Background: The underrepresentation of students and professionals with disabilities in health professions is well-documented in research, emphasizing the urgent need for greater inclusivity. Institutional structures often restrict disabled individuals from sharing their specialized knowledge on navigating disability, perpetuating epistemic injustice. Research emphasizes the importance of amplifying their voices to address inequities and restore epistemic justice.
Objectives: This study explores the firsthand, experiential views of the challenges and supporting factors that disabled students and professionals face in the health professions education and practice. Participants provided advice for their disabled peers and non-disabled allies. The development of a critical disability epistemology amplifies underrepresented voices in the health field.
Design: This qualitative study was guided by a constructivist approach, with data analysis informed by reflective thematic analysis.
Methods: A series of semi-structured interviews were conducted with 56 participants (27 students and 29 professionals) in nursing, medicine, occupational therapy, physiotherapy, and social work. Participants were interviewed up to three times over the course of a year, resulting in a total of 124 interviews.
Results: Two main categories were identified. Category one, advice for disabled students and professionals, includes the themes: (1) Negotiating disclosure processes to mobilize support, (2) Recognizing personal boundaries and strengths while actively seeking mentorship, and (3) Advocating for oneself and others. Category two, advice for non-disabled allies, encompasses the themes: (4) Fostering inclusivity through thoughtful language, education, and support, and (5) Actively promoting systemic change.
Conclusion: The findings enhance the epistemic agency of disabled individuals by utilizing community resources for collective knowledge production. They offer valuable guidance for educators, institutions, and policymakers, providing a roadmap for making health education programs and workplaces more inclusive and supportive for disabled individuals.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2025.106584 | DOI Listing |
Am J Geriatr Psychiatry
February 2025
Department of Psychiatry (AJCS, EJG), Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands; Health Campus The Hague (EJG), Department of Public Health & Primary Care, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands. Electronic address:
Background: The prevalence of depressive symptoms, apathy, and cognitive decline increases with age. Understanding the temporal dynamics of these symptoms could provide valuable insights into the early stages of cognitive decline, allowing for more timely and effective treatment and management.
Methods: Participants from the Prevention of Dementia by Intensive Vascular Care (preDIVA) trial cohort with baseline and ≥3 follow-up measurements were included, with a median of 7.
Can J Cardiol
March 2025
Department of Cardiology, Rabin Medical Center, Petah Tikva, Israel; The Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.
Background: The use of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) for severe aortic stenosis is expanding to patients across the entire spectrum of surgical risk. We aimed to perform a meta-analysis comparing TAVI and surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) in trials enrolling lower risk patients.
Methods: We conducted a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing safety and efficacy outcomes between TAVI and SAVR among lower risk patients (mean/median STS score <4).
Neuroimage
March 2025
Department of Psychiatry, Gifu University Graduate School of Medicine, Gifu, Japan.
An auditory steady-state response (ASSR) is an electrophysiological response to periodic stimuli that reflects the synchronization of endogenous oscillations. The 40-Hz ASSR is reduced in patients with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and autism spectrum disorder, making it a candidate biomarker for these psychiatric disorders. Previous studies have revealed that experimental conditions such as stimulus duration and inter-stimulus interval tend to affect ASSR, suggesting that novelty detection may play an important role in determining the magnitude of ASSR.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPediatrics
March 2025
Division of Primary Care Pediatrics, Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio.
Krabbe disease (KD), which affects 0.3-2.6 per 100 000 live births, is an autosomal recessive lysosomal disorder caused by variants in the GALC gene that reduce galactosylceramidase (GALC) activity, leading to psychosine accumulation, cerebral white matter degeneration, and peripheral neuropathy.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGan To Kagaku Ryoho
February 2025
Dept. of Rehabilitation Medicine, Keio University School of Medicine.
As cancer becomes more of a chronic condition, cancer rehabilitation care aimed at maintaining and improving patients' quality of life(QOL)is becoming increasingly important. Cancer rehabilitation care addresses both disabilities caused by cancer itself and those that arise during the treatment process. Cancer rehabilitation is divided into four phases-preventive, restorative, supportive, and palliative.
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