Docs With Disabilities Initiative
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docswithdisability.bsky.social
Docs With Disabilities Initiative
@docswithdisability.bsky.social

The OFFICIAL #DocsWithDisabilities Initiative account: Podcast, Hashtag & Programs & Dr. Lisa Meeks DREAM (Disability Research and Education in Academic Medicine) Lab. Focused on Anti-Oppressive #HPE #MedEd #STEM Education .. more

Lisa M. Meeks is an American specialist in disabilities in health professions education and faculty at the University of Michigan Medical School. She has co-authored several articles in journals including The New England Journal of Medicine, The Lancet, JAMA (journal), and Academic Medicine (journal) and published books on the subject of disability in medical education, helping to inform policy and best practice. She is also creator of the web-based campaign #DocsWithDisabilities and host of the Docs With Disabilities Podcast. She also contributed to the formation of International Council on Disability Inclusion in Medical Education which aim to create shared standards regarding the support of qualified learners with disabilities in the medical profession that will serve as a benchmark for nations where rules on inclusion do not exist. Her work has been featured on NPR, the Washington Post, CNBC, in Slate, cleveland.com, Bloomberg Law, the Chicago Tribune and in The New Physician magazine from the American Medical Student Association (AMSA). .. more

Public Health 56%
Medicine 24%

New @acadmedjournal.bsky.social theme:

🌸Barriers to Entry and Transition🌸

💡Explores challenges disabled learners face in admissions + transitions through #MedEd, and solutions to support success.

🔗 bit.ly/AM_DisabilitySupplement

#DisabilityInclusion #UME #GME #DocsWithDisabilities

4/4 By standardizing the way we talk about accommodations, medical schools can:

🩵 Communicate more clearly with faculty and learners
🩵 Strengthen collaboration across programs
🩵 Build more inclusive, accountable learning environments 🤝

3/4🎙️ New from the @docswithdisability.bsky.social

Drs. Rastogi and Sullivan discuss standardized language for clinical accommodations and how it can advance equity, clarity & inclusion in #MedEd open.spotify.com/episode/4T47...
Episode 122: Clinical Accommodations in Undergraduate Medical Education
open.spotify.com

2/4 This national Delphi study in @acadmedjournal.bsky.social establishes consensus-based, standardized language for 75 clinical accommodations—a first for U.S. medical education.

🌟Standardized Language for Clinical Accommodations in U.S.... : Academic Medicine journals.lww.com/academicmedi...
journals.lww.com

We’re diving into the @acadmedjournal.bsky.social paper,
👉 “Standardized Language for Clinical Accommodations in U.S. Undergraduate Medical Training.”

A groundbreaking study + a powerful conversation on equity in medical education. 🩺✨
🧵(1/4)

Thank you so much for highlighting our work!

Reposted by Lisa M. Meeks

In this study of US medical students, Asian, Black, and Hispanic female medical students with disability were more likely to report general and race-based discrimination, whereas White and Asian female MSWD were more likely to report gender-based discrimination.

ja.ma/477t68c

🕯️ A Call for Mental Health Reform in Medical Education
In JAMA Internal Medicine, Jennifer & John Ruddell share the story of their son, Jack Ruddell, MD—a brilliant med student who died by suicide months before graduation.

📖 Read: bit.ly/Breaking_the...

Research & Resource Rounds Episode 20 follow's Dr. Michael Quon's examination of ableism a plan for Healthcare Workforce Well-Being. @mjquon shows how the wellness initiative miss disabled physicians' needs.
👉https://bit.ly/DWDI_RR_Ep20
#Research_Resource_Rounds
#DocsWithDisabilities

‪🩺 NEW in @acadmedjournal.bsky.social

Medical students uncertain about their disability status face higher burnout risk—with striking differences by race, ethnicity & gender.

🔗 Read: bit.ly/AcadMed_Demo...

#MedEd #DisabilityInclusion #Burnout #AcademicMedicine

Reposted by Lisa M. Meeks

Centering a Justice-Based Approach to #Disability #Inclusion in #MedEd: journals.lww.com/academicmedi.... #MedSky

Reposted by Lisa M. Meeks

Promoting #Disability #Inclusion Through an Expanded Conceptual Framework of the Learning Environment: journals.lww.com/academicmedi.... #MedEd #MedSky

New in the Journal of Professional Nursing!

This guest editorial calls for:
📊 National disability data
🤝 Association-led leadership
🧩 Structural reform in nursing education

Read the roadmap for systemic change:
🔗 bit.ly/DisabilityIn...

📢 New in the Journal of General Internal Medicine (JGIM): MSWD were 3x more likely to take a leave of absence during #MedEd.

Multiply marginalized students (non-White, low-income MSWD)? 7x more likely.

Structural change is overdue.
📖 Read: bit.ly/JGIM_Disabil...

📢 New study in @acadmedjournal.bsky.social

Nearly 1 in 2 med students with disabilities are diagnosed after starting school.

Delays—especially for first-gen and Black students—limit early accommodations and impact access from day one.

Read: bit.ly/AcadMed_Timi...

#MedEd #FirstGen

☀️ DWDI Summer Newsletter is LIVE!

