adults aged 64 and under living in residential facilities, age groups within the 15-64 age group have had to be combined to provide sufficiently reliable population estimates and percentages.]

The prevalence of accident/injury related disabilities was similar in all age groups.

Figure 10.9: Percentage of adults with disability living in residential facilities, by cause of disability and age, 2001

Source: Statistics New Zealand, 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities

- Percentages too small to report (estimated frequencies outside the 70 percent relative sampling error cut-off point).

Notes:

- Data in Appendix Table 10.10.

- If individuals reported more than one disability type, they were counted in each applicable cause group.

Cause of disability by sex

Compared with men living in residential facilities, women living in residential facilities had a higher prevalence of disabilities caused by disease/illness and ageing. However, men and women had a similar prevalence of disabilities caused by accident/injury and conditions present at birth (Figure 10.10).

Figure 10.10: Percentage of adults with disability living in residential facilities, by cause of disability and sex, 2001

Source: Statistics New Zealand, 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities

Notes:

- Data in Appendix Table 10.10.

- If individuals reported more than one disability type, they were counted in each applicable cause group.

Cause of disability and disability type

Table 10.2 shows the causes of the different types of disability experienced by adults living in residential facilities.

Nearly half (48 percent) of all hearing disabilities were attributed to ageing.

Over half of seeing (53 percent), physical (60 percent) and psychiatric/psychological (61 percent) disabilities were attributed to disease/illness.

Over a third (37 percent) of intellectual disabilities were attributed to disease/illness, while 21 percent were attributed to conditions existing at birth.

The causes of a quarter or more of intellectual (29 percent) and psychiatric/psychological (25 percent) disabilities were not specified.

Table 10.2: Cause of the disability in adults living in residential facilities, by disability type, 2001

Disability type	Disability cause (%)
	Disease/ illness	Birth	Accident/injury	Ageing	Other	Not specified	Total
Hearing	31	3	7	48	6	5	100
Seeing	52	2	3	21	-	22	100
Physical	60	2	21	24	3	13	100
Intellectual	37	21	-	7	-	29	100
Psychiatric/psychological	61	3	-	6	3	25	100
Other	42	4	2	12	2	39	100

Source: Statistics New Zealand, 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities

- Percentages too small to report (estimated frequencies outside the 70 percent relative sampling error cut-off point).

Notes:

- The sum of the values for each category may differ from the total due to rounding.

- The 'Other' category includes speaking, learning and remembering disabilities, and other types of long-term condition or health problem that cause people ongoing difficulty with, or stops them from doing, everyday activities that people their age can usually do.

Cause of main disability

Disease/illness was the most common cause of the main disabilities experienced by adults living in residential facilities. Half (52 percent) had a main disability that was caused this way.

Fourteen percent had a main disability caused by ageing and 10 percent had a main disability caused by accident/injury.

People in the 65-74 and 75 and over age groups were more likely than people in the 15-64 age group to have a main disability caused by disease/illness. However, they were less likely to have a main disability caused by accident/injury or a condition present at birth (Figure 10.11).

Figure 10.11: Percentage of adults with disability living in residential facilities, by cause of main disability and age, 2001

Source: Statistics New Zealand, 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities

- Percentages too small to report (estimated frequencies outside the 70 percent relative sampling error cut-off point).

Note: Data in Appendix Table 10.12.

Severity of disability

Prevalence of severe disability

More than four out of five adults with disability living in residential facilities (83 percent or an estimated 22,600 adults) had severe disability. [By comparison, only 12 percent of adults with disability living in households had severe disability (see chapter 2).] This meant they received or needed daily help with activities such as bathing, dressing and preparing meals (Figure 10.12).

Another 16 percent of adults with disability living in residential facilities, an estimated 4400 adults, had moderate disability. [Compared with 45 percent of adults with disability living in households.] These people used or needed some type of disability-related equipment or required help with certain heavier or more difficult tasks.

The remaining 1 percent of adults with disability in residential facilities, some 300 people, had mild disability. [Compared with 43 percent of adults with disability living in households.] These people did not require regular help from people or technical aids.

Figure 10.12: Percentage of adults with disability living in residential facilities, by severity of disability, 2001

Source: Statistics New Zealand, 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities

Note: Data in Appendix Table 10.13.

Severity of disability by age

Rates of severe disability varied from a high of 86 percent among adults in the 75 and over age group, to a low of 61 percent amongst people in the 15-44 age group (Figure 10.13).

