At Rocky Vista University College of Osteopathic Medicine – Southern Utah Campus (RVUCOM-SU), the administration, faculty, and staff are dedicated to giving their students an excellent healthcare education, both academically and professionally. Students will be encouraged to treat their patients and colleagues with kindness and respect and to embrace the differences that make them each unique. With so much pressure to perform, it can be quite overwhelming for students to meet the program's high expectations. In fact, some students may even begin acting in ways they normally wouldn't, trying to take shortcuts to finish medical school intact.
If this sounds like you or someone you, an attorney-advisor can help prepare you for all types of proceedings, including disciplinary, remediation, and dismissal hearings. Call our offices today for help.
Academic and Professional Conduct for Rocky Vista University College of Osteopathic Medicine – Southern Utah
RVUCOM-SU has specific core values it asks its students to follow. Like most schools, these values are stipulated in the student handbook, which is given out on the first day of the new academic year. At RVUCOM-SU, the core values are not just academic expectations but professional responsibilities as well, including:
- Refraining from cheating, fabrication, misrepresentation, or plagiarism
- Showing mutual respect for classmates, staff, faculty, and patients
- Collaborating and believing in the open exchange of ideas with the individuals they interact with
- Showing kindness and compassion for others
- Honoring the individual differences in their patients' and colleagues' communities
- Offering new and creative ways for healthcare education to excel
- Maintaining satisfactory grades
If a student were to disregard these core values in any way, the university will refer them for disciplinary action, a remediation plan, or a dismissal hearing. Attorney-advisors understand the nuances these proceedings provide and can offer a unique insight into how to create a solid defense for yourself.
Remediation at Rocky Vista University College of Osteopathic Medicine – Southern Utah
At RVUCOM-SU, student records are reviewed at the end of each academic year by the Student Performance Committee (SPC). If they discover a student is struggling to pass their courses, failing their exams, or having a hard time in their clinical rotations, they may be offered a remediation program. Remediation allows a student to retake an exam, clinical, or assignment – though only two courses can be remediated overall.
Once the student successfully remediates the class, exam, or assignment, they will be able to re-enter the program right where they left off. But if a student fails their remediation plan, the SPC might recommend that the student should retake the course the following year, be dismissed from the program altogether, or that some other applicable action should be taken.
Sadly, there are instances where schools fail to offer their students a remediation plan and instead shuttling them straight to a dismissal hearing. If you are having a hard time passing your remediation plan or your school has failed to offer you one, an attorney-advisor can advocate on your behalf.
Dismissal Procedures for Medical Students at Rocky Vista University College of Osteopathic Medicine – Southern Utah Campus
Generally, students are only dismissed from their osteopathic medical school program for seriously egregious actions. At RVUCOM-SU, students can be dismissed for several reasons, including:
- Disregarding the code of conduct or core values
- Cheating or plagiarizing on an exam, assignment, or paper
- Misrepresenting information on an official document
- Sexual misconduct or a Title IX violation
- Failing a remediation plan
- Failing a course more than once
- Finishing the program outside the allotted time limit
If the SPC refers a student for dismissal, the student will be immediately notified. A hearing will be set up so that the student can present their side of the story, providing evidence and witness testimony to defend themselves from dismissal. Unfortunately, many students do not take these proceedings seriously and show up ill-prepared. When this happens, they are dismissed and face long-lasting consequences. Working with an attorney-advisor from the moment you learn of these proceedings will ensure you know exactly what kind of evidence and testimony to present and that your defense is solid.
After the SPC has heard all of the evidence, they will decide whether the student should be dismissed from the program or sanctioned in some other way.
Appeal a Decision at Rocky Vista University College of Osteopathic – Southern Campus
The SPC will notify the student of their decision in writing. The student has the option to appeal the decision within five business days. The appeal must be made in writing to the next level of administrator based on who sent the original notification for the meeting. For instance, if the Associate Dean of Student Affairs heard the issue on behalf of SPC, you can appeal to the Dean or Program Director. Additionally, appeals can only be made on one of the following grounds:
- There is evidence of an established bias by the SPC towards the student
- There was a major material error that affected the outcome of the case
- New material is available now that was not available at the time of the hearing
- The sanction imposed was harsher than the incident called for
- There was a procedural error that affected the outcome of the case
The appeal will be reviewed by the department you appealed to, and they will decide whether or not to uphold the lesser individual or department's decision, if it should be amended, or if it should be thrown out completely. It is important to remember that appeals are final and cannot be appealed further, so it is important you present your appeal in a succinct way. If the idea of doing this on your own is overwhelmingly scary, an attorney-advisor can help to ensure you include everything you need to change RVUCOM-SU's mind.
How an Attorney-Advisor Can Help
When osteopathic medical students are accused of academic misconduct, Title IX violations or sexual misconduct, or are struggling to pass their classes, they will be brought before a committee of individuals who will decide their future prospects for them. For example, if a student is suspended or dismissed from the program because of one of these issues, the sanction will be noted on their transcripts. When they go to apply for another program to finish their education or a fellowship in a particular area after graduation, they will have to explain the incident to the admissions boards. Furthermore, if a student has taken out loans to pay for school and is then dismissed, they will still have to pay the loans back – which can be quite hard without the promise of a physician's salary to help.
Attorney Joseph D. Lento and Lento Law Firm have spent years helping students accused of failing to meet the university's rigorous expectations. They will work diligently to offer you the best possible outcome for your case. Call 888-535-3686 today or schedule a consultation online.
