The Problem Despite the mandates of the Americans with Disabilities Act, intellectually and developmentally disabled (IDD) patients still face barriers to receiving equitable care, including: Physical and structural barriers Challenges with communication Attitudinal biases One form of attitudinal bias is physician confidence in treating IDD patients, especially those with difficulties communicating. U.S. physicians report less comfort treating disabled patients due to limited training, bias and uncertainty about their needs. Few interventions target improving clinician confidence in treatment. As a result, IDD patients face significant health outcome disparities. The Approach To address this disparity, Dr. Peabody Smith and her team: Conducted exploratory qualitative interviews with U.S. physicians. Interviews assessed experiences serving IDD patients, relevant training and education, comfort levels, barriers encountered, support needs and clinical interactions. Findings informed the creation of a new survey instrument to be disseminated in fall 2025 to a target sample of 1,500 active, board-certified physicians. Improving Health Outcomes for Intellectually and Developmentally Disabled Persons “In a world that is more and more connected, improving communication—especially for those who can’t speak for themselves—is key to promoting health justice.” Ally Peabody Smith, PhD Short Term Impact Assess medical school and professional training education modules on IDD patient care. Identify potential implicit biases impacting care. Longer Term Impact Develop tools or training materials for clinicians. Develop a ‘social network’ smartphone app to connect the full care team of IDD patients. Societal Impact Funding for this research supports the advancement of health equity for IDD patients by uncovering the key barriers to patient care and creating innovative tools that enhance real-time collaboration among care teams. This research has societal benefits in the following areas: For more information visit https://health.lehigh.edu/research-partners or email INRSRCH@lehigh.edu 29 Community/Culture: Build collaboration between IDD persons and their support persons. Policy: Develop measures that enable clinicians to effectively serve IDD persons, such as increased appointment times paid for by insurance companies. Education: Develop educational materials for IRBs, support persons and clinicians.
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