Student Affairs

MEDICAL STUDENT PROMOTIONS AND REVIEW BOARD

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The Medical Student Promotions and Review Board (MSPRB), is a body empowered by the Medical School Advisory Committee (MedSAC) to monitor the performance of all medical students. The MSPRB monitors the academic performance of all students while matriculated in the medical school, while on leave, and while on student fellowships. The members of the MSPRB are dedicated to understanding and where appropriate, assisting students to remediate successfully academic or behavioral problems or concerns. For students enrolled in the Rochester Early Medical Scholars (REMS) Program, and other early assurance or combined-degree programs, the department/program in which the student is enrolled will monitor the academic performance of the student during the non-medical degree portion of the training. The department/program will have jurisdiction over all academic issues. However, if questions of integrity, responsibility, and proper conduct arise in the other degree program(s) (or in any other area), these may be taken up by MSPRB to determine any potential impact upon the student's early assurance admission or return to the medical curriculum.

The seven members of the MSPRB are appointed in consultation with the Senior Associate Dean for Medical Education. Terms of office are for four years, with appointments staggered to preserve continuity. MedSAC may appoint members to additional terms.

Chair:
Andrew Swinburne, M.D
Professor of Medicine, Director, Respiratory System

Co-Chair:
Mary Anne Courtney, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Microbiology & Immunology

Voting Members:

• Jane Greenlaw, J.D. Assoc. Professor; Director, Division of Medical Humanities
• Suzanne Stevens, Ph.D. Assoc. Professor of Neurobiology & Anatomy
• Denham Ward MD, Ph.D. Professor of Anesthesiology
• Kerry O’Banion M.D., Ph.D. Assoc. Professor Neurobiology & Anatomy
• Linda Chaudron, M.D.* Assistant Professor of Psychiatry & Ob/Gyn
• Nancy Shafer Clark, M.D.** Assistant Professor, Medicine (Interim appointment)

*Will not serve on MSPRB from October 1, 2004 through April 30, 2005.
** Will serve on MSPRB from October 1, 2004 through April 30, 2005.

Ex-officio (non-voting) Members:

• The Senior Associate Dean for Medical Education
• The Associate Dean for Undergraduate Medical Education
• The Assistant Dean for Medical Education/Student Affairs*
• The Associate Dean for Admissions
• The Medical School Registrar
• The Advisory Deans

*The MSPRB is staffed by the Assistant Dean for Medical Education/Student Affairs, Brenda D. Lee, who corresponds with students about the outcome of MSPRB discussions and decisions within one week of the MSPRB meeting.

All course and clerkship directors are invited to attend MSPRB meetings whenever performance in their courses is being discussed or whenever they may provide insight about a student whose performance is being discussed.

MSPRB Meetings
In addition to special meetings to consider student academic and disciplinary issues, the MSPRB will meet the first Monday of the even months and four times a year for evaluation meetings. The evaluation meetings for the 2004-05 academic year will be held September 14, 2004, January 11, 2005, March 8, 2005, and June 14, 2005.

Appeals Process
Decisions of the MSPRB for dismissal or required leaves of a year or more may be appealed by students to the Medical School Advisory Committee (MedSAC) Appeals Board (MAB). The MedSAC Appeals Board (MAB) shall consist of five designated MedSAC members. The remaining members of MedSAC serve as MAB alternates when the designated members are not available to participate. The Chair of the MAB shall identify the MAB alternates based on availability for participation in the process. It is intended that the MAB offer an independent opinion about the merits of the case. It will reconsider the entire case and arrive at its own decision. The student’s formal appeal must be received in writing by the Assistant Dean for Medical Education/Student Affairs within five business days of the date of the MSPRB's dismissal or required leave letter. The student will write a formal appeal, stating the reasons for the appeal and outlining an alternative plan of action that he/she wishes to be considered. The appearance before the MAB shall occur within forty-five calendar days of the initial decision. The student may appear alone, or with an advocate (who is not an attorney), before the MAB. The student and/or advocate may not record and/or audiotape any portion of appeals process meeting(s).

