A One-Year Fellowship in the Care of People with Disabilities: A Demonstration Project

Abstract

People living with disabilities have difficulties accessing and obtaining health care, and the care they receive is often inequitable compared to that offered to people without disabilities. This disparity is partly due to insensitivity by health care providers, but lack of provider education in the care of people with disabilities is a persistent and prevalent problem. Approach: Starting in July, 2021, Thomas Jefferson University will offer a one-year clinical fellowship in the care of people with disabilities. Available to graduates of Internal Medicine and Family Medicine residency programs and housed in our Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, the fellowship is intended to train physicians to provide medical care to people with a variety of disabilities while preparing them to help institutions offer more accessible and comprehensive care. This manuscript describes the fundamental features of this novel training program, and how the authors reached consensus on its central aims, clinical rotations, curricula, and supporting experiences. Expected Outcomes: In the first 3 years of the fellowship, program leaders will track: 1) learners' knowledge of a variety of secondary effects of disability; 2) learners' comfort in assessing co-occurring and secondary conditions of disabilities and in providing clinical care to people with disabilities; 3) learners' academic output, satisfaction with the fellowship, and employability, and; 4) the financial feasibility of sustaining the training program.