Elizabeth Straus, visiting assistant professor of nursing at Linfield University, will present “Disability and the COVID-19 Pandemic” at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 17. The event is available to the public via Zoom. Pre-registration is required at http://inside.linfield.edu/faculty-resources/faculty-lecture-series.html.
There is little question that the COVID-19 pandemic has made visible and amplified health and social inequities and experiences of exclusion for many individuals and groups in the United States and worldwide. Many disabled people and their families have been particularly impacted by the pandemic, and without consideration of the social factors influencing their experiences, may be at risk for further exclusion in post-pandemic responses. In this presentation, Straus draws on her ongoing multi-country critical narrative research with disabled young people who use ventilators alongside interdisciplinary and digital media sources. She explores individual and social narratives of disability and disabled people’s lives during the pandemic and how we can learn from and leverage these narratives as we (re)imagine our future world.
Straus has been an assistant professor in the Linfield-Good Samaritan School of Nursing since 2016, teaching in the pre-licensure, RN to BSN and MSN programs. Her scholarship brings together interdisciplinary equity-oriented perspectives alongside her clinical background in pediatric and adult home care and respite. She has held leadership roles with the Society of Pediatric Nurses and is involved with the Canadian Respiratory Health Professionals Assembly and the International Society of Quality of Life Research.
The presentation is part of Linfield’s Faculty Lecture Series, which shares the professional work and interests of the university faculty with the university and McMinnville communities. More information on the series, including the full schedule, is available at http://inside.linfield.edu/faculty-resources/faculty-lecture-series.html. The series is sponsored by Linfield’s Office of Academic Affairs. For additional information, contact 503-883-2224.
