Ethical Considerations Backing Disability Education Reform for Medical Students

Abstract: More than 1 in 4 Americans have some type of disability, yet only around 40% of physicians report feeling very confident in their ability to provide the same quality of care to patients with disabilities compared to those without. Previous studies have attributed health inequalities to physical barriers, lack of accessible transportation, or communication difficulties. However, there is increasing evidence of the role physician attitudes towards patients with disability play as a contributing factor to inequality. Stigmatizing or stereotyping attitudes towards patients with disabilities can hinder both quality of care and likelihood of returning to care. A comprehensive review of the current literature about physician’s attitudes towards patients with disabilities highlights the need for active efforts to improve quality of care leading to better health outcomes and health equity for this growing population. Disability education in medical schools takes on many forms, some with more influential outcomes than others, but time and resource allocation pose a barrier to training ideals. Viewing disability education in medical schools under a consequentialism lens reveals an ethical obligation to increase the quality of disability training within the bounds of each school. This paradigm not only allows for a grounding in bioethics to support a call for disability health justice within medical training, but suggests a framework for medical schools to utilize when choosing and employing a disability education model.

Keywords: disability justice, healthcare inequities, medical education