Evaluation of medical students' attitudes towards people with intellectual disabilities: a naturalistic study in one medical school

Purpose ‐ It is increasingly recognised that people with intellectual disabilities have poorer access to health care. One of the recommendations from the independent report, Healthcare for All is compulsory undergraduate medical teaching about people with intellectual disabilities. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the attitudes of medical students towards people with intellectual disabilities. The authors hypothesised that knowledge and attitude will change over the course of a 14-week Neurosciences block, which included a taught intellectual disabilities module and opportunity to undertake a clinical placement. Design/methodology/approach ‐ The authors conducted a naturalistic prospective study in a London university. Data were collected at the beginning and the end of each of the three 14-week Neurosciences blocks during the year. Attitude was measured using a self-report questionnaire, including an amended short form of the Community Living Attitudes Scale (CLAS), administered in hard and e-copy. Findings ‐ In total 136 medical students (35 per cent response rate) completed the questionnaire at the beginning and 133 (34 per cent response rate) at the end of the block. By the end of the block, students had increased knowledge of the definition of intellectual disability. Medical students showed generally favourable attitudes towards people with intellectual disabilities but there was no significant change in attitude between the start and end of the block. Originality/value ‐ This study shows that didactic teaching and limited exposure to people with intellectual disabilities, although it increases knowledge, is not enough to affect the kind of changes required to improve attitude. Increased face to face contact with people with intellectual disabilities and other innovative teaching methods are more likely to influence attitude in future medical practitioners. These will require further evaluation.