Clinical Year Attendance Guidelines

Attendance Requirements: Attendance expectations is outlined in each course syllabi and by each individual course site. In general, attendance is mandatory for daily clinical responsibilities, including after-hours duty assignments.  Students should be prepared to attend during regular clinic hours; weekend and holidays when the student has case responsibilities; as well as evening, weekend and holiday treatment assignments, emergency duty assignments; or intensive care duty assignments. Student clinical responsibilities, expectations and scheduling will be discussed with the student during orientation at the clinical affiliate site. It is the student’s responsibility to understand their responsibilities, expectations, and scheduling during the rotation. Failure to attend to rotation activities may result in course failure. 

The start date and time for each rotation will be determined by the rotation and individual clinical affiliate. 

General Guidelines 

1. LMU-CVM maintains, and each student must recognize, that fulfillment of the academic program is the top priority in our program, and that it is your responsibility as a student to ensure you fulfill all clinical course requirements. Failure to do so may result in your inability to graduate on time.
2. Students will work the schedule given to them by their principle clinical educator or clinical site administrator OR a minimum 40 hours per week (Mon-Sunday), whichever is greater.
3. For discussion purposes, 6 Blocks makes up 1 Semester. That means that your 12-Block clinical year equals a total of 2 semesters (1-6 is first semester, 7-12 is second semester). 
4. For any day you are not physically at your affiliate site when you are scheduled to be, you must submit an Absence Request (AR) found in Medtrics.

5. You are allowed 3 Personal Days per Semester
   1. Personal days can be used for planned events.  You are expected to work in advance and complete your AR with your preceptor.
   2. These personal days can also be used for unplanned events such as illness, in which case you submit your AR as soon as possible after the absence has occurred.
   3. You may only take 1 personal day in any given block.
   4. A Personal day does not have to be made up so long as:
      1. It is one of the three personal days you are allowed to take that semester
      2. You did not take any other day off during that particular block.  If more than the allowed single personal day is taken in a given block, the time must be made up in hours during that rotation block.    
6. To clarify, if a student uses all 3 Personal Days in a Semester, any subsequent absences are considered unexcused, and the time taken off on the rotation must be made up during that rotation.
7. If you are submitting an Absence Request for time which must be made up at that site, you are required to include a plan showing how you will make up the time.
   1. If the time cannot be made up in that rotation, such as for a prolonged illness or other extreme event, then you may be required to repeat the rotation. 

 Planned Absence Days (For example: job interviews, conferences, NAVLE® test taking) 

1. As described above, a maximum of ONE (1) personal absence day may be taken in a given 4-week clinical rotation block for a planned absence, for a maximum of 3 days in the first 6 rotations, and a maximum of 3 days in the last 6 rotations 
2. Planned absences will be scheduled at least 3 weeks before the date of the planned absence. 
3. Planned Absence days will require the approval of the clinical affiliate site representative or primary instructional site course director and the Office of Clinical Relations and Outreach. Prior to submitting the absence request, available in Medtrics™, to the Office of Clinical Relations and Outreach, students should discuss with the clinical site representative, and outline this on the absence form. A link will then be sent to the preceptor for approval of the request. 
4. No planned absence days are allowed on the first day of a rotation. 
5. If a student must schedule to take the NAVLE® during a clinical rotation block, the student must use a planned absence day. Students are required to request a leave of absence in order to take the NAVLE® if they will be taking the NAVLE® outside of the 3-week NAVLE® Administration block. A copy of the student’s Scheduling and Admissions Permit must be provided with the Absence Request Form in order for a student’s request for time off to take the NAVLE ® to be considered. 

Unplanned Absence Days (For example: illness and emergencies) 

6. Students will use a personal absence day for unplanned events such as illness, a family emergency or a death in the family. 

2. For absences for illness that require missing 3 or more days of a rotation, medical documentation will be required. The note will need to be provided from the student’s health care provider. Before restarting the program, a note from the student’s health care provider must be provided stating that the student is healthy and able to participate in the LMU-CVM clinical year veterinary program. 

3. Students must provide evidence of the need for an unplanned absence after the fact.  

4. Students must complete the absence request form as soon as they know of an absence. Students must still discuss a make-up plan for the missed time with the clinical site representative, and outline this on the document, identical to what happens with a planned absence.  A link will then be sent to the preceptor for approval. 

Unexcused Absences 

1. All absences other than absences described above are considered Unexcused Absences. 

2. The ability to make-up an unexcused absence is at the discretion of the Course Director/Preceptor and Office of Clinical Relations and Outreach. 

3. Students with Unexcused Absences will be required to meet with a member of the Clinical Relations and Outreach team. Potential outcomes for having an unexcused absence include making up the missed work, remediation, failure of the rotation, or a combination of these outcomes, up to and including dismissal from the LMU-CVM program. 

 

Make-up dates/hours for Planned and Unplanned Absences 

1. Students must coordinate make-up dates with the clinical site to make-up any missed days/hours (if allowed). Students must notify the Office of Clinical Relations and Outreach of the planned make-up schedule on the LOA form. 

2. Any absence in excess of 3 days in a given block period (Blocks 1-6 and Blocks 7-12) must be made up. With the approval of the clinical affiliate at secondary instructional sites or electives, or the course director at the primary instructional location, the student may make-up missed time, by working extra hours during a given calendar week so as to still work a minimum of 35 hours a week in a given seven day calendar period (Sunday - Saturday). The Office of Clinical Relations and Outreach must also approve the planned make-up schedule. This should be outlined in the absence request form. 

Miscellaneous 

1. Any request for absences that are beyond the scope of personal absence days (Planned and Unplanned) described above is to be submitted in writing to the Office of Clinical Relations and Outreach for consideration as soon as possible.  

2. For medical appointments not exceeding 4 hours over the course of a rotation, the missed time will not require the use of a personal absence day and will not need to be made up.   

3. When more than one medical appointment is required in any one rotation block, the student should contact the Office of Clinical Relations and Outreach (LMUCVM.ClinicalRelations@LMUnet.edu ), and provide a note from the student’s health care provider stating that the student is able to participate in the LMU-CVM clinical year veterinary program. 

4. Students should confirm with the clinical affiliate supervisor during their orientation that the last Friday of the rotation will be a half day.