"I Just Had No Warning": Clinical Educators' Perceptions of Disability Accommodations for Rehabilitation Students

Reasonable accommodations in higher education are being more frequently requested by graduate occupational and physical therapy students within didactic and clinical contexts. Researchers aimed to describe the experiences of clinical educators in occupational and physical therapy mentoring graduate students with a disclosed accommodation during terminal clinical education, employing a qualitative design. Semi-structured interviews and one-time electronic survey were completed. Reflexive thematic analysis was conducted following the approach described by Braun and Clarke. Twelve occupational or physical therapy clinical educators participated in semi-structured interviews, each having mentored 1-2 students with a disclosed disability accommodation during a terminal clinical education experience. Four major thematic categories regarding accommodation use in terminal clinical emerged: 1) accommodation process, 2) team approach to accommodating, 3) fostering accommodations, and 4) ambiguity in facilitating accommodations. Clinical educators emphasized the importance of being informed about accommodations well in advance, adapting teaching methods, and maintaining regular communication between academic institutions, clinical sites, and students. Training for clinical educators on the disclosure process, legal obligations, and strategies for effective mentorship to ensure alignment of accommodation, academic requirements, and site expectations is essential.