No doubt your training environment is much easier to work than ours. How do you differ to the US in the medical requirements? From the AOPA paper it would seem that US instructors have a very practical set of rules in this area.
Yes , the FAA has a very practical approach.
I think our medical requirements are more like yours. Unfortunately we have an Aussie as the head of the CAA medical section. There's not even been any move on the PPL medicals as has happened in the US/UK and I think even Oz.
The FAA monitors instructor's student pass rates for Part 61 training. If too many candidates recommended by an instructor fail to pass ......
Once again the FAA have a very effective, cheap, practical and unencumbered way of doing things.