BA/MD & MD Student Handbook

Section 1: University Resources

School of Medicine Office of Student Affairs

The School of Medicine Office of Student Affairs provides professional services to guide, support, and empower students through their medical education. The Student Affairs Canvas page provides links to each of the services including Academic Advising, Academic Support, Wellness, Financial Wellness, and Career Advising.

Wellness and Mental Health Resources

UMKC School of Medicine recognizes that wellness is a key part of student success. In addition to a dedicated staff member overseeing wellness initiatives and topics, UMKC also offers mental health and counseling services to students. Visit the Wellness Canvas site for contact information on providers and services.

Learning Environment, Ombudsperson, and Reporting Mistreatment

UMKC School of Medicine is committed to maintaining a healthy, inclusive learning environment across all affiliated hospitals and clinics. If a concern arises, students should report it to their advisor or a member of the Learning Environment Team.

Ombudspersons are available to help students navigate next steps when challenges occur.

Mistreatment should be reported so the School can take appropriate action. The Office of the Learning Environment website outlines how to report mistreatment and explains what happens after a report is submitted. Students can file a concern of mistreatment directly through their website.

Title IX and RISE

The UMKC Title IX office investigates reports of discrimination and harassment based on protected class and all forms of sex-based misconduct. The School of Medicine's Office of the Learning Environment works closely with Title IX on any cases of mistreatment that fall within these parameters.

The Resources, Intervention, Support, and Education (RISE) office supports students and employees who are victims and survivors of sexual assault, sexual violence, gender-based violence, stalking, and relationship abuse. RISE also provides information and assistance to family members, friends, colleagues, and allies of all victims and survivors.

UMKC-wide Student Services

UMKC Student Affairs provides all UMKC students access to services such as Counseling Services, Roo Wellness, Accessibility Services (Accommodations), CARE team, and more.

UMKC Office of Student Involvement provides all UMKC students with programming such as Greek Life, LGBTQIA+ services, Campus Recreation, Multicultural Student Affairs, the Women's Center, and more.

Library Services

UMKC Libraries offer a wealth of online services as well as physical spaces on both the Health Science District and Volker campuses for Kansas City and St. Joseph students. The Health Sciences Library is located on the 2nd floor of the School of Medicine. Space is available for both group and individual study, and medical librarians are available to assist students with a variety of basic science and clinical topics. Medical students may also utilize the Miller Nichols Library on the Volker campus.

St. Joseph students can also utilize the Mosaic Caregiver Library to which St. Joseph students have 24-hour badge access.

Wellness Spaces and Gyms

In Kansas City, the Hospital Hill Annex is UMKC Recreation space on the Health Sciences District Campus. All UMKC students are also welcome to use the Swinney Center on the Volker campus for recreation and gym activities. The Wellness Wing, located on the 5th floor of the School of Medicine, allows for calm, quiet space for relaxing, doing a puzzle, playing a game, or using the massage chair.

In St. Joseph, Mosaic Life Care has a gym located in the hospital, that is available to students. The St. Joseph Campus also has a portable volleyball net and cornhole game for students to use. Quiet relaxation space specifically for medical students, separate from the classrooms, is available within Mosaic Life Care and in the new School of Medicine building.

Research

The UMKC School of Medicine Office of Research supports students and faculty in their research activities. Students can work in both clinical and lab settings, and at hospital affiliate institutions. Their student website provides information on how to get started.

The Career Advising Services office provides detailed information on how research impacts your medical education journey and residency application.

Section 2: Policies

School of Medicine Councils and Student Policies

Councils at the School of Medicine set policy related to curriculum, academic advancement, honor code, and more. Pertinent councils for students to review include Council on Curriculum, Council on Evaluation, and Honor Council.

The School of Medicine Policy Library contains the most up-to-date versions of all policies, including those most relevant to students such as:

Absences from Required Clerkships Policy
Exposure Guidelines, Health Screenings and Immunizations
Inclement Weather Policy
Occupational Health Guidelines
Policy on Standards of Conduct for Teacher/Learner Relationships
Standards of Professional Conduct
Student Personal Holiday Policy
Student Workload and Clinical Duty Hours for Clerkships
Student Workload Hours for Preclinical Coursework

Technical Standards

The Technical Standards can be found on the Council on Evaluation's webpage. Applicants to the UMKC School of Medicine are presented with the Technical Standards during the application process. Students may take Family and Medical Leave or Emergency Leave if they are unable to adhere to the Technical Standards temporarily.

