The Sonoran UCEDD is working to ensure health professionals are provided the information they need to prepare them to work with people who have disabilities. We have developed and are teaching a required curriculum to second year medical students on human development (see UA Course Work). We have established an annual interprofessional activity on disabilities for students from the entire health science campus and law school. We are teaching family medicine residents about caring for people with disabilities, with an emphasis on disability culture and history.
Family Medicine Residency Training
As part of the comprehensive 3-Year UA Department of Family & Community Medicine Family Residency Programs' Curriculum, residents participate in developmental disabilities didactic and clinical training during their experience. The goal of the curriculum is to train family medicine residents so that they will be prepared to be effective primary care physicians for people with disabilities while promoting patient-centered care to individuals with DD and encouraging partnerships with other health care providers, individuals, families, and community supports. Curriculum includes:
Definitions, prevalence and genetics of DD- Examination, diagnosis, treatment, and practice management
- Health disparities and barriers to care
- Disability as a social, political, and legal concept
- Dual diagnosis: disability and mental illness
- Guardianship and future planning
In addition to caring for patients at the Medical Home Clinic at Banner University Medical Center South Campus, residents have other opportunities to work with the disability community, such as administering health physicals to Special Olympics athletes (as pictured to the right).
Disability Interprofessional Activity
This anual activity brings together over 300 students from the Colleges of Public Health, Pharmacy, Medicine, Nursing, Law and Social Work to introduce the students to important topics in the lives of people with disabilities and to learn the value of working in a team with colleagues in other professions when providing care to people with disabilities. The Sonoran UCEDD coordinates the event in conjunction with the Interprofessional Education and Practice Program at the University of Arizona. The event includes a variety of activities to engage students including: viewing videos, hearing from professionals working in the field, participating in teams to work on case studies, and interacting with a panel of individuals with disabilities. The main message of this activity is that accessible and competent care involves working in partnership with the patient and other health care providers.