From June 20-26, University of Minnesota faculty, staff and students from many disciplines will come together to provide free healthcare to more than 3,000 athletes as a part of the 2026 Special Olympics USA Games Healthy Athletes® program.

Many people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) often face significant barriers to quality healthcare — receiving substandard care or, in some cases, no care at all. In fact, people with IDD live an average of 16 years less than the general population due to underlying health conditions, which is why an interdisciplinary approach to healthcare is so beneficial.

Located at the Health Sciences Education Center on the Twin Cities campus, athletes can visit seven stations to receive screenings for their vision, hearing, oral, nutritional, emotional, physical and foot health. For some, it may function as their annual exams. It’s estimated that University faculty, staff and students will help provide more than 15,000 screenings during the week.

Listening closer, seeing clearer and smiling brighter

At one station, athletes — 41% of whom have blocked or partially blocked ear canals — can have their hearing evaluated by audiology and speech-language pathology students, under faculty supervision, and receive free hearing aids.

Kerry Witherell, director of clinical programs in audiology in the College of Liberal Arts and the clinical director for Special Olympics Minnesota’s Healthy Hearing program since 2014, explains that the program is incredibly valuable for students because it provides skills they couldn’t learn from textbooks.

“For some students, it’s their first time working with people with intellectual disabilities,” she says. “Often, their big lightbulb moment is hearing athletes’ stories. When students ask about the history of athletes’ hearing loss, they realize that it impacts all populations, not just our traditional older folks.”

At other stations, athletes can receive free eye assessments, sunglasses, sports goggles and prescription eyewear from Medical School volunteers, along with dental screenings, oral health education, mouthguard fittings and fluoride treatments from School of Dentistry volunteers.

Cultivating compassion and propelling performance

Physical and occupational therapy (OT) graduate student volunteers will provide screenings for flexibility, balance and foot health, along with strength assessments and share education on exercise and stretching.

One volunteer, Pat Maetzold, a physical therapist (PT) and a lab assistant in the Medical School’s Department of Physical Therapy, has two daughters who have competed in the Special Olympics. She will guide the second-year PT students who are required to participate in the program as a part of their pediatric coursework and integrated clinical education curriculum.

“It’s so important for primary care providers, PTs and OTs to have experience talking both with the individuals with intellectual disabilities and their family members because it can improve their understanding and compassion for them,” she says. “Speaking from a mom’s standpoint, I want the professionals I bring my kids to to know that they are valuable and have gifts, talents and abilities that people don’t always assume that they might have.”

People with IDD also have a higher prevalence of obesity, diabetes and chronic disease than the general population.

Volunteers from the College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences (CFANS), Medical School, School of Nursing, College of Pharmacy and School of Public Health will work at the Health Promotion station offering screenings for bone density, blood pressure and body mass index. The goal is to empower and motivate athletes to make healthy lifestyle choices by providing education focused on the importance of nutrition, hydration, handwashing and physical activity.

Therese Liffrig, director of the University of Minnesota Dietetic Internship in CFANS, explains that the program is an excellent professional development opportunity for students studying to become registered dietitian nutritionists.

“Our students are excited to work with athletes at Special Olympics to support their optimal game-day performance with nutrition plans customized to their specific needs and their specific sport,” she says. “Proper fueling and hydration for their events will help improve performance, whether that be for endurance, strength or speed, or to reduce their risk of injury.”

Nurturing strong minds and whole-athlete wellness

Mental health is just as important as physical health, which is why athletes can also visit the Strong Minds station.

Volunteers from the School of Social Work (SSW) in the College of Education and Human Development (CEHD), School of Nursing and the College of Pharmacy will conduct mental health screenings to assess how the athletes are managing their experience at the USA Games or their life in general, and provide education focused on stress reduction and self-care.

“Wholistically, attending to your mental health can impact your success in everything,” says Heidi M. Presslein, director of practicum education and graduate faculty member in SSW. “For athletes, thinking about sustaining good mental health is really important because there’s no sport where your performance won’t be impacted.”

Athletes try a few different active coping strategies as they move through the station from practicing their breathing to managing frustration and more.

“Whether the athletes are flying in with or without their caregiver, moving into a residence hall or staying in a new area, having a Healthy Athletes space is critical when the athletes are in new environments,” says Presslein. “Being able to have a community working together at the University to serve at this event is very exciting.”

Learn more about Healthy Athletes.