Given their roles in the educational process and their inherently unequal positions vis a vis students, all instructional personnel (including faculty, residents, and other members of the healthcare team) are to treat students with courtesy, civility and respect and with an awareness of the potential impact of their behavior on such students’ professional futures.

Conduct inconsistent with this policy can occur in a variety of forms and may seriously impair learning.  In particular, instructional personnel are expected to create an environment in which feedback regarding their performance can be given openly by students without concern for reprisal, and which is free of exploitation, harassment, impermissible discriminatory treatment, humiliation, or other mistreatment or abuse of medical students. 

Mistreatment, either intentional or unintentional, occurs when behavior shows disrespect for the dignity of others and unreasonably interferes with the learning process.

This includes but is not limited to the following behaviors:

• Public humiliation
• Sexual harassment and unwarranted sexual advances
• Threat of physical harm or physically being harmed
• Assigning duties as punishment rather than education
• Requiring a student to perform personal services (such as shopping or babysitting)
• Denying learning opportunities on the  basis of sex, race, age, color, disability, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, national or ethnic origin, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law
• Unwarranted exclusion from reasonable learning or professional opportunities based on identity
• Evaluation or grading on inappropriate criteria (or threatening to do so) based on identity

Here are some tips on how to avoid mistreatment:

• Take the time to get to know your learners
  • Address learners by their preferred name and if unsure of pronunciation, ask in a respectful manner. Avoid using nicknames 
  • Ask for pronouns
  • Avoid assumptions based on appearance
• Set clear expectations with learners from the beginning. This may include the following:
  • Define roles of each member on the team to learner
  • Clearly stating start and end times to activities
  • Share educational activity goals with the learner
  • Elicit learner’s goals.
• Provide constructive feedback to learners aimed at skills development rather than reprimanding. When providing feedback you should consider the following:
  • Slow down, check your own emotional state, evidence, & biases before delivering your feedback
  • Create a sense of trust with the learner
  • Make it a collaborative process 
  • Elicit learner’s perspectives/reflections
  • Provide reinforcing more than corrective feedback
  • Focus on observation and behavior
  • Adjust your feedback to fit your learner
• Set an inclusive learning environment
  • Use appropriate language and avoid outdated terms. See AMA Guidelines for Inclusive Language
  • Model humility and empathy
• Avoid negative and inappropriate comments and language 
  • Be mindful of distribution of work
  • Support learners who may require accommodations

As key members of the learning community, medical students are expected to adhere to the same standards of respectful and professional behavior with all members of the learning environment, including (but not limited to) the standards of conduct set forth in the School of Medicine Professionalism Principles outlined MD Program Handbook and Policy Manual. In addition, it is the students’ responsibility to understand educational and clinical expectations and procedures outlined by the program.