An Exploration of the Clinical Accommodation Process for Nursing Students with Physical Disabilities Using Grounded Theory.

AIM

The purpose of this study was to uncover the process by which nursing faculty make reasonable academic accommodations in the clinical environment for nursing students with orthopedic impairments.

BACKGROUND

Accommodating students with disabilities is necessary in nursing education. Unfortunately, policies, procedures, and practices for accommodation in nursing education are lacking. Nursing faculty lack resources for accommodation implementation for students with disabilities.

METHOD

Constructivist grounded theory methods according to Charmaz, K. (2014). Constructing grounded theory (2nd ed. ed.). Thousand Oaks, California: Sage guided data collection and analysis.

RESULTS

Two defined processes were uncovered. "Faculty Perceptions of Their Experience Navigating the Clinical Accommodation Process" discusses external factors that affected implementation. "Reaching the Bottom Line" describes the essential elements of the implementation process.

CONCLUSION

Seven steps of the accommodation process were identified. Additional research is needed to determine the effectiveness of each step and explore possible ways to mitigate numerous barriers to the accommodation process which participants also described.