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Hello everyone, this is my first thread posting and I have to say I really enjoy this site. I have been drawn to the medical profession by the age of 12 mostly because of a show called Emergency 911 --not sure if it rings a bell to most. Unfortunately, I was also diagnosed with bilateral tarsal coalitions (boney bridges between joints in both feet) while cause me lots of pain after prolonged standing.

 

One surgery didn't solve the problem so now Im waiting to do the second and last that can be done. Basically I would like to know if there is any possibility of being a med student with a disability. I do have another 3 years of an undergrad ahead of me so there is still time but I would definitely like to plan ahead if there is absolutely no chance of med school for me.

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It doesn't sound like it would prevent you from doing anything. Maybe you won't be able to stand through a 12-hr surgery, but unless you want to be a surgeon, I don't see that as a problem. Even if you wanted to be a surgeon, I'm sure you could be accomodated so that you could sit through the surgery rather than stand.

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hi Gooner

 

not a med student - but i can answer this for you :) in the OMSAS booklet they have a section for students with disabilities, stating what skills you need physically as a physician. as long as you can communicate, and do some basic things, like percussion, use a stethoscope, etc etc (they're all listed in the OMSAS booklet, take a look), even in an adaptive manner, you are ok. there are doctors nowadays who are blind, have an amputated arm, are deaf, have diseases like muscular dystrophy and the list goes on. med schools accomodate a lot and nowadays, it's not like it was 100 years ago when anyone with a disability would have (pretty much) no chance at med school. there is also a canadian association of disabled doctors, here is the link:

 

http://www.capd.ca/

 

your problem seems very minor and it will only get in your way if you allow! be strong and don't let anyone tell you that you can't do it :)

 

you can PM me anytime you like to ask more about stuff like this and i wish you the best of luck :)

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Gooner, I have been privileged to come into contact with members on this forum with disabilities who have far more severe ongoing medical issues every day than you, including having been accepted into med school. Absolutely, follow your dreams, they are within your grasp. All you need is a strong work ethic, pace yourself well and once you have a feel of undergad life, then join in some ECs and volunteering that makes sense for you. Best of luck!

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you will have absolutely no problem... if you have a health concern, the med school will make it work, they'll write a letter to the surgical department saying you cant stand so and so number of hours in a day... and you just may be required to do a longer rotation (extra shifts etc. instead of longer ones)

 

 

Hello everyone, this is my first thread posting and I have to say I really enjoy this site. I have been drawn to the medical profession by the age of 12 mostly because of a show called Emergency 911 --not sure if it rings a bell to most. Unfortunately, I was also diagnosed with bilateral tarsal coalitions (boney bridges between joints in both feet) while cause me lots of pain after prolonged standing.

 

One surgery didn't solve the problem so now Im waiting to do the second and last that can be done. Basically I would like to know if there is any possibility of being a med student with a disability. I do have another 4 years of an undergrad ahead of me so there is still time but I would definitely like to plan ahead if there is absolutely no chance of med school for me.

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This is exactly why I have come to really appreciate this forum. Every single one of your responses have been both encouraging and very informative. Funny thing is I have spoken to many doctors throughout my treatment who have flat out said that I cannot pursue medicine. I am now so excited to begin my undergrad knowing that my ultimate goal can be reached.

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This is exactly why I have come to really appreciate this forum. Every single one of your responses have been both encouraging and very informative. Funny thing is I have spoken to many doctors throughout my treatment who have flat out said that I cannot pursue medicine. I am now so excited to begin my undergrad knowing that my ultimate goal can be reached.

 

If you haven`t already done so, I would ask those docs why they say you cannot pursue medicine. Is it because they are worried that all that time spend on your feet will worsen your condition rather than that you would be incapable of practicing?

 

It is worth considering, if that is the case.

There are certainly specialties where you can work in a good number of sitting hours...path, anethesia, physiatry, family med could probably accomodate etc.

But aside from surgery, training in general does require alot of time on your feet. Rounding on medical rotations, walking around the hospital between floors when your pts are scattered, to the ER and back etc. I'm not saying it can`t be accomodated. Certainly, that would be a discussion to have with your med school. But would you want to embark on a career that could potentially worsen things for you?

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Hi Gooner,

 

As you start your undergrad, it's probably a good idea to check out the disability services office (or whatever your school happens to call it) and document your condition with them. Your condition sounds like it's the sort of thing that can very easily be accommodated, but you never know when you'll run into a lab TA who's a jerk and won't want to let you have a chair, or something like that, and they can help advocate for you when necessary.

 

Hopefully you won't run into any problems like that, though. I wish you the best of luck in your undergrad and med school, or whatever else you decide to do! :)

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yeah, the doc's thoughts are literally a joke and a half...

