Offices of Medical Student Education: Procedure for Health, Safety, and Immunization

Unit Procedure

Title

Offices of Medical Student Education: Procedure for Health, Safety, and Immunization

Introduction

Purpose

This Procedure provides the required steps to be performed by University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (“University”) School of Medicine (SOM) Medical Doctorate (MD) degree program students (“Students”) to ensure compliance with health, safety, and immunization standards and requirements.  

Scope

This Procedure is applicable to Medical Doctorate (MD) degree program students (“Students”) enrolled in the SOM.  This Procedure is also applicable to Students who are enrolled in a University graduate or professional degree program (e.g., programs such as for a PhD, MPH, JD, MBA, etc.) and on an academic LOA (i.e., Graduate LOA or Research LOA) from the MD degree program. This Procedure is not applicable to Students who are on a Personal LOA, Medical LOA, or Administrative LOA from an MD program curriculum during the approved period of their LOA.

Procedure

A. General Procedures and Guidelines

  1. Upon matriculation, each Student will be provided with order codes to create a Health Portal and Background Check in the SOM’s compliance platform, Viewpoint.
  2. Students must create an identity and complete the following:
    1. By the first day of class in the fall semester:
      • Submit an online form sent from Student Affairs leadership attesting that they have read the Technical Standards for Medical Students document.
      • Upload the following to Viewpoint:
        1. Documentation of Tuberculosis (TB) test in the last twelve months; 
        2. Diphtheria, Tetanus and Pertussis (DPT) documentation;
        3. Covid‐19 documentation;
        4. Varicella documentation; 
        5. Documentation of current health insurance coverage; and
        6. Training certificates for the following UNC Environment, Health and Safety (EHS) self-study units:
          1. Clinic Bloodborne Pathogens course;
          2. Tuberculosis Awareness and Infection Control; and course; and 
          3. iii.    Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) requirements.
    2. By October 15 of the first year:
      • Upload Influenza vaccination documentation to Viewpoint. 
    3. By December 31 of the first year:
      • Complete Hepatitis B series documentation, including positive, quantitative titer and upload documentation to Viewpoint.
    4. By January 31 of each subsequent year following the first year:
      • Upload the following to Viewpoint: 
        1. Documentation of current health insurance coverage;
        2. Urine drug screen results; and
        3. Background check results.
    5. By May 15 of each subsequent year following the first year:
    6. By October 15 of each subsequent year following the first year:
      • Annual influenza vaccination documentation. 
  3. Documentation must be uploaded to Viewpoint. Emailed or faxed documents will not be accepted.
  4. Students who do not have health insurance coverage by the first day of class and who are missing vaccinations should email healthandsafety@med.unc.edu for instruction.

B. Noncompliance 

Students who do not meet the stated deadlines for compliance will be immediately withdrawn from class/clinic and placed on an Administrative Leave of Absence (LOA) until the completion of each requirement. Administrative LOA must be noted in a Student’s Medical Student Performance Evaluation (MSPE). 

When the Student’s documentation is approved in the compliance platform, the student may return to class/clinic on the next business day. Students with repeated missed deadlines may be referred to the Student Progress Committee (SPC).

Exceptions

Students who matriculate after July 1 may request an exception to the deadlines included in this Procedure by emailing SALeadership@listserv.med.unc.edu by the first day of class in the fall semester.

Definitions

 

Medical Student Performance Evaluation (MSPE): a comprehensive, objective document summarizing a medical student's academic performance, clinical rotations, and professional characteristics for residency applications. It highlights key achievements, academic history, and comparative performance.

Compliance: Compliance occurs when all the requirements below are fulfilled - 

  1. A Student’s immunization and test records are approved in the SOM’s compliance platform, Exxat, by 5:00 pm of the stated deadline, and are:
    • Up to Date
    • Valid until the next renewal deadline in accordance with each Student’s immunization and test records.
  2. The Student has met the stated deadline(s) for updating their Technical Standards attestation and workplace safety certifications.

 

Related Requirements

External Regulations

Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) Functions and Standards of a Medical School

  • LCME Standard 10.6: Content of Informational Materials

  • LCME Standard 12.7: Immunization Requirements and Monitoring

North Carolina General Statutes N.C.G.S. 130A-155.1

Unit Policies, Standards, and Procedures

Policy on Health, Safety, and Immunizations
Policy on Technical Standards for Medical Students
Policy on Student Progress Committee Functions
Policy on Leave of Absence

Contact Information

Primary Contact

Name: Valerie Glassman, EdD, Senior Director for Student Affairs

Email: valerie_glassman@med.unc.edu

Publication Details

  • Issuing Officer: Alice Chuang, MD, MEd, FACOG, Associate Dean for Student Affairs  
  • Effective Date: March 1, 2025
  • Next Review Date: February 28, 2027
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