Providing Care to People With Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities in Medical Education

Medical professionals commonly report having inadequate training providing care for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). This pilot study aimed to address this gap through a virtual Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCE) with individuals with IDD as patient educators for 25 first- and second-year medical students (OSCE participants). Quantitative data through the Prediger competency scale and qualitative data through a semistructured interview were analyzed. OSCE participants reported a significant increase (p < 0.05) in self-perceived competency scores when comparing pre- and post-OSCE scores. Qualitative analysis yielded themes corresponding to improving skills, practice considerations, and perspectives and biases changes. These results suggested that this virtual OSCE promoted the development of self-perceived clinical competency and comfort providing care for individuals with IDD.