The highest prevalence of moderate disability was in the 15-44 age group (33 percent).

Mild disability was uncommon in all age groups, but was highest in the 45-64 age group (14 percent).

Figure 10.13: Percentage of adults with disability living in residential facilities, by severity of disability and age, 2001

Source: Statistics New Zealand, 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities

- Percentages too small to report (estimated frequencies outside the 70 percent relative sampling error cut-off point).

Note: Data in Appendix Table 10.13.

Severity of disability and type of residential facility

Sixty-five percent of adults living in residential facilities with severe disability were living in rest homes or homes for older people, while 30 percent were living in private hospitals.

Ninety-one percent of adults with moderate disability were living in rest homes or homes for older people.

Severity of disability and main disability

Figure 10.14 shows the disability severity profile of each type of main disability.

A high proportion of adults who had intellectual disability as their main disability were severely disabled (98 percent). This contrasts with adults who had hearing disability as their main disability, only 55 percent of whom were severely disabled.

Figure 10.14: Percentage of adults with disability living in residential facilities, by severity of disability and main disability, 2001

Source: Statistics New Zealand, 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities

- Percentages too small to report (estimated frequencies outside the 70 percent relative sampling error cut-off point).

Notes:

- Data in Appendix Table 10.14.

- The 'Other' category includes speaking, learning and remembering disabilities, and other types of long-term condition or health problem that cause people ongoing difficulty with, or stops them from doing, everyday activities that people their age can usually do.

Severity of disability and cause of main disability

Adults living in residential facilities who had a main disability caused by accident/injury had a higher prevalence of severe disability (89 percent) than adults with a main disability caused by a condition present at birth (71 percent) or 'other' causes (52 percent) (Figure 10.15).

Figure 10.15: Percentage of adults with disability living in residential facilities, by severity of disability and cause of main disability, 2001

Source: Statistics New Zealand, 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities

Note: Data in Appendix Table 10.15.

Age at onset of first disability

Adults with disability living in residential facilities were asked how old they were when their first (or only) disability began or became apparent. Table 10.3 indicates the results for this question, matched against people's age at the time of the 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities. This shows that adults aged 15-64 living in residential facilities had a higher prevalence of life-long disability than people aged 65 and over living in residential facilities.

Over half (58 percent) of adults aged 75 and over got their first disability after turning 75, while less than 10 percent got their first disability before age 25.

By contrast, 34 percent of adults aged 15-44 and 38 percent of adults aged 45-64 got their first disability before turning five.

Table 10.3: Age of onset of disability in adults living in residential facilities, by age, 2001

Age of onset of first disability (years)	Current age (years)
	15-44 (%) (n=800)	45-64 (%) (n=1500)	65-74 (%) (n=4200)	75+ (%) (n=20,900)	Total (%) (n=27,300)
0-4	34	38	15	6	10
5-14	-	-	-	-	1
15-24	-	-	-	-	1
25-44	-	14	12	3	5
45-64	N/A	39	36	8	14
65-74	N/A	N/A	31	18	18
75+	N/A	N/A	N/A	58	45
Not reported	-	-	-	5	5
Total	100	100	100	100	100

Source: Statistics New Zealand, 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities

- Percentages too small to report (estimated frequencies outside the 70 percent relative sampling error cut-off point).

N/A Not applicable.

Note: The sum of the values for each category may differ from the total due to rounding.

Duration of disability

Longest-lasting disability

Table 10.4 shows the length of time (in years) that adults living in residential facilities had been living with disability, based on the duration of their longest-lasting disability.

The majority of adults aged 15-44 and 45-64 had had disability for 15 years or more (58 percent and 60 percent respectively). This reflects the sizeable percentage of people in these age groups whose first disability began before age 5 (see the previous section).

By contrast, most people in the 65-74 and 75 and over age groups had had disability for less than 15 years (59 percent and 69 percent respectively).

Table 10.4: Duration of longest-lasting disability in adults living in residential facilities, by age, 2001

Duration of longest-lasting disability	Current age (years)
	15-44 (%) (n=800)	45-64 (%) (n=1,500)	65-74 (%) (n=4,200)	75+ (%) (n=20,900)	Total (%) (n=27,300)
Less than 15 years	30	39	59	69	64
15 years or more	58	60	36	26	30
Unknown	-	-	-	5	5
Total	100	100	100	100	100

Source: Statistics New Zealand, 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities

- Percentages too small to report (estimated frequencies outside the 70 percent relative sampling error cut-off point).

