Physical Restrictions

[KayTee1988]

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I was wondering if there are any physical restrictions or disabilities that would make you ineligible for applying to medical school. Is there a certain level of vision required?

 

[Morzh]

All schools have some statement on their "technical standards" for admission. They include things like observational skills, communication skills, motor function, intellectual abilities, and behavioral/social attributes. Reasonable accommodations are made for disabled students, but a physical impairment that raises serious concerns about your ability to independently perform as a medical student/physician are acceptable reasons for denying admission.

Vision impairment is not usually something that keeps you from doing what you need to do, though. I know that there are quite a few blind doctors, although I'm not sure if they were blind during medical school or if it came later. You probably need to at least be able to read a chart/computer screen and adequately observe a patient at bedside.