As a student pursuing a degree in Health Administration, you understand first-hand the vigorous requirements that you must meet in order to earn your degree. Learning how the US healthcare system operates and how to address the wide range of issues facing care providers in both the private and public sectors is a challenging task. It's also one that could lead to a long and rewarding career in the healthcare field, helping care providers meet the many legal and financial requirements that are imposed by federal, state, and sometimes local governments, as well as by insurers and suppliers.
Many Health Administration degree programs include an internship requirement that will place you in a real-world job setting so that you can apply the learning you've received in school as well as get a good feel for what your job may be like after you graduate. These internships can sometimes be a bit intimidating at first, especially if you've never worked in a similar professional setting. That's why it's so important to understand the kind of behavior that is expected of you in your particular internship's workplace, as well as the types of behavior that have the potential to bring your Health Administration career to a screeching halt.
The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team has put together this guide to help you make sure you have a clear understanding of the on-the-job conduct that you're expected to exhibit during your internship, as well as what can happen if a disciplinary or professional complaint is filed against you. Our attorneys have years of experience helping student interns navigate these kinds of stressful and confusing situations and are ready to help you if you find yourself accused of misconduct. Call 888.535.3686 or reach out to us online.
What Kinds of Discipline can Health Administration Internship Students Encounter?
Because your internship is usually part of your degree requirement, if you're accused of misconduct, you may find yourself facing several types of discipline, including from your workplace, your school, and any professional organization you may have joined.
- Workplace discipline. It's a virtual certainty that the healthcare organization where you intern will have its own employee manual that will describe in detail the policies and procedures that apply to people who work there. Because your internship will likely involve you in the operations of a healthcare provider, these policies and procedures will apply to you as well. That's why it's vitally important for you to read and understand them before you begin working. Health care is a highly regulated field, with protections in place to ensure patient privacy, requirements for billing and payments, and a wide range of other matters that employees of the organization need to understand and pay attention to. In addition, your workplace will likely have a process in place for managing disciplinary allegations, and if a complaint is filed against you, it's important that you understand what these are and how they work. The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team has years of experience with these kinds of situations, and if you're accused of serious misconduct during your internship, our attorneys can help you defend yourself and make sure your rights are respected.
- School discipline. Because your internship is part of your education requirements, misconduct in the course of your internship may also result in school discipline. Your school has its own student handbook or code of ethics that likely states in some detail the types of misconduct that can result in school discipline, as well as what the process is for investigating and resolving misconduct claims. The experienced attorneys at the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team understand how school disciplinary investigations and disciplinary procedures work. We've helped students from all across the US defend themselves in these sorts of difficult situations, and we can help you with yours. We often find that school investigations of misconduct allegations leave a lot to be desired and that when our attorneys look more closely into the situation, the school has missed key facts that we can use to help our student clients defend against misconduct allegations and proceedings.
- Professional organization discipline. Students are welcome as members of the American Association of Healthcare Administrative Management (AAHAM), but that also means that as members, students are expected to abide by the AAHAM's practices and standards, including its Code of Ethics. Alleged violations of the AAHAM Code of Ethics are reviewed by its Practices and Standards Committee, which has the power to expel a member who is found to have violated the Code of Ethics. Decisions of the committee can be appealed to the AAHAM's Executive Committee.
What Kinds of Conduct Can Result in Discipline?
Because as a Health Administration intern, you'll be working in a professional environment, there are a number of types of conduct that can result in you being disciplined. These include:
- Sexual harassment or abuse. All organizations have a sexual harassment and abuse policy in place, covering anything from rude, suggestive, or demeaning comments to unwelcome and non-consensual physical contact. These policies can also cover workplace relationships, so it's important to understand exactly what your internship workplace considers important before you begin interning there. Something many people may consider relatively trivial, such as a date with a co-worker, could actually be a violation of workplace relationship guidelines.
- Failure to follow workplace procedures. Particularly in the healthcare field, it's extremely important to follow the procedures that are in place to make sure that the healthcare provider you are interning with is following all relevant laws and regulations, particularly those relating to patient privacy. This is so important in this particular area that disclosing patient information – even if you do so by accident – can result in you being disciplined.
- Engaging in fraud. This can cover a wide range of actions, from misrecording your work hours to improperly categorizing medical procedures where doing so means your workplace is paid more for a procedure than it should have been. Here too, it's very important to pay close attention to your internship's rules for your particular position to make sure your work is as accurate as possible.
- Working while intoxicated. If you are at work and are under the influence of alcohol, marijuana, or any legal or illegal drug that affects your ability to perform at your best, you may be disciplined. In many cases, for example, where you have an adverse reaction to a prescribed medication, this may not result in any adverse discipline. But in others, where you return to work after lunch impaired because lunch includes a few drinks, you may be disciplined by your employer.
How Are Misconduct Allegations Resolved?
There are many ways that different companies and schools have of investigating and resolving allegations of internship-related misconduct. Some of the steps you might experience are as follows:
- Investigation. Assuming the complaint relates to behavior that the organization will discipline, there may be a detailed investigation of the complaint. How detailed depends entirely on the organization, and one of the common problems with misconduct investigations is that they are not thorough enough. As a result, they often fail to uncover information that can provide important context to the allegations or sometimes exonerate the accused intern entirely. That's where our experienced attorneys from the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team can help. We can conduct investigations on your behalf and may be able to uncover important information that will help in your defense – information that your workplace, school, or professional organization hasn't.
- Charges. If the investigation uncovers information that supports the misconduct allegations, you may be notified of charges that are being brought against you. Typically, this will also include a description of the facts that support those charges. You may also be offered the chance to resolve the matter without a hearing by accepting the facts alleged against you and the consequences proposed by the organization. While this might seem like a quick and easy way to put an end to the whole stressful situation, it might not always be in your best interest to agree to a settlement proposal. The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team can help you understand whether a settlement proposal makes sense in your situation or whether you should decline it and move on to a hearing.
- Hearing. If you don't accept a proposed settlement, your next step may be a hearing. How these operate can vary widely, but typically, there will be a chance for both sides to have witnesses testify (and be cross-examined) and to submit documents. The hearing judge or panel will consider these and rule on the matter and may also impose some sort of disciplinary penalty in cases where the allegations are substantiated. You may or may not have the chance to appeal this to a higher authority.
The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team Can Help
The attorneys that are part of the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team have years of experience helping students, including interns, with difficult misconduct situations that are related to their educational settings. Our lawyers understand how stressful this can be for you, and we also know how to help you defend yourself and make sure your rights are respected through the entire process. We will take much of the burden off of your shoulders, allowing you to focus on your education and your work while we focus on your defense and protecting your future.
If you've been accused of misconduct in connection with your Health Administration internship, don't delay – call the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team today at 888.535.3686 or reach out to us using our online form to set up a confidential consultation. You need the help of an experienced professional when your future is on the line, and we are here to listen and help!
