Sensitive Medical and Counseling Care of Students by Faculty and Residents

Policy Statement: In order to ensure that there is no conflict of interest between the roles of faculty and resident physicians functioning as physicians or therapists and the roles of faculty and resident physicians in academic evaluation and promotion, the designated director of a course or health delivery service is responsible for a plan to ensure that health professionals who provide psychiatric/psychological counseling or other sensitive health services to a medical student must have no involvement in the academic assessment or promotion of the medical student receiving those services.

Definition: Sensitive medical care: Because any medical care may become sensitive, “sensitive medical care” is considered to be any medical care.

Exemptions: Emergency situations or other situations in which lack of involvement by physicians, residents or other healthcare professionals would compromise patient care are exempted from the above policy.

Enforcement: Under the leadership of the Associate Dean for Student Affairs, oversight for this policy will rest with the Office of Student Affairs. The policy will be stated in the handbook and disseminated to all affiliates.

Stress Reduction Program: The Center for Mindfulness and the Stress Reduction Clinic offers a reduction in regular tuition to active medical students of the UMass Chan Medical School. Medical Students can enroll in the 8-Week MBSR Stress Reduction Program at a tuition of $125 per cycle.  The CFM SRP accepts up to three students each cycle, a total of twelve per year. Should there be more than three per cycle, they will be accepted on a case-by-case basis.

Process:
-Call the Stress Reduction Program to enroll in an orientation and a class.
-Notify the staff that you are a Medical Student
-Attend Orientation
-Enroll in the program
-Pay your tuition fees

For additional information please contact the Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Healthcare, and Society at 508-856-2656.

Applicability: All enrolled students
Date Revised: 2012