The lived experience of being ill and/or disabled in academia

This presentation reports on a research project into the lived experience of chronic illness and disability in academia. Data collection was in three phases via a questionnaire through survey monkey with 300 participants, one-to-one skype interviews with 25 participants and a creative workshop. Data was collated and coded in Nvivo and data analysis was an iterative process of constructing themes in a "transparent, reflexive and critical" manner. The three dominant themes presented here are: feeling marginalized due to perceived deficits, being silenced, and what academic organizations can do to improve their experiences as people with disabilities. The overarching experience is one of being marginalized within a group of marginalized individuals who are not able to voice their experiences openly for fear of stigmatisation and repercussions. An overall attitudinal shift is required. I will conclude the presentation with some creative outcomes from the workshop.