The policies outlined in this handbook apply to all students, staff, principal faculty, and the PA Program Director. PA students are expected to follow all policies of the university as delineated on the University of South Florida Student Catalog webpage. Students are also expected to follow the guidelines set out in this handbook.
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Dress Code and Professional Demeanor
PA students, at all levels of education and training, are expected to maintain a proper professional image in their behavior and personal appearance at all times. During the pre-clinical years, PA students are expected to wear clean, appropriate apparel (shirts, pants, dresses, skirts, etc.) and shoes to all academic functions and on the premises of USF (all campuses).
All students must wear short waist length with MCOM patch, their name, and MCOM the Physician Assistant Program designation embroidered on their coat, and ID . ID badges during the clinical training years, and/or any time students have contact with patients, or are are to be worn prominently in the patient care areas. Shorts are not to be worn at any time when there may be interaction with patients. Men should wear shirt and tie, and women should wear appropriate dresses or slacks and blouses, as well as closed toe shoes at times when there may be interaction with patients.
Business professional attire is required to be worn at all times. The following items are considered inappropriate:
- Short skirts or dresses
Tube tops
Excessive jewelry
Facial piercings
Flip flops
Open-toes shoes
Jeans
Low cut tops
Shorts
Tee shirts
Visible tattoos
Clothing that reveals shoulders or midriff
The PA Program program expects all students to be professional in their dealings with patients, colleagues, faculty, and staff and to exhibit caring and compassionate attitudes. These and other qualities will be evaluated in the Professionalism Evaluation form by each preceptor during your clinical year rotations. Professional behavior is defined as behavior appropriate to the circumstances. Professional behavior reflects on a student’s qualification and potential to become a competent clinician. Attitudes or behaviors inconsistent with compassionate care; refusal by, or inability of, the student to participate constructively in learning or patient care; derogatory attitudes or inappropriate behaviors directed at patients, peers, faculty, preceptors, or staff; misuse of written or electronic patient records (i.e. accession of patient information without valid reason); substance abuse; failure to disclose pertinent information on a criminal background check; or other unprofessional conduct can be grounds for dismissal. Dismissal from the Master’s of Physician Assistant Studies Program program for unprofessional behavior may, subsequently, jeopardize the student’s eligibility for admission to any other college in the university.
Examples of standards for professional behavior include, but not limited to the following: accepting personal responsibility for the care of one’s patients; demonstrating appropriate truthfulness and honesty with colleagues; communicating an attitude of caring (empathy) in the course of health care delivery; recognizes personal beliefs, prejudices, and limitations; demonstrates respect for patients, families, members of the health care team, and colleagues; demonstrates initiative in patient care and a consistently good work ethic; and respects patient confidentiality at all times in verbal and written communication with others. Inadequate communication and/or failure to respond to communication initiated by the PA program is also considered unprofessional, and may result in a substantial reduction in professionalism grade on any given rotation.
The conferring of the degree Masterthe Master's of Physician Assistant Studies degree certifies that the student is not only competent to undertake the career as a physician assistant but possesses the personal traits essential to the profession as judged by the faculty, preceptors, peers, and colleagues.
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If a felony conviction occurs between the date of submission of the CASPA application and matriculation into the USF MCOM PA program, the specific details including: (1) date of charge(s), (2) type of offense and (3) disposition of the case must be reported to the Program Director’s office immediately. Any felony convictions that occur subsequent to matriculation or at any time during your enrollment in the Program the program must also be reported immediately providing the same information as previously enumerated. Failure to comply will be grounds for dismissal from the PA Program.
During the clinical phase of the program, students will be required to undergo one or more national criminal background checks, which may include finger printing. Some clinical sites used by the PA program may require additional background checks, fingerprinting, and/or drug screening for students to have practice opportunities at those institutions. The student may be responsible for these costs.
A criminal record or failure to pass a drug screen may impede clinical training and may negatively affect a student’s status in the PA program. By accepting admission to the programlprogram, a student agrees to submit to national criminal background checks as well as drug screening and to pay any associated expenses.
