College of Health and Human Sciences, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, Illinois, USA.
AdventHealth Sports Med and Rehab, Rome, Georgia, USA.
Phys Ther. 2024 Sep 4;104(9). doi: 10.1093/ptj/pzae108.
People with disabilities are considered a historically marginalized population that experiences significant health disparities resulting from the unequal distribution of resources as evidenced in the social determinants of health. Health professions education presents an opportunity to explore the policy, systems, and environmental changes that are needed to improve social conditions and address known disparities for people with disabilities. Evidence suggests that inclusion of learners with diverse lived experiences, including students with disabilities, strengthens our understanding of the influence of social determinants on health and our ability to address known barriers. Unfortunately, people with disabilities and other minoritized individuals are grossly underrepresented in physical therapy. It is imperative that doctor of physical therapy (DPT) education more intentionally promotes the full inclusion of students with disabilities to improve representation and to better support the complex needs of this population. In this perspective, we describe key social determinants of health for people with disabilities, offer strategies for increasing representation and inclusion of students with disabilities in DPT education, and summarize how the inclusion of students with disabilities in DPT education can enhance our understanding of and ability to address social barriers for this population.
残疾人被认为是一个历史上被边缘化的群体，由于健康的社会决定因素，资源分配不均，导致他们经历了显著的健康差距。医疗保健专业教育提供了一个机会，可以探讨需要进行政策、制度和环境改变，以改善残疾人的社会条件和解决已知的差距。有证据表明，包括具有不同生活经历的学习者，包括残疾学生，能够加强我们对社会决定因素对健康的影响的理解，以及我们解决已知障碍的能力。不幸的是，残疾人以及其他少数群体在物理治疗领域的代表性严重不足。物理治疗博士（DPT）教育必须更有针对性地促进残疾学生的全面包容，以提高代表性，并更好地满足这一人群的复杂需求。在这篇观点文章中，我们描述了残疾人的健康的关键社会决定因素，提出了增加残疾学生在 DPT 教育中的代表性和包容性的策略，并总结了将残疾学生纳入 DPT 教育可以如何增强我们对这一人群的社会障碍的理解和解决能力。
