Reducing barriers through education: A scoping review calling for structured disability curricula in surgical...

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Surgical Care
• Health Equity

Background:

• Patients with disabilities encounter significant barriers in accessing surgical care due to system-wide inaccessibility.
• Lack of provider education on reasonable accommodations for surgical patients with disabilities perpetuates health inequities.
• Inaccessible health systems contribute to poor clinical outcomes for individuals with disabilities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the current state of disability curricula within medical education and graduate surgical residency programs.
• To identify the extent to which medical training addresses the needs of surgical patients with disabilities.

Main Methods:

• A scoping review of existing literature was conducted.
• The review focused on the integration of disability-related topics in medical and residency curricula.

Main Results:

• A link exists between training on reasonable accommodations and improved patient-provider relationships and clinical outcomes.
• Disability-focused curricula are infrequently implemented in medical and surgical training.
• Existing curricula are often limited in scope and duration, focusing primarily on awareness.

Conclusions:

• The scarcity of structured curricula on anti-ableism and disability care fosters systemic ableism.
• Expanding disability education for medical students and trainees presents an opportunity to improve surgical care for all patients.
• Integrating comprehensive disability curricula can help dismantle structural ableism in healthcare.