Should a student have a concern about meeting the technical standards, they should initiate their concern with their Education Team Coordinator who can coordinate with the appropriate personnel to review.

Office Space at the School of Medicine

The policy below applies to individual offices assigned to Kansas City students.

Student offices are provided to year 3-6 (MS1-4) BA/MD and MD students at Kansas City. Those in St. Luke's Hospital docent teams are assigned office space with a teammate within the Purple Docent unit at St. Luke's, and also have a communal study space on the 3rd floor of the medical school. Those at University Health-Truman docent teams have individual offices at the School of Medicine, sometimes sharing with a teammate. As these are assigned to specific individuals and keys are given, the policies regarding office use are outlined below.

Office too hot? Key or door handle not working? Light burnt out? Email Jordan Callison to submit a maintenance request.
For student and environmental safety, the following items will not be allowed in student offices or the common areas of student units:
- microwaves
- coffeemakers
- hair dryers
- aquariums
- toaster ovens/toasters
Kitchen areas with refrigerators and microwaves are available for after-hours use. Individual office refrigerators must be removed upon checkout and are not allowed in common areas. Office doors must remain visible for security reasons, though curtains can be used for privacy when the office is in use.
Students may not sleep in offices while on call; call rooms are available at hospitals. Trash cans are not provided in individual offices; use the unit's trash can instead. Keep common areas clean and free of inappropriate materials.
Other students not assigned an office are not allowed on the student units without being accompanied by a student from that unit.
Students graduating or withdrawing from the school must return their office key. If an office key is lost or is not turned in after vacating an office, a $25 replacement fee will be charged. Please be careful to keep track of your key!
Items left in the offices after the student is gone will be thrown out and a $65 cleaning fee will be assessed on the student's account (which could hold up any needed transcripts). Students who leave refrigerators in their offices will be charged an additional $100 fee to cover the environmental disposal costs related to Freon.

School of Medicine Attire

Kansas City students: The School of Medicine building is home to students, staff, and faculty of the School of Medicine. In addition, residents, attending physicians, and other hospital personnel from our partner hospitals are in the building daily for didactic or noon conferences. Finally, students from the other health science programs enter the building to use the campus library and food pantry. Therefore, you will want to dress in a way that is suitable to interact with all of these various stakeholders. The School of Medicine Attire policy offers more specific guidance.

St Joseph students: Because part of the St. Joseph Campus is located in Mosaic Life Care, students, staff, and faculty follow hospital policy about dress code. When on campus, students may wear ceil blue scrubs or business casual “clinic attire.”

Section 3: Student Responsibilities

Immunizations

Students are required to submit immunization records upon entry to the school, and periodically throughout the curriculum as required by hospital affiliates. Students upload records to Exxat to document compliance. A list of required immunizations is found in the Policy on Exposure Guidelines, Health Screenings, and Immunizations. Students who are late with their immunization records risk being removed from the clinical setting.

Health Insurance

Students must have health insurance while enrolled at the School of Medicine. To meet this requirement, students will upload their health insurance card and additional information, if necessary, to Exxat. Your name must appear on the health insurance card, or you must include documentation from the provider if you are enrolled on another person's health insurance.

If you do not currently have health insurance, visit our Financial Wellness page for links to the UMKC student insurance as well as ways to add this to your Cost of Attendance financial aid budget, if needed.

Hospital Onboarding

Students must complete onboarding requirements at their respective hospitals in order to be eligible to work with patients. Annual compliance training is organized by each clinical location and communicated to students.

Background Checks

Students will complete a background check upon entry to medical school, and again several times throughout the curriculum, as required by hospital affiliates. The Office of Student Affairs coordinates with Certiphi for this requirement, and will contact students when a new check is needed. The cost of background checks is typically around $96, paid by the student, and is included in your cost of attendance for financial aid.

BLS and ACLS

Students will complete Basic Life Support (BLS) certification upon entry to the program and recertify every two years. The timing and delivery of this training will be organized by the school and it is covered by student fees.

Students will complete Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS) as part of the Emergency Medicine clerkship. The cost is around $150, paid by the student, and is included in the cost of attendance for financial aid.

