Scientific symposium: Special-needs athletes were routinely slipping through the healthcare system in the US and elsewhere, it was claimed yesterday.
Speaking at the opening of the Special Olympics Scientific Symposium in Belfast, Dr Stephen Corbin, dean of the Special Olympics University, told The Irish Times health issues related to eyesight, hearing, footcare and general physical fitness were not being properly attended to.
"Overt discrimination, neglect and ignorance" were to blame. "We can't be a successful sports programme if we have sick athletes."
Dr Corbin, who is responsible for health and research initiatives at Special Olympics headquarters in Washington DC, claimed health professionals were not taught sufficiently about the health requirements of the disabled.
"When they get out into practice it's no wonder they're dealing with a population that they're almost afraid of; they don't have special knowledge of."
The Special Olympics movement has to lead on the issue. "We have to head-on take that responsibility and exert some leadership even though we're not a hospital service, we're not a health system - at least what we can do is identify the needs and provide some level of preventative and early care."
He claimed the movement was the world's most effective organisation for promoting education among health professionals about the disabled population.
Scientific papers presented yesterday illustrated aspects of the Healthy Athletes programme associated with the Games. "During these Games we will probably see around 25,000 different athletes, deliver around 10,000 free health screenings and provide a lot of direct care.
"We will take athletes who are marginally blind and turn them into seeing individuals overnight. We will change lives, we will restore hearing to those with hearing impairments."
He said in terms of substantial, unmet and unrecognised health needs, disabled athletes were "off the radar screenand we're trying to turn that around".
Dr Corbin forecast that the screening programme at Shelbourne Hall at the RDS would witness "the most amazing health programme you've ever seen".