The Disability Tab is a way to immediately access information about your patients’ disability accommodation needs. Information is fed to the Disability Tab through a patient facing questionnaire in the patient portal, or through entry by clinic staff.

The Disability and Accommodations Tab is available in MiChart, on the patient Storyboard (see the image on the left).

Selected disabilities appear in red text.

Clicking on the Disability Accommodations section of the Storyboard and selecting an encounter will launch a view screen allowing you to see the disabilities the patient has identified having, and the requested accommodations for those disabilities.

For example, this patient indicates they are Hard of Hearing/Deaf/Deaf-blind and require the use of an ASL interpreter, and requests that provider(s) and staff wear an approved clear mask (see our Resources page). Clinic staff should see these accommodations and ensure that Interpreter Services is aware of the patient’s appointment, and that the clinic has clear masks available.

The Disability and Accommodations Tab is live in MiChart. Patients with portal access can complete the patient facing questionnaire and provide information on their disability accommodation needs to Michigan Medicine. Clinics can learn about patient accommodation needs through the patient’s Storyboard, the Multi-Provider Schedule, or the Department Appointments Report (DAR). We recommend looking at the Multi-Provider Schedule or DAR a few days prior to patient appointments to ensure that your clinic can provide requested patient accommodations.

We are currently working on ways to better integrate the Disability Tab into clinic workflows to ensure accommodation needs are met. As of late October 2021, we are piloting workflows at Dexter Family Medicine. If your clinic is interested in establishing a workflow to implement the Disability Tab, please contact the Disability Tab Coordinating Team (email: [email protected]).

• Resources, Protocols, Workflow, and Tip Sheets for Providers and Clinic Staff 
• Frequently Asked Questions

The Disability Tab Coordinating Team manages revisions to the Tab and has ongoing projects focused on the implementation and usability of the Disability Tab. For questions or inquiries about collaborations, please contact us via email at [email protected].

• Heather Halkides – Ambulatory Application Coordinator, Health Information Technology Services.
• Tyler G. James, PhD, CHES – Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Department of Family Medicine.
• Michael M. McKee, MD, MPH – Co-Director of U-M CDHW, Associate Professor, Department of Family Medicine.
• Michelle A. Meade, PhD – Co-Director of U-M CDHW, Professor, Department of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation and Family Medicine.
• Christa Moran, MEd – Supervisor, Interpreter Services
• Sophia Park – Research Assistant II, Department of Family Medicine

We could not accomplish the work of implementing the Disability Tab without clinic- and department-level champions who support this work. If you are interested in serving as a champion for the Disability Tab, please email the Coordinating Team at [email protected].

• Family Medicine at Dexter Health Center: Alyssa P. (Medical Assistant) and Meghan F. (Medical Assistant/Front Clerk)