Note: The sum of the values for each category may differ from the total due to rounding.

Duration of main disability

Similar patterns emerge when looking at the duration (in years) of people's main disability.

Almost half the adults aged 15-44 with disability in residential facilities (46 percent) had their main disability for 15 years or more. This compares with just 9 percent in the 75 and over age group (Table 10.5).

Similarly, two-thirds of people in the 65-74 and 75 and over age groups had their main disability for less than 15 years. This compares with about a third of the 15-44 and 45-64 age groups.

Table 10.5: Duration of main disability in adults living in residential facilities, by age, 2001

Duration of main disability	Current age (years)
	15-44 (%) (n=800)	45-64 (%) (n=1,500)	65-74 (%) (n=4,200)	75+ (%) (n=20,900)	Total (%) (n=27,300)
Less than 15 years	30	34	64	67	64
15 years or more	46	40	24	9	14
Unknown	24	27	12	23	22
Total	100	100	100	100	100

Source: Statistics New Zealand, 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities

Note: The sum of the values for each category may differ from the total due to rounding.

Need for help

Help with personal care

Eighty-three percent of adults with disability living in residential facilities, an estimated 22,600 adults, were getting help with personal care such as bathing, dressing or taking medication, because of disability. [By comparison, only 6 percent of adults with disability living in households got help with personal care (see chapter 3).]

People in the 75-84 and 85 and over age groups were the most likely to be getting help with personal care (87 percent and 85 percent respectively), while people in the 25-44 age group were the least likely (62 percent).

Residents of public hospitals (100 percent) and private hospitals (98 percent) were more likely than residents of rest homes (78 percent) and mental health units (61 percent) to be getting help with personal care. [The number of adults in other types of facility needing help with personal care was too small to report.]

Ninety-eight percent of adults whose main disability was an intellectual disability were getting help with personal care. Adults whose main disability was a psychiatric/psychological disability were also relatively likely to be getting help with personal care (86 percent). By contrast, just 55 percent of adults whose main disability was a hearing disability were getting help with personal care.

A higher percentage of adults with a main disability caused by accident/injury (89 percent) were getting help with personal care than adults with a main disability caused by disease and illness (82 percent), ageing (76 percent) or conditions present at birth (71 percent).

All the adults with severe disability living in residential facilities were getting assistance with their personal care. [The number of adults with mild and moderate disability needing help with personal care was too small to report.]

Help with shopping

Because of disability, 89 percent of adults with disability living in residential facilities, an estimated 24,300 people, got help with shopping for things they needed. [By comparison, 16 percent of adults with disability living in households got help with shopping for things they needed (see chapter 3).]

The need for help with shopping was greatest in the older age groups. Ninety-three percent of adults aged 85 and over and 92 percent of adults aged 75-84 got this kind of help, compared with 83 percent of adults aged 65-74, 73 percent of adults aged 45-64 and 61 percent of adults aged 25-44. [The number of adults aged 15-24 needing help with shopping was too small to report.]

Women (93 percent) were more likely than men (81 percent) to get help with shopping.

Asian/Other (93 percent) and European (90 percent) adults were more likely than Pacific (76 percent) or Mäori (72 percent) adults to get help with shopping.

Residents of public hospitals (100 percent) and private hospitals (97 percent) were more likely than residents of rest homes (87 percent) and mental health units (57 percent) to get help with shopping. [The number of adults in other types of facility needing help with shopping was too small to report.]

Ninety-eight percent of adults whose main disability was an intellectual disability got help with shopping. This compares with 91 percent of adults whose main disability was a psychiatric/ psychological disability and 92 percent of adults whose main disability was a mobility disability. Just 63 percent of adults whose main disability was an agility disability got help with shopping, as did 74 percent of adults whose main disability was a hearing disability.

Adults with a main disability caused by a condition present at birth (77 percent) were less likely to get help with shopping than adults with a main disability caused by accident/injury (93 percent), disease/illness (89 percent) or ageing (83 percent).

Ninety-five percent of adults in residential facilities with severe disability got help with shopping, compared with 67 percent of adults with moderate disability. [The number of adults with mild disability needing help with shopping was too small to report.]

Help with personal finances

Because of disability, 91 percent of adults with disability living in residential facilities, an estimated 24,800 people, got help with their personal finances such as doing tax returns or banking. [By comparison, 8 percent of adults with disability living in households got help with personal finances (see chapter 3).]

