Disclosures: Connor M. Fultz, MD: No financial relationships or conflicts of interest

Background and/or Objectives: As of 2020, 26% of adults in the United States (US) have a disability, with 13.7% of the adult population with disability related to mobility. Despite the known health benefits, individuals with disabilities are less likely to participate in physical activity, leading to higher rates of obesity and chronic disease. Many environmental barriers limit opportunity for Para sport involvement, including lack of transportation, equipment, and accessibility to or knowledge of available Para sport opportunities. A comprehensive understanding of college-aged student’s access to Para sport opportunities in the US is unknown. The primary aim of this study was to determine the presence of opportunities for Para sports participation (varsity, club, recreational) at NCAA Division-1 Universities.

Design: Website Document Analysis

Setting: Online

Participants: N/A

Interventions: Document analysis of the athletic websites, general websites, and campus recreation webpages of all 358 NCAA Division-1 Institutions.

Main Outcome Measures: Presence of Para opportunity, level of competition, sports offered, private or public institution, region of the US.

Results: Of the 358 NCAA Division-1 Universities in the United States, only 73 (20.4%) schools offered Para sport opportunities (varsity, club, recreational); furthermore, only 14 (3.9%) of schools had varsity intercollegiate Para sport programs. Only 5.0% (6/121) of private institutions and 28.3% (67/237) of public institutions had Para sport opportunities. The Northeast region had the fewest number of schools with adaptive sport offerings at 6.0% (4/67 colleges). The most common sport offered was adaptive recreation/fitness (10.2%), followed by wheelchair basketball (7.4%).

Conclusions: All college-aged students should have sufficient access to participate in physical activity and sport to improve overall health and quality of life, including individuals with physical disabilities. Over 75% of Division-1 Universities lack an online description of Para sport opportunities. Improved access and opportunity for Para sport is needed at the collegiate level (varsity, club, and recreational), especially in the Northeast region and at private institutions.

Level of Evidence: Level V

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PM&R Meeting Abstracts - https://pmrjabstracts.org/abstract/website-document-analysis-of-para-sport-opportunities-at-ncaa-division-1-universities/