Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI)-Minded for Disability is a collaborative project with the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (home of LEND-Pitt), medical students, and community stakeholders which aims to close the gap in undergraduate medical education regarding disability care. While there have been meaningful changes in health professional curricula to address certain healthcare disparities and improve cultural competency, people with disabilities are a population often not considered part of these initiatives.
Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI)-Minded for Disability is a collaborative project with the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (home of LEND-Pitt), medical students, and community stakeholders which aims to close the gap in undergraduate medical education regarding disability care. While there have been meaningful changes in health professional curricula to address certain healthcare disparities and improve cultural competency, people with disabilities are a population often not considered part of these initiatives. This, in combination with the persistent barriers to healthcare services and inadequate knowledge of many healthcare professionals, prompted us to apply for grant funding to advance medical school training.
The FISA foundation awarded funding for the JEDI group to develop an evidence-based Professional Enrichment Course for the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine (UPSOM) first- and second-year medical students. The project centers on interviews with community members in order to shape the disability justice curriculum. Our community partners completed interviews and shared personal stories and topics they felt were important for medical trainees. These interviews revealed important topics to cover, including the history of disability, disability health policy, disability culture and identity, misconceptions and discrimination, healthcare disparities, and advocacy. These topics align which with the Alliance for Disability in Health Care Education (ADHCE) disability core competencies aim to facilitate the integration of disability content into health care education and training programs.
The course has been structured with 5 unique interactive sessions that use a multimodal approach including readings, educational videos, small group discussions, and a panel with community advocates to achieve the course objectives. Learners will begin by developing an understanding of the various models of disability, important healthy policies and their historical contexts, and apply this knowledge to current events. They will then dive into disability identity and intersectionality and the values that underlie disability culture, which will inform their discussions of misconceptions disabled people face in the community and healthcare system, social determinants of health, and ableism. The course will culminate in an advocacy training that will provide tools for students to employ in the community, medical school, or hospital system. This multimodal approach aims to take the historical context to inform current thinking and ultimately improve access to equitable care for individuals with disabilities.
The JEDI course comes to fruition in January 2023 for University of Pittsburgh medical students. While this will be the first year it is implemented, it will hopefully become integrated into the curriculum at UPSOM and a guide for other healthcare training programs to improve clinical competency and reduce negative bias toward patients with disabilities.