Adults in the older age groups were most likely to get help with their personal finances. Ninety-two percent of adults aged 85 and over, 94 percent of adults aged 75-84 and 90 percent of adults aged 65-74 got this kind of help, compared with 80 percent of adults aged 45-64 and 71 percent of adults aged 25-44. [The number of adults aged 15-24 needing help with personal finances was too small to report.]

Pacific adults (99 percent) were most likely to get help with their personal finances, followed by European (91 percent), Asian/Other (88 percent) and Mäori (84 percent) adults.

Residents of public hospitals (100 percent), private hospitals (94 percent) and rest homes (90 percent) were more likely to get help with personal finances than residents of mental health units (69 percent).

All adults whose main disability was an intellectual disability (100 percent) got help with personal finances, as did 93 percent of adults whose main disability was a psychiatric/ psychological disability and 93 percent of adults whose main disability was a seeing disability. Ninety percent of adults whose main disability was a mobility disability received help with their personal finances, as did 79 percent of adults whose main disability was an agility disability and 70 percent whose main disability was a hearing disability.

Ninety-five percent of adults living in residential facilities with severe disability got help with personal finances, compared with 73 percent of adults with moderate disability. [The number of adults with mild disability needing help with personal finances was too small to report.]

Help with communication

Because of disability, 60 percent of adults with disability living in residential facilities, an estimated 16,300 people, got help when communicating with others such as when they visited a doctor. [By comparison, 6 percent of adults with disability living in households got help with communication (see chapter 3).]

Younger adults were more likely than older adults to require help with communication. Seventy-two percent of adults aged 25-44 and 66 percent of adults aged 45-64 got help when communicating with others, compared with 57 percent of adults aged 65-74 and 58 percent of adults aged 75-84. [The number of adults aged 15-24 needing help with communication was too small to report.]

Mäori adults with disability (85 percent) were more likely than European (60 percent), Pacific (57 percent) and Asian/Other (57 percent) adults with disability to get help with communicating.

Residents of public hospitals (98 percent) were more likely than residents of private hospitals (75 percent), rest homes (54 percent) and mental health units (50 percent) to get help with communicating. [The number of adults in other types of facility needing help with communication was too small to report.]

Ninety-three percent of adults whose main disability was an intellectual disability got help with communicating. This was a much higher rate of help than among adults whose main disability was an agility disability (18 percent), a seeing disability (39 percent), a hearing disability (46 percent), a mobility disability (50 percent) or a psychiatric/psychological disability (68 percent).

Sixty-nine percent of adults living in residential facilities with severe disability got help with communicating, compared with 19 percent of adults with moderate disability. [The number of adults with mild disability needing help with communication was too small to report.]

Use of equipment and technology

Use of any kind of equipment or technology

An estimated 24,700 or 91 percent of adults with disability living in residential facilities used some kind of equipment or technology for disability. This included equipment to move about, equipment to assist hands or arms, and other equipment such as commode chairs, shower stools, lifting equipment and incontinence products.

The rate of equipment use was higher among women (94 percent) than men (84 percent). People in the 65-74 (86 percent), 75-84 (91 percent) and 85 and over (97 percent) age groups were more likely to use equipment than people in the 25-44 (59 percent) or 45-64 (64 percent) age groups. [The number of adults aged 15-24 using equipment or technology was too small to report.]

All adults with disability occupying long-stay beds in public hospitals (100 percent) and virtually all those occupying long-stay beds in private hospitals (99 percent) used some kind of disability-related equipment or technology. This compared with 89 percent of adults with disability living in rest homes or homes for older people. [The number of adults in other types of facility using equipment or technology was too small to report.]

Adults whose main disability was a mobility disability (98 percent), a seeing disability (97 percent), an agility disability (92 percent), a hearing disability (92 percent) or a psychiatric/psychological disability (87 percent) were more likely to use some kind of technical equipment than adults whose main disability was an intellectual disability (46 percent).

Adults whose main disability was caused by accident/injury (96 percent) had the highest rate of equipment use, followed by adults whose main disability was caused by disease/illness (92 percent) and ageing (91 percent). Adults whose main disability was a condition present at birth had the lowest rate of equipment use (73 percent).

Use of equipment for moving about

Seventy-nine percent of adults with disability living in residential facilities, an estimated 21,600 adults, used some kind of equipment to help them move about such as a walking stick or wheelchair. [By comparison, 16 percent of adults with disability living in households used or needed equipment to help them move about (see chapter 3).]

