VCOM College Catalog and Student Handbook

students who serve as peer tutors and includes this information on the student’s MSPE or Dean’s Letter, which is provided as a part of residency programs application. Assistance for Matriculated Students with Disabilities Students should first refer to the Technical Standards for Matriculation and Continued Enrollment section of this H andbook . Each Technical Standard listed in this Handbook was derived from standards that Osteopathic physicians deem necessary for the safe and effective practice of osteopathic medicine and; therefore, VCOM faculty and administration require the Technical Standards to be met (mandatory). Students with disabilities must read the Technical Standards for Admission and Continued Enrollment in the Admissions Section of this Handbook . VCOM recognizes that there are varying levels of disability and student needs to be successful. VCOM is committed to supporting those students with disabilities who, with accommodations, can meet the Technical Standards. VCOM has provided reasonable accommodations to many students with various handicaps that have enabled the student to be successful. Reasonable accommodations do occur if the student qualifies for such accommodation under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the accommodations allow the student to meet the Technical Standards designated to safely practice osteopathic medicine and to be successful in the VCOM curriculum. Section 504 is a federal law designed to protect the rights of individuals with disabilities in programs and activities that receive Federal financial assistance from the U.S. Department of Education. It prohibits discrimination against individuals who meet the definition of disability in the act, and it is applied to entities that receive federal funding. Under 504 and the ADA, a person is considered to have a disability if that person: has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of such person's major life activities, has a record of such an impairment, or is regarded as having such an impairment. The student is required to function with independence, to learn and perform all the skills described in the Technical Standards that include coursework; pathology, microbiology, and anatomy laboratories; clinical physical diagnosis experiences; osteopathic manipulative medicine laboratories; and frequent and routine testing. Students must also meet the Technical Standards to provide safe and effective clinical care, with reasonable accommodations to complete third and fourth year rotations in the hospital and ambulatory settings. VCOM is committed to assuring patient safety and to assuring a safe and effective environment that does not place patients and/or VCOM students, faculty, and staff at risk. VCOM facilities are handicap accessible. Students who require the use of a service animal or emotional support animal must be aware of the following: • Service animals that provide life-saving services or monitoring to avoid serious medical complications are allowed in the classroom. Animals are restricted from the clinical environment; anatomy laboratory, microbiology laboratory, simulation labs, and standardized patient encounters. VCOM does not own or operate the hospitals or clinics in which students train; therefore, student’s experiences are subject to the hospital or clinic’s approval for participation. For these reasons, VCOM allow the use of a service animal in the classroom in year one and provides assistance for reasonable accommodations to replace the use of a service animal where possible during the second year with alternate devices the student will need to use during their clinical education experiences. The student must be aware (as a future physician) that the safety and well-being of the patient remains first and accommodations cannot be provided in the majority of required clinical settings. If the animal is out of control and the handler does not take effective action to control it, or if it is not housebroken, that animal may be excluded. If the presence of the animal causes other students, faculty, and staff to experience serious allergic or asthmatic complications, the animal may be restricted to specific locations within the room or in severe cases, the student with the service animal or the student with the allergic or asthmatic complication will be provided a private room setting where the lecture can be observed live and/or recorded. VCOM reserves the right to require the student to consult

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