Five designated and/or alternate members of the MAB should be present, and all decisions should receive a majority vote. The Assistant Dean for Medical Education/Student Affairs will communicate in writing the decision of the MAB to the student within three business days of the MAB meeting. The Senior Associate Dean for Medical Education, the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Medical Education, the Assistant Dean for Medical Education/Student Affairs, and the student’s Advisory Dean may sit at their discretion as ex officio, non-voting members. Custody of the record of the official actions of the MAB will reside with the Assistant Dean for Medical Education/Student Affairs.

Adverse decisions of the MAB may be further appealed within five business days of the date of the MAB’s decision letter to the Dean of the Medical School, whose decision is final. The appeal must be in writing, must state the reasons for appealing, and present an alternative plan. The Dean may consider any matter he/she deems relevant in reaching his/her decision and may, at his/her discretion, meet with the student (without the student’s attorney), or the Dean may choose to base his/her decision solely upon a review of the file.

MedSAC Appeals Board

• Eric C. Caine, M.D., Chair, Professor of Psychiatry and Neurology; Chair, Department of Psychiatry
• Barbara H. Iglewski, Ph.D., Professor of Microbiology and Immunology; Chair, Microbiology and Immunology
• Elizabeth McAnarney, M.D., Professor, Psychiatry and Pediatrics; Chair, Department of Pediatrics
• Sandra M. Schneider, M.D., Professor and Chair of Emergency Medicine
• Randy N. Rosier, M.D., Ph.D., Professor and Chair of Orthopaedics
  

POLICY ISSUES
Exam and Course Reporting Procedures

a) One of the important components of the MSPRB’s charge is to monitor the students’ exam performance. While the MSPRB in no way seeks to disrupt or usurp the role or authority of faculty in evaluating, monitoring and/or remediating student performance, it is concerned about putting in place a tracking system that will serve as an early warning system, for students who are experiencing academic difficulty.

Courses:

• After EACH exam, the course directors will forward to the Registrar’s Office the raw data on the bottom 20% of the class along with their letter grades.
• Performing in the bottom 20% on three or more consecutive exams or one grade of Pass Marginal or Fail will result in being placed on Advisory Status.
• If the student’s performance is above the bottom 20% on three successive exams, he/she will be taken off Advisory Status.
• Interpersonal and/or behavioral concerns that cannot be adequately addressed within the context or time frame of a course will result in being placed on Advisory Status until the concerning behavior has been resolved.
  

Clerkships:

• When there are concerns regarding the behavior, academic performance, problems with interpersonal relationships and/or motivation of a student that cannot be reasonably resolved during a clerkship or clinical experience, the student should be brought to the attention of the MSPRB (via the ADMESA). In instances where there are concerns that the problem cannot be reasonably resolved during a clerkship or clinical experience, the student may be placed on Advisory Status.
• All students who receive grades of Pass Marginal (Pm) or Fail (F) in the core clerkships and/or the required clinical experiences will be placed on Advisory Status, referred to the appropriate Advisory Dean (AD) and reviewed by the MSPRB.
• A student may be placed on Advisory Status if there are recurring or unresolved issues, including those of clinical competency, honesty, integrity, interactions with patients, peers, staff, or faculty.
• At the discretion of the AD, the next clerkship director may be advised about a student’s past difficulty or Advisory Status when the student requires additional support or supervision.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN ON ADVISORY STATUS

• Students meet with Advisory Deans to determine the source of the difficulty
• If Advisory Dean feels that temporary personal exigencies are contributing to the student’s poor performance, nothing further needs to be done. In other circumstances:
  • Tutoring is made available
  • Support services (assessment of learning style, counseling, etc.) are made available
  • Feedback from the AD’s to MSPRB regarding progress and factors that influence progress

Advisory Status is for internal tracking and support purposes. References to being on Advisory Status will not be included in any transcripts or external institutional documents. However, a record of the Advisory status will be maintained in the official non-circulating file in the Registrar's Office during the period of enrollment. All references to being on Advisory status will be removed from the file upon graduating from the Medical School.

For additional information on the Medical Student Promotions and Review Board see the Medical Student Responsibility, Conduct, & Academic Policies in the official Student Handbook.