IntellectAbility and NPACE Partner to Bring Vital IDD Healthcare Education to Clinicians to Reduce Health Disparities for People With IDD

Many healthcare providers have not received the education or training necessary to ensure disability-competent healthcare for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). Now ? through the use of a targeted curriculum ? IntellectAbility and the Nurse Practitioner Associates for Continuing Education (NPACE) are leading the way in reducing health disparities for people with IDD.

CLEARWATER, Fla., Oct. 24, 2022 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- According to the National Council on Disability Health Equity Framework for People with Disabilities,¹ people with IDD face significant, preventable health disparities. In a call to action to improve the healthcare provided to people with IDD, the framework recommends comprehensive disability clinical-care curricula be required for nursing and healthcare professionals. The goal is to empower healthcare professionals to better understand the healthcare needs of people with IDD. To respond to this need, IntellectAbility and NPACE are partnering to give healthcare providers practical and immediately usable clinical knowledge to improve healthcare for people with IDD, using the online Curriculum in IDD Healthcare (CIDDH).

People with IDD present unique health challenges that practicing physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses, and other healthcare professionals are often unprepared to address. Implementing the Curriculum in IDD Healthcare has shown to be effective in improving IDD clinical competency among healthcare providers and students. Feedback from clinicians and students who took the course shows that the CIDDH is doing precisely that.

"IntellectAbility's Curriculum in IDD Healthcare teaches the fundamentals of IDD healthcare, providing StationMD clinicians with pertinent, practical information which is critical to the provision of IDD competent telehealth supports", shares Dr. Maulik Trivedi, Chief Strategy Officer of StationMD. "That is why we at Station MD use the CIDDH to educate our physicians and nurse practitioners."

IntellectAbility is partnering with NPACE to make the curriculum more widely available to Nurse Practitioners who encounter people with IDD on a regular basis and, as a result, need access to pertinent, practical information designed to enhance their IDD healthcare competence.

This online course is specifically created for clinicians, including physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, dentists, nurses, allied health professionals, and students of these disciplines. It was written and delivered by Craig Escudé, MD, FAAFP, FAADM, with over 20 years of experience providing medical care for people with IDD and teaching others about this area of medicine on a national level.

"We are excited to partner with IntellectAbility to provide IDD healthcare-specific education and training to nurse practitioners and other clinicians. Through a dedicated curriculum in IDD healthcare, we believe we can work together to overcome health disparities," states Josh Plotkin, COO at NPACE.

Eliminating barriers to health equity allows people with IDD to participate fully in all aspects of community life, realize their dreams, and mitigate the impacts of poor health and the burden of chronic disease. This mission has led these organizations to lead the way in improved training and educational opportunities for healthcare providers. To learn more, visit http://www.ReplacingRisk.com.

About IntellectAbility
IntellectAbility provides tools and training to agencies, governmental entities, and supporters of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities to foster early recognition and mitigation of health risks, thereby improving health and wellness. One such tool is the Health Risk Screening Tool (HRST), of which they are the sole developer, producer, and distributor. The web-based HRST is the most widely used and validated health risk screening instrument for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. IntellectAbility also provides numerous health-related and person-centered service trainings for supporters of people with IDD. With unrelenting focus, IntellectAbility works to fulfill its mission of improving health and quality of life for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and other at-risk populations. For more information, visit http://www.ReplacingRisk.com.

Reference:
1. "Health Equity Framework for People with Disabilities." Released February 2022, Updated August 2022. National Council on Disability.https://ncd.gov/sites/default/files/NCD_Health_Equity_Framework.pdf

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SOURCE IntellectAbility