Standards for Conduct in the Teacher-Learner Relationship
As a medical school which trains women and men who will be entrusted with the lives and well being of others, we have always been aware that we bear a special responsibility to assure that our students learn in an environment that fosters mutual respect and the values of professionalism, ethics and humanism in the practice of medicine. An environment conducive to learning requires that faculty, students and administrative and support staff treat each other with civility.
The members of the faculty, however, bear special responsibility to assure that students are treated fairly and with respect in all settings where students are educated: the classroom, the laboratory, on patient rounds, at the bedside, in the operating room.
Whether they wish to or not, faculty are the individuals on whom students model their own behavior. In addition, they often hold the key to students' career advancement through their control of student evaluations and references.
Special care must be taken by faculty not to abuse the authority they exercise in the educational setting, to treat all students fairly, and to avoid exploiting or appearing to exploit their students. The quality and worth of a Columbia medical education rests not only in the excellence of the content and the skills that we teach, but in the examples we provide of humane and ethical physicians and scientists who respect our colleagues in health care delivery, our patients and one another.
There is no place in the College of Physicians and Surgeons for incivility, verbal or physical abuse, exploitation or mistreatment of students or one another.
Personal humiliation and the use of psychological or physical punishment are unacceptable as teaching methods.
Increasingly, our community is a diverse body of faculty, students and staff, and it is the expectation of the College that everyone will carry out their responsibilities in a manner that is professional and respectful of this diversity. This expectation extends also to residents, nurses and other health professionals in the medical center who because of their roles in the delivery of health care participate in the process of educating future physicians.
The following are examples of behaviors that P&S considers unacceptable:
- physical or sexual harassment or abuse
- discrimination or harassment based on race, gender, age, ethnicity, sexual orientation or disability
- speaking in disparaging ways about an individual including humor that demeans an individual or a group
- sending students on inappropriate errands
- loss of personal civility: shouting, displays of temper, publicly or privately abusing, belittling or humiliating a student
- use of grading or other forms of evaluation in a punitive or retaliatory manner.
We also expect our students to be respectful of one another and of the faculty, staff and support staff that they encounter in the classroom and the clinical setting.
Procedures for Reporting and Investigating Violations
The following procedures apply to students enrolled in the MD program or in the MD/PhD program during their MD years. Students enrolled in other Schools and programs should refer to their Office of Student Affairs for information and direction.
Students enrolled in the biomedical PhD program through the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences should follow the procedures established by that School which are available through the Office of Graduate Student Affairs.
We believe that the standards of appropriate conduct in the educational setting are generally respected and practiced throughout the Health Sciences and the College of Physicians and Surgeons.
We recognize, however, that there are occasions when the intensity and pace of study and work, and the differing expectations that members of our pluralistic, diverse community bring to their work and study, may lead to perceived or to real incidents of inappropriate behavior on the part of faculty towards students.
When this happens, P&S is committed to establishing the facts through a fair process which respects the rights and confidentiality of the involved parties.
This process will be the responsibility of a faculty Committee on Civility in the Learning Environment which will be chaired by a faculty member appointed by the Vice-President/Dean.
Students who wish to come forward and report inappropriate behavior on the part of a faculty or staff member may do so without fear of retaliation or reprisal, and with the assurance that complete confidentiality will be maintained unless the situation is such that there is a potential of immediate harm to the student or others.
In reporting such violations there are a number of avenues that students can follow.
Discriminatory Behavior; Sexual or Physical Harassment. Students who experience behavior they believe to be discriminatory, or who are the subjects of sexual or physical harassment should consult the University guidelines and procedures established for handling these complaints and contact the University offices designated to work with students on these issues.
These guidelines and procedures are published annually in Facets, the University's Student Handbook, and can also be found on the Provost's website.
Students who wish to report other incidents of inappropriate behavior may do so to the Dean of Students; the Dean of Minority Affairs; the University Ombudsperson; a Special Advocate (see below) or to the Chair of the Committee on Civility in the Learning Environment.
Special Advocates.
To provide students with the opportunity to discuss a situation informally and in complete confidence before initiating, or in lieu of initiating a formal inquiry, the School has established a panel of special advocates, faculty selected for their personal qualities of maturity, empathy, integrity and judgment whose personal histories and experience reflect the histories and experience of our diverse student body.
Students who seek the assistance and counsel of a special advocate are assured that all discussions will be confidential and that no one else will be contacted without the permission of the student unless the situation holds a potential of immediate harm to the student or to others.
It is the student who will decide whether or not to carry the matter to the Faculty Committee on Civility in the Learning Environment.
Committee on Civility in the Learning Environment. The Faculty Committee on Civility in the Learning Environment is a new standing committee which the School has established to respond to reports of inappropriate behaviors where the student wishes an inquiry and gives permission for the committee to contact the member of the faculty whose behavior is being questioned.
A student can ask the Committee to consider an incident at any time, whether or not she or he has been working with a special advocate.
The members of the Committee, all faculty, will be appointed from the Faculty of Medicine by the Dean with the concurrence of the Executive Committee of the Faculty Council.
In order to preserve students' confidentiality there will be no standing student member of the Committee. However, students who bring an incident to the attention of the Committee may have their Class Ethics Committee representative sit as a member for the consideration of the particular incident.
In addition, students may request that a special advocate attend the Committee during the investigation of the incident.
The Committee will conduct its inquiry with fairness and with respect for the confidentiality of all parties. Its findings will be presented in the form of a written report to the student, the faculty member and the Dean who may refer it to the Executive Committee of the Faculty Council.
Recommendations for appropriate action may be made consistent with Columbia University Policies and Statutes.
The Committee on Civility in the Learning Environment will also advise the Vice-President/ Dean on any measures that, in their judgment, need to be taken to reinforce the standards of conduct.
Requirements for Dissemination and Education
P&S realizes that it is not enough to simply articulate a policy.
That policy must be widely circulated to students, faculty and staff and reaffirmed and reinforced through continuing and continuous education in a number of venues.
All medical students will receive a copy of the Standard and Procedures upon registering and it will be discussed during orientation, class meetings and in the monthly meetings of student representatives with the Dean.
The Standard and Procedures will be prominently posted, together with the names of the special advocates, on the websites and bulletin boards where students receive their information.
Each course director, clerkship director and residency director will be responsible for seeing that the Standard and Procedures are made known to their teaching faculty and to all students at the start of each course, clerkship or rotation.
Chairmen and Directors will be responsible for seeing that the policy and procedures are known to their faculty and discussed at departmental/center meetings and that it is discussed at all orientations of ward attendings and house staff.
The Committee on Civility in the Learning Environment will be responsible for recommending to the Vice-President/Dean further steps to foster an environment conducive to learning.
The Special Advocates will meet as a group periodically with the Vice-President/Dean to assess their experiences (with no discussion of specific cases) with a view to seeing whether any patterns or problems have emerged that may need to be addressed on a school-wide basis.
The School will continue to develop and foster educational programs as need and as experience under this policy dictate.
