Student Engagement & Absences Policies

Background
The current planned absence process is in need of updating as there is much confusion and lack of structure to the process. In addition, the School has not had an attendance policy in place. In the past several months, the attached Engagement Policy has been drafted and revised with course director input.

Current Issues/Reasons for New Policies

• Students and faculty are unclear of the process and who approves.
• The old Planned Absence form is outdated and unclear.
• The  UCSF School of Dentistry Laboratory and Clinics Policies and Procedures Manual has conflicting and outdated information regarding absences and needs to be updated to be in alignment with the SOD Student Handbook.
• 3rd and 4th year students currently request time off of patient care through the clinic Admin Action Form (separate from the Planned Absence Form) and course director and the Learner Success Center are not notified and are unaware of their absence.
  • In some cases they are requesting a Leave of Absence which requires specific campus process.
  • Clinical course directors are not aware of the absence
  • Curriculum Support team are not aware of students missing exams
• First and second year students have poor attendance in didactic classes and do not report illness or emergency.
• There is no current process for a student to request an absence due to religious observance.
• Planned absences over 5 days (medical, maternity, etc.) had no written support documented which outlined the makeup requirements and re-entry to school.
• There is no clear process for clinical absence for interviews or professional externship.

Process for Planned and Unplanned Absences
The following policies, procedures and forms will replace the current Planned Absence Form and old process and are included for review. This will cover all of the following absences:

• Unplanned Absences (illness or emergency)
• Discretionary Absences
• Religious Accommodation Guidelines
• Non-Discretionary Planned Absences (e.g. maternity leave, medical leave)

Highlights
Students will be required to submit a simple form when missing any D1, D2 or the following courses:
ID3: PRDS 106, PRDS 104, DentSci 125, SciMeth 117, BMS 127
D3/ID3: PCC 131, PCC 132, PCC 133, PCC 134
D4/ID4: PCC 146

• Students will only be allowed three discretionary absences per year. This will not include interviews, professional externships or short term leaves for medical or maternity.
  • Must be in good standing
  • Cannot request time off during exams, inter-professional, etc.  (see policy)

*Accomplished to Date & Next Steps

• The Learner Success Center has drafted policies and procedures for student absences from D1, D2 years as well as the courses listed above.
• The Learner Success Center has drafted policies and procedures for absences for religious accommodations, Leave of Absence, and Non-Discretionary Planned Absences.
• The SOD Faculty Council has approved development of a short-term working group to revise the clinical absence process for students (i.e. absence from patient care responsibilities) to align with and work in conjunction with all Student Handbook policies and procedures. This will include absences from SOD responsibilities, SOD externships, rotations, and for circumstances including but not limited to professional externships and student residency interviews.

*Clinical absences need review.

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Resource Documents:

Absence Procedures
Engagement Policy
Online Absence Request Forms
Procedures for Non Discretionary Planned Absences
Religious Accommodation Request Form
Written Support Plan_LOA Return to Study Sample
Written Support Plan_ShortTerm Sample

Student Professional Policies

Overview

Published By: SOD Learner Success Center (Reviewed Annually)
Applies To: Predoctoral Dental Students and Postgraduate Professional Students and Residents

SOD Statement of Professional Behavior

Professionalism is fundamental to the practice of dentistry and is a core competency of the UCSF School of Dentistry. Upon graduation/completion of studies, learners must demonstrate the professional attributes and actions central to general dentistry practice and/or advanced practice.

Building a collaborative culture that is unified in its shared values is important for UCSF and the School of Dentistry. As a unifying set of beliefs, values help set expectations, drive decision-making and build a culture that inspires our actions. As UCSF continues to grow in size and scope, and expands the many efforts and extraordinary projects we do together, it is increasingly critical that all faculty, staff, students and trainees understand and act upon common core values.

The following UCSF Pride Values provide a foundation for the development of professionalism competency within the School:
P - Professionalism: To be competent, accountable, reliable and responsible, interacting positively and collaboratively with all colleagues, students, patients, visitors and business partners.
R - Respect: To treat all others as you wish to be treated, being courteous and kind, acting with utmost consideration of others.
  I - Integrity: To be honest, trustworthy and ethical, always doing the right thing, without compromising the truth, and being fair and sincere.
D - Diversity: To appreciate and celebrate differences in others, creating an environment of equity and inclusion with opportunities for everyone to reach their potential.
E - Excellence: To be dedicated, motivated, innovative and confident, giving your best every day, encouraging and supporting others to excel in everything they do.

These standards are implemented with a focus on the education and development of the individual learner.

Definition

Professionalism
A commitment to always give priority to the existential needs and interests of the public they serve above their own and who in turn are trusted by the public to do so.

Implementation

As the professionalism process is designed to help learners reflect and learn about areas of their personal practice that they can improve upon, faculty who are concerned about a learner’s professionalism are expected to meet with the student to give reasonably timed turnaround of feedback to learners and make suggestions for improvement. If the concern continues or is of a serious nature, Professionalism Evaluation Report (PER) should be filed (see Procedures for Handling Breaches of Professionalism). Staff members who have concerns regarding a learner’s professionalism should report the incident to their supervisor who will notify the department chair, who will initiate the PER process.

In the event of serious concern (i.e. immediate removal from the environment, harm to self or others) the faculty member must immediately notify the Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs, Department Chair, and the Associate Dean for Education and Student Affairs, who will determine the next course of action. Additionally, Associate Dean for Education and Student Affairs may report the incident to one or more campus partners including, but not limited to: Student Health and Counseling, Risk Management, Student Disability Services, Disability Management, and/or the Office for the Prevention of Harassment and Discrimination.

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Resource Documents:

Procedures for Handling Breaches of Professionalism
SOD Professionalism Action Plan Follow Up Form Fillable for Web
SOD Professionalism Evaluation Report Form Fillable for Web
Statement of Professional Behavior