Ryan, TA; (2014) Medical students’ attitudes towards healthcare for people with learning disabilities. Doctoral thesis (D.Clin.Psy), UCL (University College London).

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Abstract

This thesis is presented in three parts. The overall focus of the thesis is medical students’ attitudes towards healthcare for people with learning disabilities. Medical students’ attitudes are important because, as tomorrow’s doctors, they will have opportunities to reduce the health inequalities experienced by people with learning disabilities. The first part presents a review of literature on medical students’ attitudes towards people with learning disabilities and their healthcare. Despite being limited by methodological weaknesses, reviewed studies suggested that pedagogical interventions could enhance medical students’ attitudes. It was concluded that further investigation of medical students’ attitudes towards healthcare for this population was warranted. Part two is an empirical paper that documents qualitative and quantitative studies of medical students’ attitudes towards healthcare for people with learning disabilities. In the first study, a thematic analysis of data from individual interviews with medical students was described. A measure of medical students’ beliefs about healthcare for people with learning disabilities was developed and psychometrically evaluated in the second study. Together, these studies indicated that medical students’ attitudes might benefit from more learning disabilities teaching and direct experiences with people with learning disabilities. Part three is a critical appraisal of the literature and the two studies. The research rationale and strengths and weaknesses of the research were explored. Then, practical implications and future research directions were discussed. Finally, a conclusion and personal reflections were provided.

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