Disability Insurance

The School of Medicine maintains a disability insurance policy for all students, as required by LCME accreditation guidelines. Whether medical school is financed with student loans or family contributions, the investment in significant and assumes a payoff of future incomes. In the case where a student is unable to complete their degree because of injury or illness, this policy offers protection. The cost is $55 and is billed to the student account each year. Complete details are available on the HSAC website.

Email Expectations

UMKC uses the University of Missouri email system as the official means of communicating with students. Students are expected to read their emails regularly and keep their inboxes clear enough that they can receive important communication. Always read emails that come from your docent, ETC/advisor, professors or staff members from the School of Medicine. A general guideline is to respond to all emails within 24-48 hours.

Attend Orientations and Class Meetings

Orientations are held at key transition points in the medical curriculum. Specifically, they occur for new BA/MD, MD, and OS/MD students, at the beginning of the HSF course series, at the beginning of year 3 (MS1), and at the beginning of year 5 (MS3). Attendance at orientation is required.

Class meetings will occur at key times throughout the year. Students in years 1, 2, and 3 (MS1) are required to attend their class meetings as they are built around the required coursework. Students in years 4, 5, and 6 (MS2, MS3, and MS4), are encouraged to attend live, though clinical or course conflicts may arise. These class meetings will be recorded and posted on the Canvas site so students can view shortly afterward. Class meetings will contain key information that students need to know at that time in their curriculum.

Maintaining Your Academic Record

All students are required to be enrolled in their courses on Pathway. Appropriate registration is necessary to access Canvas and to process financial aid. Assistance is offered to students by their ETCs or advisors. Failure to pay fees or bills or to fulfill financial aid responsibilities may result in a hold on a student's account that prevents registration. Students in clinical rotations who are not enrolled will not be covered by the University’s Malpractice Insurance and will be prohibited from patient care. The University’s Malpractice Insurance does not cover a student while on vacation or leave of absence.

Students should regularly check their enrollment and grades in Pathway and OASIS for accuracy. Your official transcript is generated from grades submitted to Pathway. Your MSPE is generated from comments submitted to OASIS.

Assessment Responsibilities

The School of Medicine actively seeks out the opinions of students through OASIS surveys at the end of each class and clerkship. Additionally, UMKC and the School of Medicine send mandatory and optional assessments to students on an ad hoc basis in an effort to improve policies, services, etc. One example of this is the Graduation Questionnaire, which is completed by Year 6 (MS4) students. The school reviews comments on each of these surveys to gain feedback that drives changes to curriculum and school policies.

Section 4: General Information

On-Campus Living

All Year 1 medical students in the BA/MD program are required to live in the UMKC Residence Hall on the Volker campus for the first year (two semesters: fall and spring). Typically, this is the Oak Street Residence Hall at 5051 Oak St. on the west side of campus, near the student union, shopping, and the upcoming streetcar connection. Research shows that living-learning communities like these are some of the most effective strategies that institutions of higher education can employ to improve student success. In addition to the opportunity to bond with classmates, living in the residence hall helps buffer students from distractions that can exist at home.

All other medical students, regardless of program or year, are welcome to live on-campus, either at the Volker or Health Science District campuses.

Student Organizations

Students have a variety of student organizations to choose from ranging from specialty-specific interest groups, to intramural sports, to community service and beyond. Use RooGroups to find and join student organizations. If you'd like to start a new one, the Office of Student Involvement can assist.

Study Space

Students have access to a variety of study spaces across both the Kansas City and St. Joseph campuses. In Kansas City, the School of Medicine building offers individual study areas, small-group rooms, and larger collaborative spaces, in addition to university libraries. At the St. Joseph campus, students benefit from private study rooms, small-group spaces, and over 2,000 square feet of open study area. On both campuses, classrooms are often available for studying when not in use for instruction.

Clinical Training Facility

UMKC's School of Medicine Clinical Training Facility is the primary site for simulation education for School of Medicine students, residents, faculty, and affiliated programs. It also houses the school's Standardized Patient (SP) program, which serves all UMKC health professions programs, as well as several local hospitals and universities. It is located across the street from the School of Medicine at 2413 Charlotte Street.

Student Representation and Class Officers

Several School of Medicine councils include student representative positions, ensuring that student needs and perspectives are incorporated into decision-making. In addition, students in years 2-6 of the BA/MD program and years MS1-MS4 in the MD program elect class officers to provide representation for the BA/MD class, the MD Kansas City class, and the MD St. Joseph class. Self-nominations for these positions take place in April, voting occurs in May, and terms run from June through the following May.