Responsibility to support Disabled students in medical professional programs

Sarah Tuberty

I recently was a part of a conversation on course development at our national conference for Occupational Therapy (OT). Education consists of graduate level program where the students need to pass their coursework at 80% or higher, need to pass clinical rotations, and graduate the program. Once graduated, students then need to take a national board exam in order to receive their license as a general Occupational Therapist. This means that budding therapists who are interested in working in developmental delay classrooms will need to master material in acute care settings for adults.

Occupational Therapy education within in the United States is frustratingly not inclusive for the disability community. This feels odd as the backbone of OT is adaptation. In conversations with leaders in OT education- the education system is set up to not be very accessible for the Disability Community. I personally agree that those with Disabilities are uniquely beneficial to have as Ots since they have the day to day experience of needing the adapt and engage with the world. However, the way the educational system is set up does not really facilitate that. Those with learning disabilities struggle with standardized tests, those with mobility or limb differences struggle with measuring range of motion and transfers.

When asking questions about making education and student evaluation more accessible – the biggest response is that we, as OT educators, have the commitment to keep our patients safe and the future patients of these OT students safe. Therefore, we need cannot simply pass everyone.

I keep thinking, that if we can restructure how we evaluate student performance within the OT program can this be more accessible and more equitable for disabled students?

I am then met with “disabled students need to pass the board exam” “disabled students need to do well on their clinical placements, and may not may not have accommodations provided” and then “disabled students need to be able to succeed at their jobs” – all of which feels like a variety of systems creating barriers for disabled students to become Occupational Therapists.

What are your thoughts on education for graduate level health professionals? What metrics do they need to meet in order to be considered proficient in their jobs? How do we understand these elements of individual practioner access and accommodation against patient safety? What would this look like? How have you felt these elements within your workplace settings?

https://research.aota.org/ajot/article-abstract/79/2/7902180090/26060/Disabled-Students-Experiences-and-Insights-in?redirectedFrom=fulltext