The Dr. Kiran C. Patel College of Osteopathic Medicine (KPCOM) is pledged to the admission and matriculation of qualified students and wishes to acknowledge awareness of laws that prohibit discrimination against anyone on the basis of race, color, religion or creed, sex, pregnancy status, national or ethnic origin, non-disqualifying disability, age, ancestry, marital status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, military service, veteran status, or political beliefs or affiliations. Regarding those students with verifiable disabilities, the university and KPCOM will not discriminate against such individuals who are otherwise qualified but will expect applicants and students to meet certain minimal technical standards (core performance standards) as set forth herein, with or without reasonable accommodation.
In adopting these standards, the university and KPCOM believe it must keep in mind the efficacy and safety in the learning environment, as well as the ultimate safety of the patients who some of its graduates will eventually serve. Specifically, the standards reflect what the university and KPCOM believe are reasonable expectations required of future osteopathic physicians in performing common functions. Any exceptions to such standards must be approved by the dean of KPCOM based upon appropriate circumstances.
Honor and integrity are essential and depend on the exemplary behavior of the individuals in their relations with classmates, patients, faculty members, and colleagues. This includes accountability to oneself and to relationships with fellow students, future colleagues, faculty members, and patients who come under the student’s care or contribute to the student’s training and growth, as well as members of the general public. This applies to personal conduct that reflects on the student’s honesty and integrity in both academic and nonacademic settings, whether or not involving an NSU-sponsored activity. All students must have the capacity to manage their lives and anticipate their own needs. Upon accepting admission to NSUKPCOM, each student subscribes to, and pledges complete observance to, NSU’s Student Code of Conduct Policies. A violation of these standards is an abuse of the trust placed in every student and could lead to suspension or dismissal.
Students in the Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine degree program must have, with or without reasonable accommodation, multiple abilities and skills including intellectual, conceptual, integrative, and quantitative abilities; interpersonal communication; mobility and strength; motor skills; and hearing, visual, tactile, behavioral, and social attributes. Students must be able to perform these abilities and skills in a reasonably independent manner. Osteopathic physicians must have the knowledge and skills to function in a broad variety of clinical situations and to render a wide spectrum of patient care. In order to carry out the activities described below, students in the Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine Program at KPCOM must be able to integrate consistently, quickly, and accurately all information received. They must also have the ability to learn, integrate, analyze, and synthesize data.
Intellectual, Conceptual, Integrative, and Qualitative Abilities
Students must have critical thinking ability sufficient for problem solving and good clinical judgment. This is necessary to identify cause/effect relationships and to develop plans of action or plans of care. In addition, students should be able to comprehend three-dimensional relationships and to understand the spatial relationships of structures. Students are expected to be able to perform multiple tasks in a diverse, dynamic, highly competitive, and challenging learning environment. They must be able to think quickly and accurately in an organized manner, despite environmental distractions. Examples include, but are not limited to, identification of cause/effect relationships in clinical situations, development of treatment plans, transferring knowledge from one situation to another, evaluating outcomes, problem solving, prioritizing, and using short- and long-term memory.
Interpersonal Communication
Students must be able to interact and communicate effectively with respect to policies, protocols, and process—with faculty and staff members, students, patients, patient surrogates, and administration—during the student’s educational program. They must be able to communicate effectively and sensitively with patients. Communication includes not only speech, but also reading and writing. Students must also be able to communicate effectively and efficiently in all written forms with all members of the health care team. They must have interpersonal abilities sufficient to interact with individuals, families, and groups from a variety of social, emotional, cultural, and intellectual backgrounds.
Students must have sufficient proficiency with English to retrieve information from texts and lectures and communicate concepts on written exams and patient charts; elicit patient backgrounds; describe patient changes in moods, activity, and posture; and coordinate patient care with all members of the health care team. Students must be able to communicate or provide communication in lay language so that patients and their families can understand the patient’s conditions, treatment options, and instructions. Students must be able to accurately enter information in the patient’s electronic health record, according to each program’s requirements.
Motor Skills
Osteopathic medicine students must have sufficient motor function to execute movements reasonably required to provide general care and emergency treatment to patients. Examples of emergency treatment reasonably required of some health care professionals are cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), administration of intravenous medication, the application of pressure to stop bleeding, the opening of obstructed airways, and the ability to calibrate and use various pieces of equipment. Such actions require coordination of both gross and fine muscular movements, equilibrium, and functional use of the senses of touch and vision.
Strength and Mobility
Students must have sufficient mobility to attend emergency codes and to perform such maneuvers as CPR when required. They must have the physical ability to move sufficiently from room to room and to maneuver in small places. Osteopathic medicine students must have the ability to position patients for the administration and delivery of osteopathic manipulative treatment in a variety of settings and to position and move patients when required.
Hearing
Students must have sufficient auditory ability to monitor and assess auditory communication, when necessary. Osteopathic medicine students must be able to hear information given by the patient in answer to inquires; to hear cries for help; to hear features in an examination, such as the auscultatory sounds; and to monitor equipment.
Visual
Osteopathic medicine students must have visual ability sufficient for observation, assessment, and rendering of treatment necessary in patient care. It must be consistent in many cases with being able to assess asymmetry, range of motion, and tissue texture changes. Osteopathic medicine students must have sufficient visual ability to use ophthalmologic instruments. It is necessary to have adequate visual capabilities for proper evaluation and treatment integration. Students must be able to observe the patient and the patient’s responses, including body language and features of the examination and treatment.
Tactile
Osteopathic medicine students must have sufficient tactile ability for physical assessment. They must be able to perform palpation and functions of physical examination and/or those related to therapeutic intervention. Osteopathic medicine students must be able to use tactile senses to diagnose directly by palpation and indirectly by sensations transmitted through instruments.
Sensory
Osteopathic medicine students are required to have an enhanced ability to use their sensory skills. These enhanced tactile and proprioceptive sensory skills are essential for appropriate osteopathic evaluation and treatment of patients.