Essential Functions
Technical Standards for Admission, Continuation and Graduation
The NEOMED College of Medicine (COM) strives to provide all students with the training to become qualified physicians prepared to enter any residency program and for the subsequent contemporary practice of medicine in accordance with the standards specified by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education. As such, faculty must develop and implement a medical curriculum designed to educate humane physicians for the highest standards of the practice of medicine.
Preparation and training to become a physician requires each student to understand and to meet the Technical Standards Required for Admission, Continuation and Graduation identified below without or with reasonable accommodation. A candidate (and active student, hereafter referred to as candidate) for the Doctor of Medicine degree must be able to demonstrate intellectual-conceptual, integrative, and quantitative abilities; skills in observation, communication, motor functions; and mature behavioral and social attributes as required of a physician. The faculty has developed the course requirements and activities to provide critical elements of physician training. It is expected that students will be able to participate in all course activities and adhere to individual hospital rules and regulations as well as COM policies regarding these activities. Learning is based on active student participation rather than simple observation and/or note taking.
NEOMED embraces diversity and recognizes the value that individuals with disabilities add to the student body, institution, and profession. Individuals with disabilities have successfully completed the curriculum of the NEOMED College of Medicine with the support of reasonable accommodation and are engaged actively in clinical practices.
The following Technical Standards describe the non-academic essential qualifications required, in addition to academic achievements, for successful completion of the Educational Program Objectives of the NEOMED College of Medicine.
Observation
The candidate must be able to observe demonstrations and experiments in the basic sciences, examinations and procedures in the clinical environment, and be able to read test results. A candidate must be able to observe a patient accurately.
Communication
A candidate must be able to communicate effectively in English, and to observe patients in order to elicit information; describe changes in mood, activity and posture; and perceive nonverbal communications. A candidate must be able to communicate effectively and sensitively with patients and all members of the health care team.
Motor
Candidates must be able to elicit information from patients by palpation, auscultation, percussion, and other diagnostic maneuvers that comprise a complete physical examination. A candidate must be able to execute those motor activities reasonably required to provide general care, to perform those procedures specified by the curriculum, and to ensure the provision of emergency treatment to patients.
Intellectual-Conceptual, Integrative, and Quantitative Abilities
Candidates must possess abilities including measurement, calculation, reasoning, analysis, and synthesis because problem solving, the critical skill demanded of physicians, requires all of these intellectual abilities. In addition, the candidate must be able to comprehend three-dimensional relationships and to understand the spatial relationships of structures.
Behavioral and Social Attributes
A candidate must be able to fully utilize their intellectual abilities, exercise good judgment, and promptly complete all responsibilities attendant to the diagnosis and care of patients, as well as the development of mature, sensitive, and effective relationships with patients. Candidates must be able to tolerate physically taxing workloads and to function effectively under stress. They must be able to adapt to changing environments, to display flexibility, and to learn to function in the face of uncertainties inherent in clinical medicine. Commitment to excellence, service orientation, goal setting skills, academic ability, self-awareness, integrity, and interpersonal skills are all personal qualities that are assessed during the admission and education process. Because the nature of medical education is based on a mentoring process, candidates are expected to be able to accept constructive criticism and to respond with appropriate modification of behavior.
Process for Assessing the Applicant’s Compliance with the Technical Standards
Applicants are required to attest at the time they accept an offer to matriculate that they meet the College of Medicine’s Technical Standards, and thereafter must attest on an annual basis that they continue to meet the Standards. These Standards are not intended to deter any student who might be able to complete the requirements of the curriculum with reasonable accommodation. Requests from applicants for reasonable accommodation in meeting the Technical Standards will be reviewed and considered by the University Student Accessibility Services Committee. For additional information about the process for assessing an applicant’s compliance with the Technical Standards, contact the Office of Student Affairs.