Module 2: Promoting Provider-Patient Relationships in Acute Care Settings

Introduction to the Module

You will begin your exploration of implicit and explicit bias and its impact on health outcomes for adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities.  This content will be foundational to the development of your confidence and skills around caring for the population.

Introduction of the Subject Matter Expert: 

Melissa Desroches is an Assistant Professor of Community Nursing at the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth. She is a nurse researcher and educator. Her current research interests are around reducing the inequities experienced by people with developmental disabilities, with a particular focus on healthcare provider attitudes and their contribution to poorer health outcomes for people with intellectual disabilities.

What you will learn:   

1. Describe implicit and explicit attitude (bias) formation and common beliefs and misconceptions contributing to negative nurse attitudes
2. Identify care outcomes of negative nurse attitudes/misconceptions.
3. Describe challenges strategies to caring for hospitalized adults with IDD, as identified by medical surgical nurses 
4. Describe ameliorative strategies to caring for hospitalized adults with IDD, as identified by medical surgical nurses
5. Describe the specific issue with quality-of-life assumptions
6. Discuss negative healthcare provider attitudes: applying principles of cultural competency to include disability and IDD