People in the 85 and over age group (92 percent) were most likely to use equipment for moving about, followed by adults aged 75-84 (73 percent) and adults aged 65-74 (69 percent).

Men (83 percent) were more likely than women (71 percent) to use equipment for moving about.

All adults occupying long-stay beds in public hospitals (100 percent) and 93 percent of adults occupying long-stay beds in private hospitals used equipment for moving about. This compared with 76 percent of adults living in rest homes or homes for older people. [The number of adults in other types of facility using equipment to move about was too small to report.]

Ninety-three percent of adults whose main disability was a mobility disability, 89 percent of adults whose main disability was an agility disability and 82 percent of adults whose main disability was a seeing disability used equipment to help them move about. By contrast, just 34 percent of adults whose main disability was an intellectual disability used equipment to move about.

Adults living in residential facilities with multiple disabilities (81 percent) were more likely than adults with a single disability (45 percent) to use equipment for moving about.

Similarly, adults with severe disability (84 percent) were more likely than adults with moderate disability (60 percent) to use equipment for moving about. [By definition, people with mild disability do not use equipment to help them.]

Walking frames were the type of mobility equipment used most commonly by adults with disability living in residential facilities. Forty-three percent, an estimated 11,600 adults, used walking frames. This included 41 percent of adults aged 75-84 and 53 percent of adults aged 85 and over.

Thirty-nine percent of adults with disability living in residential facilities, an estimated 10,600 adults, used manual wheelchairs, and 2 percent, an estimated 400 adults, used motorised wheelchairs.

Twenty percent, an estimated 5300 people, used walking sticks.

Two percent used back or leg braces and two percent used orthopaedic footwear to move about. One percent, an estimated 300 adults, used scooters.

Use of equipment for helping hands or arms

Four percent of adults with disability living in residential facilities, an estimated 1200 people, used equipment or technology to support, replace or help them to use their hands or arms.

Of this group, an estimated 500 used arm braces, while 700 used other kinds of equipment for this purpose.

Use of other equipment and technology

Seventy-nine percent of adults with disability living in residential facilities, an estimated 21,600 adults, used other kinds of disability-related equipment or technology apart from those already discussed:

• 70 percent, an estimated 19,100 adults, used shower stools
• 43 percent (an estimated 11,600 adults) used incontinence products (47 percent of women and 32 percent of men)
• 36 percent (an estimated 9900 adults) used commode chairs
• 22 percent (an estimated 5900 adults) used raised toilet seats
• 16 percent (an estimated 4200 adults) used specialised cushions
• 15 percent (an estimated 4200 adults) used lifting equipment such as belts or hoists, and 9 percent or 2500 used a helping hand or grabbing stick
• 3 percent (an estimated 700 adults) used a ventilator
• 2 percent (an estimated 400 adults) used a respirator.

Use of equipment for hearing

In the 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities, if a person had a hearing disability but could hear easily because the hearing disability had been corrected with a hearing aid or some other device, they were not defined as having a hearing disability. Therefore they were not asked about the types of equipment or services they used for people who were deaf or hard of hearing. This means the information in this section covers equipment and services used only by adults with uncorrected hearing disability.

An estimated 11,000 adults living in residential facilities had an uncorrected hearing disability. Of this group, 36 percent, an estimated 4000 adults, were using some kind of equipment, technology or services for people who were deaf or hard of hearing. This included 4 percent who used hearing aids with a T switch and 30 percent, an estimated 3300 people, who used other types of hearing aid.

Sixty-four percent, an estimated 7000 adults with hearing disability, were not using any equipment, technology or services for people who were deaf or hard of hearing.

Men with hearing disability (71 percent) were more likely than women with hearing disability (61 percent) not to be using any equipment, technology or services for people who were deaf or hard of hearing.

Use of equipment for speaking and being understood

Of the estimated 7900 adults living in residential facilities with speaking disability, an estimated 7500 adults or 94 percent did not use any equipment or services to assist them to speak and be understood. [The number of people using equipment such as voice output communication aids or other equipment or services specifically for people with speaking disability were too small to report.]

Use of equipment by people with seeing disability

In the 2001 Disability Survey of Residential Facilities, if a person had a seeing disability but could see easily because the seeing disability had been corrected with glasses, contact lenses or some other device, they were not defined as having a seeing disability. Therefore, they were not asked about the types of equipment, technology or services they used for people who were blind or visually-impaired. This means the information in this section covers equipment and services used only by people with uncorrected seeing disability.

