Friday, January 31, 2025
For Anaiza Irani, it was a dream come true. The second-year student at the Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine at The University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth and president of the student interest group Disability Right, Education and Activism in Medicine, or DREAM, hosted nearly 50 students from the Fort Worth ISD’s Boulevard Heights School and Transition Center for Project DREAM Big.
The event paired TCOM students with students from the transitional center, most of
whom are Special Olympic athletes, for a day of playing games and doing crafts, in
addition to experiencing a physical exam and osteopathic manipulative medicine.
The exams gave TCOM students the opportunity to learn to interact with this unique patient population, perhaps for the first time, and gain insight into how to correctly get consent and treat the individual.
“I wanted the event to be more than exams, that’s why we had games, crafts and the opportunity to create those bonds,” Irani said. “I wanted TCOM students to have that knowledge to diagnose and apply what they know and to get consent properly from those with intellectual disabilities.”
Along with the games and crafts, the students from the transitional school had the chance to get physical exams done by TCOM students to allow everyone to learn and get more comfortable in the patient-physician setting.
Students at Boulevard Heights School have intellectual disabilities and the school
offers an environment that fosters student success and builds their skills. The collaborative
effort had faculty from TCOM and UNTHSC’s Physician Assistant Studies program supervising
the students, but also taking part in the activities with the students from the school.
The event also featured a panel discussion that featured Dr. Sarah Matches, PA Lauren Dobbs, UNTHSC Pharmacy student Elizabeth Brownen, and other participants who shared their experiences with health care while also taking questions on how to help educate providers when encountering this population.
The event, which was inspired by Irani’s experience with Best Buddies as an undergraduate student, took months of planning but was a big success.
“Having this exposure is really helping us to become compassionate with each individual, teaching us empathetic and inclusive healthcare aspects for individuals with disabilities,” Irani said.
From HSC Newsroom - Community by Steven Bartolotta