‘In Dialogue’ Episode 20: Rehumanizing Medicine by Addressing Ableism in Health Care
Reading time: 2 minutes Drs. Lynn Ashdown and Caroline Bowman, who both have lived experience with disability, speak candidly about their experiences navigating the healthcare system as providers and as patients living with disabilities.
Ableism is a Health Hazard
Reading time: 9 minutes Ableism is everywhere. Physicians with lived experience describe struggling with their internalized biases as they come to understand what it means to live with a disability.
Collaborating on Health Care Solutions
Reading time: 3 minutes Dr. Nancy Whitmore, Registrar and CEO, discusses both challenges and reasons for optimism in the health care system in her letter to the profession.
‘In Dialogue’ Episode 15: Inclusive Healthcare for People with IDD
Reading time: 2 minutes Dr. Yona Lunsky, PhD, the inaugural director of the Azrieli Adult Neurodevelopmental Centre, talks about treating people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), the benefits of flexible and trauma-informed care, and addressing ableism in healthcare.
Invisible Three Percent
Reading time: 8 minutes One family physician explains her patient-centred approach to making a difference in the lives of patients with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
The Importance of Feeling Safe
Reading time: 8 minutes People with intellectual and developmental disabilities may feel unsafe in a clinical setting, but a little bit of patience and compassion can go a long way in creating trust.
Being a True Ally
Reading time: 14 minutes Allyship begins by examining the structures and hierarchies that govern medical culture and then working collectively to dismantle them — ultimately helping us all.
Ask the Patient, Not the Parent
Reading time: < 1 minute The habit of directing all questions to a disabled child’s parents instead of the patient is real and pervasive, says a reader who spent his career caring for children with disabilities.
What do Disability Biases Look Like in Practice?
Reading time: 13 minutes Doctors can provide exemplary care, but also aren’t immune from biases. How do biases play out when it comes to patient experiences and care?
Examining the Root Causes of Ableism
Reading time: 7 minutes Assumptions are often made about people with disabilities. These include thinking that disabilities are a deviation from the norm, and people with disabilities want to be “fixed.”