RN BSN Program at Texas A&M University Corpus Christi
It is the policy of the School of Nursing and Health Sciences that no person shall be denied admission to the School nor graduation from the School on the basis of any disability, provided that the person demonstrates full ability to achieve the Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree in preparation for licensure as a practicing Registered Nurse. Additionally, the safety of the patient, on whom the nursing education process largely is focused, must be guarded as a primary consideration.
The School of Nursing recognizes that certain disabilities can be accommodated without compromising the standards required by the School and the integrity of its curriculum. The School is committed to the development of innovative and creative ways of opening its curriculum to competitive and good candidates with disabilities.
Mastery of the essential functions of the curriculum is required of all students. The standards encompass cognitive, physical and behavioral requirements in six areas judged necessary by the faculty for satisfactory completion of the nursing curriculum. These include, but are not necessarily limited to:
Use of motor skills such as palpation, auscultation, percussion and other diagnostic maneuvers.
Use of visual, auditory, somatic and other sensory skills such as observing demonstrations, obtaining a medical history directly from a patient and observing a patient’s medical condition and/or non-verbal behaviors.
Communication with patients, physicians and others on the medical team about a patient’s condition in settings where communication typically is oral or written and in settings where the time span available for communication is limited.
Intellectual-conceptual, integrative and quantitative abilities necessary for problem-solving and diagnosis;
Activities that have a behavioral and/or social context including professional responsibility to patients, typical daily work-loads, working in an environment that is subject to rapid change without warning and in unpredictable ways.
Ethical and professional attitudes and conduct.
The standards summarized above refer to the desired ends rather than the means to achieve each standard because a person with a disability may be able to achieve the standards using reasonable accommodation. The use of a trained intermediary and some assisting devices to observe or interpret information compromises the essential function of the nurse.