Before beginning clinical rotations or clerkships, select facilities, including both the James A. Haley Veterans Hospital and the Bay Pines VA Healthcare System, require fingerprinting of PA students. The fingerprinting activity is coordinated through the PA Programprogram's Clinical Director and the University Police Department local law enforcement during the pre-clerkship orientation period. Occasionally, elective clinical rotation sites may require students to provide documentation for fingerprinting and a criminal background check analysis. Costs of background checks are the responsibility of the student.
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The University of South Florida System (USF System) is committed to mutual respect among all constituents of the University community. This commitment includes students, faculty, staff, and administration alike. In all concerns about fair treatment, we seek to work together to understand and address those concerns in an informal setting. As there are several offices designated to address Grievances grievances throughout the University, with specific processes applicable to USF Healthto the MCOM, students should first identify the topic or substance of a Grievance grievance and file the Grievance grievance with the appropriate office. The USF Student Grievance Policy can be found here.
Absences
Didactic Courses - Year 1
Unplanned or Emergency absences for Personal Illness, Family Illness, etc.
The student must contact the Academic Director and course instructor by e-mail or telephone (see specific course syllabus) and the PA Program program Office by e-mail or telephone (paprogram@health.usf.edu or 813-974-8926) to report his/her absenteeism on the first day of being absent. He/she should indicate if the reason is an emergency or unexpected illness. The student must also complete and submit the Student Absence Report Form . Specifics on planned and unplanned absences, as well as unexcused absences, are listed below. The completed Absence Report form will be kept as part of the student’s record.
If the student has an unanticipated unplanned absence on the day of an exam, he/she must contact PA Program Office by e-mail or telephone (paprogram@health.usf.edu or 813-974-8926) by 8:30 a.m. on the day of the exam. When the student returns to school he/she must fill out and sign the Student Absence Report Form . Documentation for the absence to be excused (e.g. physician’s note, accident report, etc.) will be at the discretion of the Program Director.
Students who miss an examination for any reason are required to contact the PA Program program Office (974-8926) prior to returning to class to determine the date and time of the make-up examination. Dates and times of make-up examinations are determined by the Course Directors in consultation with the Academic Director.
In general, make-up examinations must be taken within 48 hours upon return from an unplanned absence. A second unexcused absence for a make-up exam will require referral to the Academic Performance and Professionalism Committee (APPC).
Planned Absence
Absence for attendance at a professional meeting or other educational or research related activity should be submitted via the Student Absence Report Form for approval to the Academic Director at least 3 weeks prior to the event. Each request for absence will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Personal travel plans should not be considered valid excuses for missing an exam.
To receive an excused planned absence for an exam, the student must submit a completed Student Absence Report from Exam Form to the Academic Director. The Academic Director or designee will make the final determination to grant or deny the request and will inform the student of the decision.
Supervised Clinical Patient Experiences - Year 2
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Consideration will be given for activities such as elected student representation to various committees and/or organizations. The USF MCOM MPAS Program The PA program Clinical Director will respond to the student’s request in writing. Students who miss scheduled hours are expected to acquire the same level of competency as other students involved in the clerkship. Lectures, reading assignments and work load will not be re-created or offset to accommodate any absences.
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In the event of an illness or emergency necessitating absence from the clinical rotation, students must notify both the PA Program program Clinical Director (CD) and the clinical preceptor by 9:00am on the day of the absence. Students should also contact the PA Program program Office by e-mail or telephone (paprogram@health.usf.edu or 813-974-8926). Students should make every effort to reach the clinical preceptor and CD Clinical Director rather than utilizing voicemail or email.
Students are required to complete and submit the Student Absence Report Form with appropriate documentation supporting the reason for any unplanned absence(s). The completed Absence Report form will be kept as part of the student’s record.
Failure to report an absence the student will be required to make up the time missed from the clerkship and a 5 point deduction on the Clinical Preceptor End of Rotation Clinical Performance Evaluation.
Students are required to submit a written request for approval of any anticipated absence, to the Clinical Director, prior to the absence. The CD Clinical Director will communicate with the student regarding details of the anticipated absence, preceptor notification and preceptor approval. Students should not seek approval from the preceptor without prior approval by the CD Clinical Director lest this be considered an unexcused absence.
- If a student misses up to five (5) days on any rotation, he/she must discuss with the preceptor ways to make-up the missed time. If there is no opportunity for the student to make up the missed days at that clinical site, the student must discuss make-up time at another clinical site with the CDClinical Director. If there are no available clerkship site contiguous with the current cycle, the student will receive a grade of Incomplete until the hours have been made up.
