The interaction of impairment, activity, social participation, and
contextual factors provides a basis for understanding the impact
of disability on an individual's life. This conceptualization is
in line with the recent
Institute
of Medicine (IOM; 1997) model of disability, which recognized
that disability is not longer inherent in the individual, but is
an outcome of the interaction of the person and their physical,
social, and psychological environment.
Given this complex set of factors that affects disability, an interdisciplinary
approach is necessary in order to produce systematic knowledge that
improves quality of life for individuals with disabilities. This
approach requires a "melding of knowledge from several disciplines
to understand the fundamental nature of the enabling-disabling process,
that is, how disabling conditions develop, progress, and reverse,
and how biological, behavioral, and environmental factors can affect
these transitions" (Brant & Pope, 1997, p.4).
The knowledge that comes out of such an approach can then be translated
into strategies that prevent or remove functional impairments, and
minimize disabling processes that lead to further impairment and
limitations. Students in the Therapeutic Science program will learn
the processes of knowledge generation and translation into practice,
and carry them out in careers that will support of people with disabilities,
their families, and their communities.
References: Brant & Pope (1997).
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The University of Kansas