📘 Highlights:
• Forbes Accessibility 100 🎉
• New Nursing Terminology Guide 🩺
• Clinical Accommodations Webinar Series 🎓
• DREAM Rounds on DRP systems & equity 🧠
• 15+ new publications & a stellar DRP cohort

Catch up on all the momentum:
🔗 bit.ly/DWDI_Newslet...
Summer Newsletter
July 13, 2025 A Note from Co-DirectorsSummer is here, and we hope you’re staying cool and soaking up some well-earned summertime joy!  Whether you're traveling, resting, or out enjoying the season, we...
bit.ly

📣 New from #DocsWithDisabilities!
The #AccessInNursing Guide helps DRPs support disabled nursing students by demystifying clinical education language, structure & expectations.

🧠 Learn key terms
🤝 Partner with faculty
📥 Download FREE: bit.ly/AIN_Terminol...

#AccessInNursing #DRPs #NursingEducation

📣 Medical schools can’t ensure equity without supporting the people who ensure access.

Join us Aug 14, 4–5 PM ET for #DREAMRounds on the role of DRPs in #MedEd & what institutions must do next.

🔗 Register: bit.ly/DREAMRounds_...

Article: journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

🎥 Missed the latest DREAM Research Rounds?

Now available:
👩‍⚕️ Lindsay Ma (M4) + 🧑‍⚕️ Dr. Christopher Grondin (@umichmedicine) on transcript accuracy + captions in med school.

📊 Survey + audit data
📺 Recording: bit.ly/DREAM_May_2025
📖 Read: link.springer.com/article/10.1...

#DREAMResearchRounds #MedEd

New episode! 🎧 Live from @afmc-ca.bsky.social #ICAM2025: Facing Ableism: What’s Our Role in Building Inclusion

A powerful panel of disabled clinicians & advocates explore:

🧠 Structural bias
💥 Lived experience
✅ Disability pride in medicine

🔗 bit.ly/DWDIPodcast_...
#MedEd #DocsWithDisabilities

🎥 ICYMI: @docswithdisability.bsky.social
March DREAM Research Rounds:

Beautiful talk by Dr. Megan EL Brown

Title: Rewriting Belonging: Disrupting Ableism in Medical Education Through Poetry

youtu.be/iN5S4FdhA1U?... via
@YouTube

#MedEd #DocsWithDisabilities #Poetry
Rewriting Belonging: Disrupting Ableism in Medical Education Through Poetry
YouTube video by DocsWithDisabilities Initiative
youtu.be

📝 Applications due July 31!

Apply now: bit.ly/WWDIM_Applic...

Join us in building a supportive, accessible, and empowering community for women with disabilities in medicine. 💙

#WWDIM #DocsWithDisabilities #WomenInMedicine

📢NEW in‪ acadmedjournal.bsky.social‬

1 in 4 med students face food insecurity
Disabled, low-income, URiM students? 60%+

This study is a wake-up call for medical education.
� https://bit.ly/AcadMed_IntersectionofDisabili#MedEd#M#DocsWithDisabilitiesl#FoodInsecuritycurity
The Intersection of Disability, Race, Ethnicity, and... : Academic Medicine
nces by disability status, race, ethnicity, and financial background. Method Between March–October 2024, 1,659 students across 15 MD-granting medical schools completed an online survey. Over the pa...
bit.ly

A new episode of Research & Resource Rounds covers the American Medical Association's 2024 Strategic Plan to Advance Health Equity.
The plan recognizes the interconnectedness of oppressions, including ableism and racism

👉 bit.ly/DWDI_RR_Ep19

#Research_Resource_Rounds #DocsWithDisabilities

New in @acadmedjournal.bsky.social “From Policy to Practice” by Green & Volpe. A striking case study shows how gaps in disability policy derail even the most promising trainees.

✅ Clear takeaways for #GME leaders. A #MedEd must read!

🔗https://bit.ly/AcadMed_Policy2Practice

#DocsWithDisabilities

📢New in @acadmedjournal.bsky.social: Triano & Meeks spotlight how DRPs shape #MedEd access through student support, policy reform & cultural change.

Yet only 9% of med schools employ a specialized DRP

Read more at link 👇

bit.ly/AcadMed_Stre...

#AccessInMedicine #DocsWithDisabilities

Our new paper calls for national disability data, association-led benchmarking, and collective leadership to dismantle ableism in nursing education.

📖 Read: doi.org/10.1016/j.pr...

#NursingEducation #DisabilityJustice #HealthEquity #AccessInNursing

🎉 We’re honored!

@docswithdisability.bsky.social named to the inaugural @Forbes Accessibility 100 List—🌍👏

“This is for every disabled learner & clinician whose resilience fuels our work.” – Dr. Justin Bullock

📰 bit.ly/Forbes_Educa...
#ForbesAccessibility100 #DocsWithDisabilities

🔍 New study: URiM med students with disabilities are
🛑 5.9× more likely to take an unintended LOA
⏳ 4.9× more likely to take longer to graduate

Systems change is needed!

📖 Read: bit.ly/AM_Compounde...
#MedEd #DisabilityInclusion #Intersectionality

We’re honored that @DocsWithDis has been named to the inaugural #ForbesAccessibility100 list! 💙

This recognition belongs to our entire community—centered on lived experience & driven by the principle: Nothing About Us Without Us.

🔗 bit.ly/Forbes_Educa...
#DisabilityInclusion #DocsWithDisabilities