As a student enrolled at the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine in Roanoke, you are aware of the important role that professionalism plays in your medical school education. VTCSOM emphasizes professionalism throughout its curriculum and has detailed policies and procedures for resolving allegations of unprofessional conduct.

The challenge when it comes to disciplining students for unprofessional behavior is that VTCSOM’s standards for professionalism are largely aspirational – they cover the kinds of conduct that the medical school wants students to achieve. But they don’t offer much detail about what’s prohibited. As a result, sanctions for unprofessional conduct can be unfairly inconsistent. That’s why if you’ve been accused of unprofessional conduct at VTCSOM, you need a strong defense. The LLF National Law Firm’s Student Defense Team is here to help make that strong defense on your behalf. Contact us at  888.535.3686 or submit our online contact form so we can schedule a confidential consultation to learn more about your case, and so we can tell you how we will help.

The Meaning of Professionalism at the VTCSOM

VTCSOM has a total of 10 “Attributes of Professionalism” that are meant to guide students through their years at the medical school. As mentioned above, these attributes are aspirational. They set goals that VTCSOM wants its medical students to achieve – but what they don’t do is list the specific kinds of conduct that the school considers to be unprofessional. The 10 attributes are:

  • Commitment to Engaged Learning. This essentially means students have the “primary responsibility for successful completion” of medical school, and that they should actively engage in each aspect of the educational process.
  • Compassion. This relates to the way students are expected to interact with patients and patient families.
  • Conscientiousness. Taking initiative and accepting personal responsibility for their actions.
  • Respect. Showing respect for “peers, faculty, staff, patients, and families.”
  • Self-Awareness. Understanding their obligation to continue their professional development and to respect boundaries with patients and colleagues.
  • Self-Care. Being responsible for their own health and hygiene and avoiding “harmful behaviors.”
  • Sense of Duty. Making sure they understand and complete their assigned responsibilities in an effective way, and volunteering their skills for the local community.
  • Social Responsibility. Acting unselfishly; advocating for their patients and for “reducing disparities in health care,” and avoiding conflicts of interest.
  • Teamwork. Working “well with others” and inspiring trust.
  • Trustworthiness. Showing “honesty and ethical behaviors in all academic pursuits” and is honest with “patients, peers, and the community.”

These are all worthy goals. But for the most part, they do not draw a clear line in terms of what constitutes unprofessional conduct. It is, of course, important to set these kinds of standards when it comes to a quality such as professionalism. However, the lack of detailed information about what unprofessional conduct is can lead to situations where some students face discipline for conduct that other students are allowed to get away with.

This is where the LLF National Law Firm’s Student Defense Team can help. We help medical students all across the country defend themselves against allegations of unprofessional conduct. We know the arguments that work in these cases, and can help you build and present your defense.

Reporting Unprofessional Conduct at the VTCSOM

The VTCSOM procedures for reporting and resolving allegations of unprofessional conduct acknowledge what we have noted above – allegations of unprofessional conduct can be subjective. They come right out and state that there may be situations where a faculty member or someone else associated with the medical school “feels that a student has exhibited an action or behavior that they would consider unprofessional.” And that in those cases, the person who “feels” that there was unprofessional conduct should follow VTCSOM’s process for addressing those concerns.

There is a multi-stage resolution process that starts with a discussion and can end with a hearing before the VTCSOM Medical Student Performance and Promotion Committee. (MSPPC). Here is a summary of those steps:

  • The reporting individual addresses their concerns directly with the medical student, with the goal being to resolve the matter at this stage.
  • The reporting individual next takes the matter to whoever is the student’s “direct supervisor” in the context of the allegedly unprofessional conduct.
  • The next stop, if matters remain unresolved, is for the reporting individual to contact the “appropriate Domain or Clerkship Director.”
  • After that, the matter can be raised with the Associate Dean for Student Affairs or the Senior Associate Dean for Medical Education.
  • Any of the above people should discuss the matter with the accused student directly, and should do so within 3 business days of when the matter is referred to them. If they are able to resolve the issue, everybody involved in the process will be notified. If the person who reported it is not satisfied with the proposed resolution, they can raise their concerns with the Associate Dean for Student Affairs or the Senior Associate Dean for Medical Education.
  • In any case where the matter has been referred to one of the Deans noted above, they can forward the case to the MSPPC.
  • A subcommittee of the MSPCC will meet with the accused student and the person who filed the allegations. The accused student can “explain or rebut any evidence or information” relating to the allegations of unprofessional conduct at this meeting.
  • The MSPCC subcommittee will make one of three possible  recommendations after the meeting with the student:
  • That the matter be dismissed due to “insufficient evidence”
  • That the matter be referred to the MSPPC for an “investigation and hearing”
  • If the student acknowledges that their behavior was unprofessional, the subcommittee can conclude that it “does have merit but does not require a formal hearing,” in which case a report will be included in the student’s student affairs file.

If there is a hearing before the MSPPC, the accused student has certain rights, and there is a detailed procedure that the committee will follow. Students appearing at a hearing before the MSPPC are entitled to have an attorney present at the hearing, though only the student will be allowed to actively participate in the hearing.

There are a number of potential outcomes to an MSPPC hearing.

  • The MSPCC may find that the complaint “was without merit”
  • The student may be required to complete a VTCSOM Professional Education Assignment.
  • The student may be placed on VTCSOM Non-Academic Probation, with conditions.
  • The student may be suspended from VTSCOM for up to a full academic year.
  • The student may be permanently dismissed from VTSCOM.

Decisions of the MSPCC can be appealed to the Dean of the medical school, but on limited grounds.

The LLF National Law Firm Can Help Resolve Professionalism Issues

Facing allegations of unprofessional conduct can be very stressful. It can also take a lot of your already scarce time to properly deal with. You may not know what you should do, or how to respond – especially if you don’t believe the conduct you’re accused of was unprofessional. It can be enormously helpful to be working with one of the experienced attorneys from the LLF National Law Firm’s Student Defense Team in this kind of situation.

We regularly help medical students who face accusations of unprofessional conduct. When you work with us, we can take much of the burden of responding to the allegations and making sure you’re following the required procedures off your shoulders, so that you can continue to focus on your studies.

Because much of our practice is focused on defending students accused of all types of misconduct at colleges, universities, and professional schools all across the country, we stay on top of the many laws, regulations, rules, and procedures that apply to these types of cases. This includes medical school professional misconduct cases. Let us use our knowledge and experience to help you make the strongest defense possible, no matter what stage your professional misconduct case is at.

Keep in mind that the timeframes for responding to unprofessional conduct allegations are short. The sooner you contact the LLF National Law Firm’s Student Defense Team about your case, the better we can help. We can be reached at 888.535.3686 or by filling out our online contact form. After you contact us, we’ll schedule a confidential consultation where you can tell us about the allegations you’re facing, and we can tell you what we can do to give you the strong defense you deserve.

Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine

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