Occupational therapist Ashley Castillo guides PA students in using a Hoyer lift to safely transfer patient educator Steven Ruiz.
For patients living with physical limitations or a mobility disability, even routine medical visits can pose major challenges. Too often, exam tables are inaccessible, and providers may lack the training to perform safe transfers, limiting patients’ ability to receive thorough physical exams and essential diagnostic tests.
The Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine (FIU Medicine) addresses this by training its medical and physician assistant students in one of the only structured, hands-on mobility disability education programs in the country.
The Safe Transfer Workshop built into the curriculum trains about 160 students each year on how to safely transfer patients from a wheelchair to an exam table. FIU Medicine faculty lead the sessions alongside medical safe transfer experts—including physical, occupational, and recreational therapists—and “patient educators” living with paralysis.
“I realized how important it is to tailor care to each patient’s specific needs and comfort,” says third-year medical student Manal Imran, who earned an Honorable Mention in this year’s American Board of Internal Medicine Building Trust Essay Contest for her piece on caring for a patient who is a wheelchair user.
“I’ve personally experienced barriers to basic medical care,” says Dr. Susan Solman, an associate professor whose idea it was to launch the mobility disability-focused trainings. Paralyzed at 39 due to a spinal cord tumor, Solman became an advocate for improving medical training in this area. “Through my work with the disability community and hearing similar experiences, it became clear that these challenges were part of a widespread, systemic issue.”
During the workshop, students rotate through several stations, each featuring a patient educator with different transfer needs. They assist with transfers using various approaches, including a slide board, a Hoyer lift, or no equipment at all. At each station, students also hear personal stories and practice bedside manner, strengthening their skills, understanding, and confidence in caring for patients living with paralysis.
“Talking with people living with paralysis really helped me get past my fear of saying the wrong thing,” says physician assistant student Ana Esclasans. “It made me realize connection matters more than perfect words.”
“I feel better prepared to advocate for safe, respectful care and to guide others in a clinic when transferring a patient isn’t done due to lack of training,” says physician assistant student Ingrid Garrido. She was surprised to learn that transferring patients to receive complete physical exams is not standard practice.
Steven Ruiz was one of the first patient educators incorporated into the program five years ago. He has lived with paralysis for more than 10 years following a car accident, and he believes this education can transform how future health care providers treat people with paralysis. “I hope this experience empowers students to be the change we need,” he says.
Ruiz, who requires a patient lift (i.e., Hoyer lift) to transfer onto an exam table, has felt the gap in care firsthand—waiting months for a doctor’s appointment, only to be rescheduled because the office couldn’t accommodate him. “It’s incredibly frustrating. What if it was something serious?”
He also tells students he rarely gets weighed in medical offices, even though getting weighed is a standard part of routine exams. At the Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, accessible exam tables have integrated scales—equipment still lacking in many medical facilities.
Medical students practice physical exams on patient educator Joe Russel with guidance from Dr. Maria Stevens.
“Unfortunately, the health care system is behind in making sure facilities and services are accessible to everyone,” says Jody Cox, an ADA-certified project administrator for Miami-Dade County. Cox, a certified recreational therapist with experience coaching adaptive sports, joined the workshop this year as an educator. “This type of training should be standard in all medical and allied health programs, as well as part of continuing education.”
“No other medical school is offering this training,” says Solman, citing her research and conversations with leaders at this year’s Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education Disability Summit. She says other schools have approached her for guidance on implementing similar programs, and several institutions are now adopting the FIU Medicine training model.
This education has been supported through grants from the Craig H. Neilsen Foundation and the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation.