DEC’s Research workgroup hosts triannual research presentations highlighting evidence for providing accessible care to people with disabilities. Research presentations engage a broad spectrum of stakeholders including researchers, advocates, policymakers, payers, providers, and more.
Recent Presentations
Disability Perspectives on the Adverse Effects of Medical Ableism
March 2026
Dr. Jae Kennedy discusses preliminary findings from his grant-funded project, supported by the National Institute on Child Health and Human Development (R01HD116323). The study uses data from the 2025 National Survey of Health and Disability (sample: n=2,506 adults with disabilities) to investigate disability-related problems with healthcare access and utilization problems in four domains: physical access, information access, informed decision-making, and respect from providers. These problems were linked to clinically or economically important health and healthcare outcomes.
Health and Disability Related Social Needs
February 2025
Dr. Jen Oshita, Lauren Levinton, and Dr. Carol Haywood present their work to identify and understand the social factors contributing to the disability community’s health disparities and healthcare outcomes. Pilot research revealed that chronic disability and health-related social risks are exceptionally common among patients in large, urban academic medical centers, and healthcare workers have poor awareness of these patient characteristics.
Implications for Healthcare Organizations and Teams: Section 1557/504 New Rules Webinar
September 2024
In this 90-minute webinar, three panelists (representing HHS, legal expertise, and a health system) share their experiences with implementing the New Rules from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. A 30-minute Q&A follows the panelist presentations.
Access to and Accessibility of Care for Rural Veterans with Disabilities: A Qualitative Evaluation of VA Healthcare Experiences
June 2024
Dr. Caroline Gray presents the results of 30 qualitative interviews with rural-dwelling Veterans who experienced at least one of three types of disabilities (hearing loss, vision loss, and mobility loss). Interviewees reported experiencing access barriers in five main areas. Given its focus on caring for Veterans with service-aggravated conditions and its commitment to equity, addressing these access barriers should be a high priority for VA.
Research Priorities to Advance Disability Equity in Healthcare (PDF)
In 2021, DEC’s Research Workgroup, in collaboration with other key stakeholders, released: “Patient Centered Outcomes Research Priorities to Advance Disability Equity.” The paper identifies critical priorities for patient-centered outcomes research, funding agencies, and policymakers to address in order to ensure accessible healthcare for people with disabilities.
Completed projects
Research Priorities to Address Disability Equity in Healthcare (PDF)
Learning Collaborative to Address Disability Equity in Healthcare (LEADERs). The aim of the study was to identify research priorities for advancing disability healthcare disparities and develop a sustainable learning collaborative.