VCOM Institutional Policy and Procedure Manual

VCOM Policy and Procedure

Policy #S002

1.

PURPOSE The purpose of VCOM’s Attendance Policy is to establish firm guidelines as to appropriate attendance, circumstances in which students can request an excused absence for those learning activities that are mandatory, and to describe the ramifications if said policy is not followed. VCOM recognizes that professional development occurs in the classroom, laboratory, and clinical environments. Dutiful and professional interactions with faculty, including both biomedical and medical professionals; and respectful and professional interactions with classmates prepares the student for future professional life expected of a physician. In addition, a strong work ethic and a dutiful attitude toward learning from professionals daily prepares the student for the clinical learning environment. These attributes are also required to be successful in a medical residency program and the future medical practice. The commitment to a culture of duty, professionalism, and integrity, coupled with a commitment to acquiring the medical knowledge required are the reasons VCOM students are so successful. VCOM is among the top medical schools for students receiving first choice of residency and this commitment to duty and work ethic are among the top attributes that distinguish our VCOM students and graduates. The commitment to professionalism and duty are the reasons for the VCOM attendance requirements. 2. ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS FOR OMS 1 AND OMS 2 STUDENTS VCOM creates a variety of venues to support a quality learning environment and to assure excellence in teaching. The attendance policy strives to support VCOM students by honoring the students’ varied learning styles while supporting faculty, Course Directors, and Discipline Chairs to maintain the integrity of the curriculum. While all lectures are recorded and are available on VCOMTV for flexible viewing and review, many required interactive academic activities are not captured on VCOM TV including class discussion, interactive sessions, I-Clicker quizzes, flipped classroom experiences, group discussions, laboratory experiences, and skills development activities. Participation in these activities keep the students abreast of the curriculum and while this requires regular attendance in order to benefit from the full academic program, VCOM TV allows the student to remain caught up should a student have to miss due to illness or other unexpected absence. Students in the OMS 1 and OMS 2 years are expected to attend all lectures with a minimum acceptable attendance of 70% in each block. For lectures that require a minimum of 70% attendance per block, the 30% of allowable absences is calculated by multiplying .30 by the number of lectures in the block. All absences (excused and unexcused) are included in the 30% of allowable absences. Some learning activities are designated as mandatory learning activities and require 100% attendance: • Basic Science Laboratories Faculty led demonstrations and interactive sessions, including anatomy laboratories, microbiology laboratories, and histology/pathology laboratories. • Clinical Skills Laboratories Faculty supervised demonstrations and practical training of history and physical examination skills, including osteopathic manipulative medicine laboratories, ICC experiences, clinical simulations, and clinical procedural skill laboratories. • Case-Based Learning Faculty facilitated clinical application discussions of course materials self-studied in advance by the students. • Small-Group Learning

VCOM Attendance Policy

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