I don't want to be treated by a dyslexic doctor (The Times)

Ray

Call me old-fashioned, but it rather echoes the decision by police forces to scrap the 5ft 8ins minimum height requirement.

I'm sure pint-sized coppers can make brilliant detectives, but when it comes to controlling a gang of yobs the policeman who is a beefy 6ft 5ins might find the malcontents pay a bit more attention to his stentorian rendition of "Hello, hello, what's all this then?" that they do his weedy 5ft 2ins companion.

Chris M

All must have prizes!!

Debra

Flying - That is small potatoes compared with the disgraceful behaviour of Blunkett in office. How dare you insult the British Tax Payer with your nonsense. Ordinary people work hard and risk life and limb whilst some of you journalists play fast and loose with national life and morality. Could you not find a better more elevating topic for a book.Here is a story about an RAF Pilot who said Lord how can I know my life is in your hands, at that moment the plane dived and stalled, he ejected and was dragged along the ground, but was still alive. The clean fear of God is the beginning of wisdom, fornicating in public office brings serious consequences so how dare you be so flippant.

Chris M

Debra - is it happy hour so early? These cheap alcohol promotions must come to an end promoting as they do such bizarre and irrational behaviour.

Jacko

Spot on, Stephen.

What this young lady needs is a 100mg dose of old-fashioned common sense! Unfortunately, as we all know, common sense is increasingly being supplanted by nutty political correctness.

Apropos common sense, I imagine you must have seen the reports about the government's proposed changes to the murder laws? If I understand these insane proposals correctly, they would give a "partial defence" to cold blooded murderers who could show that their victim had said something to cause serious offence or insult?

It's truly terrifying to think that journalists and bloggers (your buddy Oliver Kamm comes to mind!) could effectively be giving the targets of their attacks a license to kill them!

Mob-violence enshrined in English law? There was a time when I would have thought the very idea laughable. But now I'm not so sure..

Kim Plumtree

"I'm sure that Ms Gadian is a lovely, caring woman who would, if it were not for her inability to pass the tests designed to see if she would make a good addition to the medical register, be a good addition to the medical register."

Aren't you being over-generous? Her feminist/teen self-absorption tells another story.

Richard Morgan

As a dyslexic ... I was slightly offended by the title for this article. However I cannot fault the reasoning in this article.

The irony for me is that as a dyslexic I found multiple choice questions much easier to handle than written word, I fail see why multiple choice questions would cause her issue.

Your comment about getting 18 mixed up with 81 is somewhat arrogant as we all make mistakes. However considering how often I fail to write down account and telephone numbers correctly makes me glad they aren't attached to a live and death situation.

Where you comments are unfortunately stupid is that it is quite likely you have been seen by a dyslexic doctor in your time (have you seen the average hand written prescription?) All a dyslexic has to do is pass the exam to become a doctor and many of us are very smart indeed. I've a degree in Mathematics for instance.

So swap out the word dyslexic with 'black', 'lesbian', 'Muslim' in your title and it would clearly be offensive. Do we dyslexics have no feelings? Should we as a minority group be more political to rise awareness? Let off some bombs to get attention?

Dare I say that we dyslexics of the world should untie?

Ben

Here here, Richard!

Juan Kerr

Very well said Mr Pollard.

Blame the medical student by all means. But the real blame should be put to the legal profession, the judiciary and most of all, the frigwit who signed us up to whatever piece of legislation makes such actions possible.

andy

I'm dyslexic, and I fully agree with Stephen.

Elizabeth

Dyslexics vary a lot, and many would make perfectly capable doctors, even if they occasionally check a spelling or are weak on foreign languages. I agree, however, that it sounds as if this student is quite severely effected, and dyslexia is not a reason to be exempted from basic tests that other students take. Some dyslexic students are OK on multiple choice tests if give some extra time - perhaps that could be considered in this case. However, if she is totally unable to take a multiple choice test, maybe she should re-consider her career.

Elizabeth

I am dyslexic my self. and I agree with Richard Morgan's comments - dyslexics are not all the same, and it is offensive to say that they are. I also agree that allowing reasonable support is not the same as exempting students from important tests. Patients might be understandably concerned if that happened.

Cathy Ross

So good to read your article on the dyslexic medical student. It's pinned on my notice board.

jonathan

"Where you comments are unfortunately stupid is that it is quite likely you have been seen by a dyslexic doctor in your time (have you seen the average hand written prescription?) All a dyslexic has to do is pass the exam to become a doctor and many of us are very smart indeed"

and

"I am dyslexic my self. and I agree with Richard Morgan's comments - dyslexics are not all the same, and it is offensive to say that they are"

If you are so dyslexic that you can't read an exam paper, you shouldn't do the job. If your dyslexia does not prevent you passing the exams, it should not prevent you doing the job.

This isn't hard.

Richard Morgan

No this isn't hard. Passing the exams it the criteria for entering a profession. This girl should not be allowed to skip multiple choice exams, her argument is silly to say the least.

However Stephan goes further than this.

"I don't want to be treated by a dyslexic doctor" and "someone who can't be sure to read 18mg rather than 81mg and who mistakes peroxone for paracetamol is not someone I'd want practising medicine on me"

Is this an argument for keeping dyslexics out of medicine? Or is this just a misunderstanding about what dyslexia is?

Fowler

"Ben 5:53" says "Here, here".
But WHERE? The cheering encouragement should be "Hear, hear".
This is the second or third time I have seen this error in a blog in as many weeks.

Lochani Ganegoda

Stephen pollard clearly does not understand what dyslexia is. I suggest he does more research into the condition before he writes his articles. Surely every writer should know what they are talking about. From his comments, he has a severe lack of knowledge as to what dyslexia entails, the types of dyslexia and its variation and severity to say the least.

There are other ways to test knowledge. There are highly qualified consultant psychologists who would fully support some dyslexics being doctors and some of which would need different txpes of testing to the normal. Also, you forget that there are different medical professions that doctors can specialise in.

The man who holds the world record for retaining the most numerical information and repeating it backwards is dyslexic.

I would wish for dyslexia rather than naivity and stupidity.