Reflections on the contributions of self-advocates to an interdisciplinary leadership development program for graduate students in health affairs.

Background: To advance equity and to enhance leadership skills, self-advocates with intellectual/developmental disabilities are now part of the cohort of trainees in the University of North Carolina LEND, which means that they fully participate in the Interdisciplinary Leadership Development Program, a collaboration among programs in public health, social work, and LEND, which meets monthly.

Objective: Given this important new participation by self-advocates, this study analyzes the reflections of graduate students on the contributions of self-advocates to their leadership training.

Methods: At the conclusion of the program each year, graduate students respond to a questionnaire about how self-advocates influenced the content and interactions/discussions of the monthly workshops and are asked to provide specific examples to explain their perceptions.