The policies outlined in this handbook apply to all PA Program students, staff, principal faculty, and the program director. Students are expected to follow all policies of the university as delineated on the University of South Florida Student Catalog webpage and the guidelines set out in this handbook.
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Dress Code and Professional Demeanor
PA Program 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, 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 a short, waist length lab coat embroidered with an MCOM patch, their name, and the PA Program designation. ID badges during the clinical training years, and/or any time students have contact with patients, 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:
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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 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 Student Absence Report Form will 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 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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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 the Refund of Fees policy on the website and the Tuition, Fees, and Medical Equipment Requirements section Requirements section in this handbook.
ACADEMIC GUIDELINES
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Students will adhere to ethical principles and use practical reasoning when dealing with patients at all times. No student should medically treat other PA students, friends, or family members while a student is in the USF MCOM PA Program.
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- Identification
- The student is expected to be proactive and notify the instructor, course director or faculty if there are knowledge deficits.
- The instructor, course director, small group leader, preceptor, faculty adviser, or other faculty identifies the at-risk student through weekly faculty reports, exam grades, and advisory sessions.
- Evaluation and Assessment
- Identified students will be referred to their faculty adviser for assessment of root causes. Referrals to campus assistance programs may be instituted (Student Health, the Office of Student Affairs, or other practitioners).
- Plan Development
- The APPC, faculty adviser, student, and any other parties will design a remediation plan. Clear expectations will be documented and a contract for remediation developed. The program director will then review the contract with the faculty adviser and student, placing the contract in the student’s program file. Depending on the action needed, a time line will be initiated for review of student progress.
- Plan Implementation
- The faculty Adviser and student will receive a copy of the contract and begin remediation
- The student will be informed of all available resources for remediation.
- Plan Evaluation
- Depending upon the remediation needed, an evaluation instrument may be prepared to assess the student’s progress. The academic director and the faculty adviser may collaborate to design an appropriate tool to assess progress. Evidence of compliance of mastery of remediated knowledge deficit will be placed in the student file with the contract.
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Physician Assistant Clinical Knowledge Rating and Assessment Tool (PACKRAT) will be taken during each year of the two year program. Students may be required to pay for the cost of the test at some future date without formal announcement. However, at the present time, the School covers the expense of the examination. The School of has received authorization to make an individual copy of each student's performance on the PACKRAT examination as a measure their clinical knowledge base during his/her training. This information may be used to make decisions affecting promotion, clinical rotations, graduation or remediation. The School will maintain the scores in the same confidential manner as with other academic performance information.
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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 the USF policy regarding consensual relationships.
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.
PA Program 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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Police Emergency: 911 or 813-974-2628
USF USF Center for Victim Advocacy & Violence Prevention
Office Location: SVC 0067
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Policies and procedures concerning blood-borne pathogen exposures and exposures to communicable diseases (e.g. tuberculosis, chicken pox) are in place at USF MCOM and MCOM and at each of the major clinical teaching facilities. During orientation of the program, as well as before beginning in a clinical facility, an overview of procedures is presented. Try to familiarize yourself with the policies and procedures of each clinical facility and carefully comply with all requirements in case you are injured or exposed to communicable disease.
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