Student Supervision Policy

The University of Virginia School of Medicine has established guidelines, codified by the curriculum committee, regarding the required levels of faculty, fellow, and resident supervision of all students in the pursuit of their undergraduate medical education training. The School of Medicine is committed to a medical student education designed to produce the highest quality physicians while working within a health system in which patient safety is the utmost and foremost priority. The University of Virginia School of Medicine provides all medical students an education that is developmental and that prepares students to assume progressive clinical responsibility across the phases of the curriculum, and is in accordance with the requirements of the Liaison Committee for Medical Education (LCME).

The amount of supervision required for each student will vary according to the clinical condition of each patient and will be commensurate with the level of training, education, and experience of the student involved with the patient’s care. While engaged in clinical rotations or clinical activities associated with prescribed course work, medical students should be incorporated into and accepted as an integral part of the team and permitted to participate in team care of the patient. Students are encouraged to seek guidance from supervisors to support their participation in patient care responsibilities with the specified level of supervision.

The Curriculum Committee establishes the overall level of student responsibility in patient care based upon the phase of the curriculum. Individual course/clerkship directors will specify further students’ level of responsibility in the patient care activities and procedures required within their course/clerkship. This information will be shared with all teaching faculty, residents, and staff annually.

1. Supervision of all students is provided by qualified faculty, fellows. and/or resident physicians at all times that a student is on duty or on call. Students are provided with rapid, reliable systems for communicating with faculty and resident physicians.
2. Supervision is designed to foster progressive responsibility.
3. Supervision is based on a student’s demonstrated ability, level of training, and demonstrated competence, as well as the objectives for the rotation. In all patient care encounters, the patient must be made aware that the individual providing the care and/or performing the procedure is a medical student.
4. Supervision is designed to ensure patient safety and to provide an opportunity for assessment of students’ performance for formative feedback and summative performance evaluation.

Expectations of Attending Physicians, Fellows and Resident Physicians for Supervising Medical Students

Provide opportunities for students to meet their course/clerkship objectives and requirements in accordance with health system policies.

Provide students with regular feedback, to inform student self-assessment and the creation of personal learning plans/goals.

Provide course/clerkship directors with feedback on student performance. Clerkship/course directors should be notified immediately if serious academic or professional gaps in student performance exist.

Uphold and serve as a role model for the UVA Professionalism Expectations.

Provide opportunity for students to voice concerns in clinical, administrative, professional, or educational matters.

The Curriculum Committee has oversight and approval for this policy.

Professionalism Expectations

• Next scheduled review June 2027
• Reaffirmed February 2024
• Reaffirmed June 2021
• Approved July 2020