Student Spotlight: Carolyn Maxwell

Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (LEND) is a graduate-level interdisciplinary training program focused around improving the health of people with disabilities. I have always been interested in how interdisciplinary teams work together to provide the best care for a patient, and I thought of LEND as an excellent opportunity to learn from other healthcare providers' perspectives.

I was interested in LEND, but I was also worried about overloading my plate. I am a dual degree student, and I have a job as a clinical research assistant; suffice to say, I am busy enough. When Jodie discussed these opportunities through LEND, she explained a new program they were piloting called the Medium Term Traineeship (MTT). The MTT would allow me to pick LEND learning modules I was interested in and participate in a long-term project. To complete the MTT, you participate in at least 40 hours of LEND events and attend two monthly MTT meetings.

I completed the MTT through LEND this year, and it was such an impactful experience. I entered the MTT expecting to learn about interdisciplinary teams and their perspectives to enhance my practice. What I actually learned about were transdisciplinary teams, in which the family and their input are integral in all health decisions. In LEND, there are trainees such as speech-language pathology, occupational therapy, and many more health care disciplines. Importantly, families are also trainees in LEND who attend all the classes and participate in the events. These families have a child with a neurodevelopmental disability or themselves have a disability. The family's perspectives challenged how I approached problems and enhanced my understanding of the challenges and the joys of having a child with a neurodevelopment disability. The MTT enhanced my knowledge of so many topics we discussed in our coursework and will impact my understanding in clinical as well.

For more information about the LEND program, check out:
https://www.lend.pitt.edu/