To purpose of externships is for medical students to gain clinical exposure in a particular specialty. The program is intended to enhance the clinical exposure of medical students to various disease entities while they are undergoing their studies.

Student rotations will be available under the following conditions:

1. Participants may obtain an externship only with the written approval of the Graduate Medical Education Coordinator and the appropriate training director.

2. Externships shall be granted in four-week blocks.

3. Applicants for externships must provide documentation that they are in good standing at their medical school.

4. Externs will not receive compensation for their services (e.g. no stipend).

5. Externs must have their own professional liability insurance, or coverage from medical school, and shall not be considered as employees or agents of the hospital.

6. Externs may not provide direct patient care without supervision.

7. Externs may not write orders or progress notes on patients' charts unless the orders and/or progress notes are countersigned immediately by the supervising resident or medical staff physician. The extern must indicate his status specifically when writing in the chart (e.g. Name, Extern/MSIV).

8. The attending physician must countersign clinical information written or dictated into the chart (other than orders and progress notes) within 24 hours. The extern must specifically indicate his status when writing in the chart (e.g. Name, Extern/MSIV).

9. Externs shall not be assigned call duty, but may accompany housestaff or medical staff physicians.

10. All externs must sign written agreements acknowledging that they are familiar with these policies and procedures of the postgraduate medical education program, and they agree to be bound by said policies and procedures.

1. Extern or observer contacts GME Coordinator with request for a rotation.

2. GME Coordinator requests extern to complete medical student application, and to provide GME office with letter from medical school stating:
a. Extern is a student in good standing;
b. Extern is covered by school's liability insurance.

3. GME Coordinator refers extern to Human Resources.

4. GME Coordinator requests written statement from attending physician stating supervisory responsibility.

5. Extern contacts Human Resources. Human Resources schedules urine drug screen with Employee Health.

6. Extern signs applicant disclosure form and Human Resources begins background check; awaits results.

7. Extern is required to provide immunization records for TB, MMR and Varicella to Employee Health. If any vaccinations are lacking, Employee Health is able to administer them.

8. Once background check and urine drug screen results are returned with negative findings, extern is cleared to begin rotation (H/R and EH contact GME Coordinator with results).

9. GME Coordiantor requests ID badge from Security and has extern complete HIPAA paperwork.

10. Extern begins rotation.