Of the estimated 12,200 adults living in residential facilities with uncorrected seeing disability, an estimated 7000 adults (56 percent) used some kind of equipment, technology or services for blind or vision impaired people. This included:

• 45 percent (an estimated 5500 adults) who used glasses or contact lenses
• 16 percent (an estimated 1900 adults) who used large-print reading material
• 13 percent (an estimated 1600 adults) who used hand-held or desk mounted magnifiers
• 8 percent (an estimated 1000 adults) who used audio reading materials such as talking books
• 8 percent (an estimated 1000 adults) who used readers.

An estimated 5400 or 44 percent of adults in residential facilities with seeing disability did not use any kind of equipment, technology or services for blind or vision impaired people.

Comparing 2001 and 1997

Table 10.6 compares key disability statistics for 2001 and 1997 for adults in residential facilities.

In 1997, 27,600 adults with disability were estimated to be living in residential facilities. This was 300 more adults with disability than were estimated to be living in residential facilities four years later in 2001.

Compared with 1997, in 2001 seeing, mobility, agility, intellectual and psychiatric/psychological disabilities were all slightly more prevalent among adults living in residential facilities. However, the prevalence of hearing disability was lower.

Disability caused by disease/illness or ageing was slightly less prevalent in 2001 than in 1997.

There was a higher rate of severe disability among adults living in residential facilities in 2001 (83 percent) than in 1997 (77 percent).

From 1997 to 2001 there was a 5 percentage point increase in the proportion of adults living in residential facilities who used equipment or technology for disability (86 percent in 1997 up to 91 percent in 2001). This reflected increases of between 4 and 14 percentage points in the use of nearly every type of equipment listed in Table 10.6. The exception was a decrease in the use of walking sticks, from 28 percent in 1997 to 20 percent in 2001.

From 1997 to 2001, there were also increases of from 5 to 9 percentage points in the proportions of adults getting help with the four types of everyday activity relevant to people living in residential facilities (that is, personal care, shopping, personal finances and communicating).

Table 10.6: Comparison of results from 1997 and 2001 Disability Surveys of Residential Facilities

	Estimated number of adults with disability in residential facilities		Percentage of adults with disability in residential facilities (%)
	1997 survey	2001 survey	1997 survey	2001 survey
Adults with disability	27,600	27,300	100	100
Length of stay in residential facilities
Under 2 years	10,400	10,600	37	39
2-5 years	9100	10,900	33	40
6-10 years	3700	3100	14	12
11 years and over	4000	2100	15	8
Not specified	400	500	2	2
Single/multiple disability
Single	1600	1100	6	4
Multiple	26,000	26,200	94	96
Disability type
Hearing	11,900	11,000	43	40
Seeing	11,200	12,200	41	45
Mobility	23,600	25,100	86	92
Agility	22,800	24,300	83	89
Intellectual	2500	3500	9	13
Psychiatric/psychological	8800	9600	32	35
Disability cause*
Disease/illness	20,700	18,600	75	68
Birth	2500	1500	9	5
Ageing	12,700	10,100	46	37
Severity of disability
Mild	700	300	3	1
Moderate	5500	4400	20	16
Severe	21,300	22,600	77	83
Equipment use
Uses wheelchair (manual or motorised)	8900	11,000	32	40
Uses walking frame	8100	11,600	29	43
Uses walking stick	7800	5300	28	20
Uses shower stools	17,000	19,100	62	70
Uses incontinence products	10,300	11,600	37	43
Uses commode chair	8800	9900	32	36
Uses raised toilet seats	3500	5900	13	22
Uses specialised cushions	2900	4200	11	16
Uses lifting equipment	2800	4200	10	15
Total using equipment to move about	19,300	21,600	70	79
Total using any type of equipment for disability	23,700	24,700	86	91
Help with everyday activities
Getting help with personal care (bathing, dressing, taking medication etc)	21,400	22,600	78	83
Getting help with shopping for necessities	23,000	24,300	83	89
Getting help with personal finances (for example, tax returns and banking)	22,800	24,800	82	91
Getting help with communicating (eg, when visiting a doctor)	15,000	16,300	54	60
Total getting help with at least one type of everyday activity	25,500	26,400	92**	97**

Source: Statistics New Zealand, 1997 and 2001 Disability Surveys of Residential Facilities, Statistics New Zealand 2002a.

* Accident/injury not included in this table because the category changed between surveys.

** Percentages calculated on rounded numbers, rather than raw numbers, so may not be as reliable as the other percentages reported in this table.