Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 12, 2025
09:55
Bridging the Technology Divide in the COVID-19 Era: Using Virtual Outreach to Expose Middle and High School Students to Imaging Technology
Published on: September 28, 2022
1.7K
Disclosing disabilities: Barriers for medical school applicants
Sarah Leah Solomon1, Aitan E Magence2, Harry Haran3
1Psychiatry Department, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, Lebanon, New Hampshire, United States of America.
Plos One
|August 5, 2025
Summary
Medical schools need to improve communication about interview accommodations and technical standards for candidates with disabilities. Early information sharing and involving disability resource professionals enhance accessibility and outcomes for these applicants.
Area of Science:
- Medical Education
- Disability Studies
- Higher Education Accessibility
Background:
- Medical school admissions processes must be accessible to all qualified candidates, including those with disabilities.
- Ensuring clear communication regarding accommodation procedures and technical standards is crucial for equitable access.
- Previous research has highlighted variability in support services for candidates with disabilities in higher education.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the availability and accessibility of accommodation request procedures for medical school admissions interviews.
- To evaluate the accessibility of Technical Standards (TS) for candidates with disabilities (CWD) in LCME-accredited institutions.
- To identify communication gaps and best practices in supporting CWD during the medical school application process.
Main Methods:
- A cross-sectional study surveying Deans of Admissions and Disabilities Resource Professionals (DRP) at LCME-accredited institutions in the US and Canada.
- Data collected on interview formats, accommodation procedures, and TS accessibility for the 2018-2019 academic year.
- Response rate of 41.3% from 71 institutions, with a 56.3% survey completion rate.
Main Results:
- Only 38% of institutions informed CWD about accommodation procedures before interviews; updated procedures showed better applicant outcomes.
- Significant differences in applicant accommodations, interview grants, admissions, and matriculation were observed between institutions with updated procedures (p=0.005).
- Communication gaps were identified regarding admissions staff involvement in accommodation planning and documentation requirements for CWD.
Conclusions:
- Many medical institutions exhibit communication deficiencies regarding accommodation procedures and technical standards for CWD.
- Early notification of accommodation procedures and TS, along with utilizing DRPs as primary contacts, can enhance accessibility.
- Improving these processes is essential for fostering a more inclusive and equitable medical school admissions landscape.
Related Concept Videos
01:21Barriers to Effective Communication II
3.8K
The barriers to effective communication also include cultural barriers, semantic barriers, gender barriers, and time constraints.
Cultural barriers:
Differences in values, beliefs, religion, knowledge, and tradition can significantly impact communication. Awareness of nonverbal cues is critical, especially when conversing with a patient from a different culture. What appears appropriate in one culture may be inappropriate in another.
Semantic barriers:
As a result of their tendency to use...
Cultural barriers:
Differences in values, beliefs, religion, knowledge, and tradition can significantly impact communication. Awareness of nonverbal cues is critical, especially when conversing with a patient from a different culture. What appears appropriate in one culture may be inappropriate in another.
Semantic barriers:
As a result of their tendency to use...
3.8K
01:30Barriers to Effective Communication I
9.5K
A communication barrier is any distortion or interruption during a conversation, resulting in miscommunication of the message. A good communicator should know these barriers and continuously check for the listener's understanding by obtaining feedback.
Communication barriers include the following:
Physiological barriers: They are limitations caused by a person's health condition or disability, such as hearing loss, poor eyesight, illness, or unconsciousness. An example to overcome this...
Communication barriers include the following:
Physiological barriers: They are limitations caused by a person's health condition or disability, such as hearing loss, poor eyesight, illness, or unconsciousness. An example to overcome this...
9.5K
01:25Physiological Barriers
4.2K
Physiological barriers are semi-permeable cellular structures restricting drug diffusion into intracellular compartments and tissues. There are six types of physiological barriers: blood endothelial, cell membrane, blood-brain, blood-cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), blood-placenta, and blood-testis barriers.
The blood endothelial barrier is the most porous of these. It allows all small ionized, un-ionized, and lipophilic molecules to pass through the endothelial lining into the interstitial space...
The blood endothelial barrier is the most porous of these. It allows all small ionized, un-ionized, and lipophilic molecules to pass through the endothelial lining into the interstitial space...
4.2K
01:25Learning Disabilities
272
Learning disabilities are cognitive disorders caused by neurological impairments that affect cognitive functions like language and reading, without indicating overall intellectual or developmental challenges. These disabilities differ from global intellectual or developmental disabilities as they are limited to distinct cognitive functions. Common learning disabilities include dysgraphia, dyslexia, and dyscalculia, each of which impacts unique aspects of learning.
Dyslexia
Dyslexia is a...
Dyslexia
Dyslexia is a...
272
01:23Factors Affecting Drug Distribution: Physiological Barriers
330
Drug distribution in the body is intricately regulated by various physiological barriers that control the passage of substances. These include the capillary endothelial barrier, the blood-brain, blood-cerebrospinal fluid, blood-placental, and blood-testis barriers.
The capillary endothelial barrier allows only smaller molecules below 600 Da (Daltons) to pass through. It also restricts drugs like heparin that are bound to blood components, limiting their movement within the bloodstream.
The...
The capillary endothelial barrier allows only smaller molecules below 600 Da (Daltons) to pass through. It also restricts drugs like heparin that are bound to blood components, limiting their movement within the bloodstream.
The...
330
01:22Standards of Care I
760
Federal statutes profoundly impact nursing practice, providing critical guidelines to ensure patient care is equitable, accessible, and of the highest quality. The following laws address distinct aspects of healthcare provision and patient rights:
760