Improving Access to Care for Special Olympics’ Athletes

Abstract

For individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, access to healthcare can be an issue. Due to the access to care concerns, Special Olympics hosts MedFests, which are events that provide the needed physical exams for individuals to participate. This project focused on the implementation of a MedFest event, with the focus on improving sustainability for this county. However, the event was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to this cancellation, the sustainability work was pushed to the forefront. The focus on sustainability including strengthening existing community partnerships and building new relationships to meet the needs of this population.