We’re proud to share that a UCRH medical student from our 2024 cohort, Maddi Eveleigh has led a published research paper that shines a light on an important issue: why people with intellectual disability often miss out on important health checks.
The study, published in BMC Medical Education, looked at what helps—or gets in the way of—people with intellectual disability accessing annual health assessments. These check-ups can make a real difference, but not enough people are getting them.
The authoring team, which included several UCRH researchers as well as two former University of Sydney MD students from the Dubbo and Lismore programs, Dr Paul Caltabiano and Dr Brad Shea, who continue to work with us on research projects, reviewed studies from around the world. They found that most of the focus has been on what health services are doing (or not doing), like whether doctors offer these assessments, how they communicate, and whether they make adjustments to meet people’s needs.
But there’s less research on the other side of the story: how people with intellectual disability and their carers feel about these assessments, how much they know about them, and what might stop them from getting involved.
This work is a great example of how our students are contributing to real-world research that matters. It also shows the strength of our research community at UCRH, where former students stay connected and keep making a difference.
We’re excited to see where this research leads next, and proud to support students who are helping build a fairer, more inclusive health system.
Read the full publication here.
Read the associated opinion piece on Croakey Health Media here.