 

if they're training student x, who has so and so disability, they're required to accommodate the disability in every way they can, when presented with a medical letter, insofar as it won't potentially hinder your ability to practice medicine (and not necessarily that specialty).

 

the med school will do anything they can to help you succeed, and half of medicine doesn't require standing for extended periods of time (i.e. rads, psych, path, endocrine, public health, whatev, etc etc). plus, once you get into practice you can tailor your hours/patients/lifestyle to your personal needs (i.e. work less hours, sit down most of the time as a family doc)

 

This is exactly why I have come to really appreciate this forum. Every single one of your responses have been both encouraging and very informative. Funny thing is I have spoken to many doctors throughout my treatment who have flat out said that I cannot pursue medicine. I am now so excited to begin my undergrad knowing that my ultimate goal can be reached.
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This is exactly why I have come to really appreciate this forum. Every single one of your responses have been both encouraging and very informative. Funny thing is I have spoken to many doctors throughout my treatment who have flat out said that I cannot pursue medicine. I am now so excited to begin my undergrad knowing that my ultimate goal can be reached.

 

ahhh why on earth do they think that? I am actually quite curious what their reasons are.

 

On the purely practical view point they would have no idea you even have a disability at the interview stage, and would have no way of removing you once accepted.

 

Not that I have to go that route - I have a hard time even imagining that you would have a problem it if was wide open. We have people in our class with disabilities and it doesn't raise even an eyebrow.

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Most of them are in their 50s. The main reason I could think of is that things were different when they were students ??? Most of them cited the fact that when it comes to rotations, long surgeries, being on call etc. that I would not be able to cope running around so much. Anyways, I'm more determined than ever knowing that my situation isn't at all impossible.

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ahhh why on earth do they think that? I am actually quite curious what their reasons are.

 

On the purely practical view point they would have no idea you even have a disability at the interview stage, and would have no way of removing you once accepted.

Not that I have to go that route - I have a hard time even imagining that you would have a problem it if was wide open. We have people in our class with disabilities and it doesn't raise even an eyebrow.

 

interesting!

 

so does that mean that these people with disabilities did not disclose that they have a disability on their applications, and moreover they did not bring it up at their interview? i would think a disability could be a good thing to discuss in terms of describing personal strength, but most people steer away from that? are they afraid they will be discriminated against, or they just don't want to seem different from every regular applicant?

 

i'd really like to know if people actually discuss their disabilities at interviews or not

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i'd really like to know if people actually discuss their disabilities at interviews or not

 

Really interesting question. For those of you that have applied to med schools before; are there any mobility or disability related questions to fill out? Are you asked about this during interview?

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Really interesting question. For those of you that have applied to med schools before; are there any mobility or disability related questions to fill out? Are you asked about this during interview?

 

I only interviewed at U of C this year, and I remember U of C sent out a general list to interviewees of things you must physically be able to do, so probably if any of those things were a problem you'd let them know and they'd look into accommodating you. Their application manual describes how they deal with applicants with disabilities (scroll down to p. 12 and 17).

<http://www.ucalgary.ca/mdprogram/files/mdprogram/Applican%20Manual%20Final.pdf>

 

Other schools probably have similar info available, so you might want to look into the policies at your schools of interest. Good luck. :)

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Really interesting question. For those of you that have applied to med schools before; are there any mobility or disability related questions to fill out? Are you asked about this during interview?

 

UBC asked if you require any accomodation for a disability when they sent out interview invites this year. Being MMI format I doubt it would come up in the interview though unless you brought it up yourself.

 

I'd also like to add that UBC's NMP class this year has a person who uses two canes to walk, so it's definitely doable.

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Really interesting question. For those of you that have applied to med schools before; are there any mobility or disability related questions to fill out? Are you asked about this during interview?

 

Nope, doesn't come up and shouldn't come up for that matter :)

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Yeah I can't imagine the schools not accomodating you, and like others have said, it doesn't sound like you'll have trouble performing any procedures.

 

Good luck with the second surgery though, hopefully it's successful.

 

I juts have one question, is the show you mentioned actually called "Rescue 911"? http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096688/

If so, I remember that show :P

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Yeah I can't imagine the schools not accomodating you, and like others have said, it doesn't sound like you'll have trouble performing any procedures.

 

Good luck with the second surgery though, hopefully it's successful.

 

I juts have one question, is the show you mentioned actually called "Rescue 911"? http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096688/

If so, I remember that show :P

 

That's the one! Ahh brings back good memories lol, I remember begging my parents to let me stay up later just to catch the newest episodes:D

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LOL, yeah. The show sort of scared me back then, but I couldn't stop watching.

 

Yea some of the situations were quite scary to be honest but it's not like it stopped us from watching :D The only comparable show I can find on TV today is called "Situation Critical". It's filmed on site at a few Ontario emergency centers and it's pretty well done.

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