In the event that a student misses more than five (5) days on any rotation for an excused absence, they will be required to repeat the rotation.
Students may be required by some clinical sites to engage in clinical or educational activities during the evenings and/or weekends.
If the preceptor or his/her designee is unavailable to work with the student for 2 or more scheduled clinical days (e.g. vacation, scheduled days off, etc.), the student is required to notify the CD Clinical Director so that an alternate assignment may be made.
Absence from a clinical site during a PA educational conference (e.g., AAPA, FAPA) for the purpose of conference attendance may be permitted with the permission of the CDClinical Director. The student is still responsible for ensuring that any rotation benchmarks are not compromised by conference attendance.
Students are required to return to campus at the completion of each rotation for academic and professional activities that may include case presentations, End-of-Rotation Exams, OSCEs, and other designated program endeavors.
Tardiness
If a student arrives to the clinical site 30 minutes late or leaves the clinical site 30 minutes early, he/she is required to notify the Clinical Preceptor and the Clinical Director immediately.
If a student accumulates lateness hours totaling 5 hours this constitutes 1 unexcused absence. The procedure and policy for unexcused absences will then be applied.
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Students withdrawing from the program must submit a withdrawal letter to both the PA program and the MCOM Registrar’s Office, as well as complete any paperwork needed by either office, and settle any university obligations. USF may refund some portion of the tuition. For details see Refund of Fees policy on the website and this handbook in the Tuition and Fees section.
ACADEMIC GUIDELINES
Communication
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- End of rotation evaluation
- This evaluation MUST be submitted via E*value by the clinical preceptor on the last day of the clerkship.
Clinical procedure log on E*value
- This log MUST be submitted via E*value by the student on the last day of the clerkship
Patient profile log on E*value
- This log MUST be submitted via E*value by the student on the last day of the clerkship
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In addition to being a violation of state and federal laws, behavior involving unwanted sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, or other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature is incompatible with faculty, staff, and student status in the University of South Florida - Master’s of Physician Assistant Studies Program.
Dating current teaching faculty (i.e. physicians, residents, teaching assistants, PA faculty, etc.) is highly discouraged. This can be viewed as a form of sexual harassment. See policy regarding consensual relationships: http://regulationspolicies.usf.edu/policies-and-procedures/pdfs/policy-1-022.pdf
Further information regarding sexual harassment policies is outlined in the USF “Sexual Harassment” policy 0-008, Diversity and Equal Opportunity: Sexual Harassment
Students should contact the PA program director immediately if they have felt as if they have been harassed.
The student is encouraged to directly contact the USF Center for Victim Advocacy & Violence Prevention with any concerns.
Sexual Battery
Sexual battery is a crime under the laws of the State of Florida and will not be tolerated at the USF MCOM as defined in USF Policy 0-014, Sexual Battery. As an integral part of academic performance, medical students are expected to maintain the high standards of professional and personal conduct traditionally associated with the practice of medicine. Any act such as sexual battery is a violation of University Policy, which in the case of PA students, is viewed as professional misconduct and is a violation of academic standards. As such, any professional misconduct is subject to disciplinary action by the APPC.
MCOM PA students who are victims of actual or threatened violence can obtain assistance from the /wiki/spaces/MCOM/pages/19396592255. Additionally, PA students should refer to the USF Policy concerning Sexual Battery.
Center for Victim Advocacy & Violence Prevention
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Prior to matriculation all students are required to provide the following to the Medical Health Administration Office for review:
Students must have health insurance in effect at all times during enrollment at PA Program. In addition to obtaining health insurance through the Affordable Care Act's Marketplace, basic health insurance policies are available on the USF Student Health Services website for students who do not currently have health insurance. Certification of current health insurance is required for each year of enrollment.
- Students must undergo a physical examination conducted by the student’s personal physician. prior to starting school. Complete the Communicable Disease Prevention Certification & Physical Examination Verification Form and return it to the Medical Health Administration Office. Matriculating students will be informed of the deadline in which this form is due
- Students must provide documented evidence of immunity to specified communicable diseases listed on the Communicable Disease Prevention Certification & Physical Examination Verification Form. All documentation must be in English.
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