Medical College of Georgia
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Medical College of Georgia
Graduate Medical Education Policies and Procedures
Office of Primary Responsibility: Graduate Medical Education
No. HS 18.0

House Officer Performance

1.0 Purpose
To ensure the House Officer is performing at an adequate level of competence for a Residency Training Program.

2.0 Procedure

2.1 The Program Director, upon learning of or observing a performance problem with a House Officer, counsels him/her about it and documents the counseling in the House Officer’s Training file. The Program Director may present the House Officer’s performance issue to the Residency Program Evaluation Committee for additional input and may appoint a mentor to assist the House Officer member in improving their performance.

2.2 If, after documented counseling a House Officer is not performing at an adequate level of competence, demonstrates unprofessional or unethical behavior, engages in misconduct, or otherwise fails to fulfill the responsibilities of the Program in which he/she is enrolled, the House Officer may be placed on formal academic remediation by a Program Director or Residency Program Education Committee (RPEC).

2.3 The House Officer must be informed in person of this decision and must be provided with a formal academic remediation plan document, which includes the following:

2.3.1 Statement of the grounds for the remediation, including identified deficiencies or problem behaviors.

2.3.2 The duration of the remediation, which ordinarily will be at least three months, but may be extended to six months.

2.3.3 A plan for remediation and criteria by which successful remediation will be judged.

2.3.4 Notice that failure to meet the conditions of academic remediation could result in extended probation, additional training time, and/or suspension or dismissal from the Program during or at the conclusion of the remediation period.

2.3.5 Written acknowledgement by the House Officer of the receipt of the remediation document.

2.3.6 A copy of the remediation document will be forwarded to the Senior Associate Dean for Graduate Medical Education and VA Affairs.

2.4 In most cases, the initial period of remediation will be three months. During this time, one of the senior faculty members should be appointed to serve as the House Officer’s mentor. The House Officer is expected to work closely with the mentor and meet with him/her at least once a month to report on and discuss his/her progress. The mentor may also serve as the House Officers advocate and will keep the Program Director informed of the House Officers progress.

2.5 If the decision is made to not renew the contract or to dismiss the House Officer from the Training Program, the House Officer may appeal the adverse decision to the Senior Associate Dean for Graduate Medical Education and VA Affairs as found in the HS Policy 13.0: Resident Evaluation, Grievance and Due Process Policy.

2.6 Pending the results of the appeal, if the non renewal of contract, dismissal recommendation action or other disciplinary action is upheld as per HS Policy 13.0 and involves a J-1 visa holder, the ECFMG will be notified of the failure of progression by the House Officer.

2.7 If the House Officer holds a Temporary Training Permit issued by the Georgia Composite Board of Medical Education, the Board will be notified of the non-renewal of the House Officers contract, the dismissal action, or other significant disciplinary action. The Program Director must report to the Georgia Composite Board of Medical Education within 15 days of a permit holder’s withdrawal or termination from or completion of a Postgraduate Training Program, any disciplinary action regarding the quality of care and/or ability to practice with reasonable skill and safety, or any permit holder who has left the Program for any length of time in excess of two weeks.

Effective Date: 7/05 Revision/Review Date: 12/05 10/07

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Holly Walp,

October 24, 2007