Provides the resident with vacation, educational leave, family and medical leave, parental leave, bereavement leave, sick leave and military leave as follows:

Vacation

The resident may be permitted to take up to three (3) weeks per year of paid vacation.# A week of vacation will be defined as 5 weekdays (Monday – Friday) and 2 weekend days (Saturday – Sunday). Use of vacation leave shall be subject to approval in advance by the Program Director with the concurrence of the Affiliated Hospital. In determining whether to grant the resident’s request for vacation, the Program Director may take into consideration patient care and the operational needs of the residency program. The resident shall be responsible for arranging appropriate coverage of patient care and other obligations as necessitated by the requested vacation; which arrangements shall be coordinated by the chief resident and the Program Director. Delinquent medical records, time records, logs and evaluations must be made current before the resident begins vacation. The resident shall not be entitled to accumulate unused vacation leave beyond the term of appointment.

If the physician appointment is terminated in the middle of the year, the vacation the resident has available to him/her will be pro-rated by month. Residents who leave mid-contract will not have access to all 3 weeks of vacation.

Residents who leave the country for vacation or other reasons and are then unable to return to the US may not have their position held beyond the approved vacation time granted by the Program Director, at the sole discretion of the Program Director and the Affiliated Hospital.

Educational Leave

The resident may be permitted to take up to one (1) week per year of paid educational leave at the discretion of the Program Director.# Use of educational leave shall be subject to approval in advance by the Program Director with the concurrence of the Affiliated Hospital. In determining whether to grant the resident’s request for educational leave, the Program Director may take into consideration patient care, the operational needs of the residency program and the educational value to the resident of the requested educational leave. The resident shall be responsible for arranging appropriate coverage of patient care and other obligations as necessitated by requested educational leave, which arrangements shall be coordinated by the chief resident and the Program Director. Delinquent medical records, time records, logs and evaluations must be made current before the resident begins educational leave. The resident shall not be entitled to accumulate unused educational leave beyond the term of appointment.

Family & Medical Leave

The resident may be permitted to take up to twelve (12) weeks per year of family and medical leave without compensation (other than paid vacation and/or sick leave used in accordance with the policies of the Affiliated Hospital) during the term of appointment, in accordance with the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, state law, and the policies of the Affiliated Hospital. The resident shall make requests for family and medical leave in accordance with the existing policies of the Affiliated Hospital and should consult those policies for further information.

Bereavement

The resident may be permitted to take up to three (3) calendar days per year of paid bereavement leave for a member of his/her immediate family, subject to approval in advance by the Program Director with the concurrence of the Affiliated Hospital. For these purposes, the immediate family is defined as spouse, child, parent, brother, sister, grandparent, grandchild, and corresponding in-laws. The policy of the Affiliated Hospital will be followed. The resident shall not be entitled to accumulate unused bereavement leave beyond the term of appointment.

Sick Leave

The Resident may be permitted to take up to two (2) weeks per year of paid sick leave, to be used in accordance with the existing policies of the Affiliated Hospital. # If the resident is successful in being re-appointed to the residency program, sick leave may be accumulated and carried to successive appointment years. Sick days shall be documented by the program coordinator and an up-to-date report of the number of sick days used by the resident shall be available from the residency program and/or the Office of Residency Affairs. All paid sick leave not taken is forfeited and is not compensated upon termination of the resident’s contract.

Parental Leave

Maternity Leave

Maternity leave will be granted upon request to all pregnant residents. The resident may be permitted to take up to a total of twelve (12) weeks of family and medical leave per year without compensation in accordance with the federal Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, state law, and the policies of the Affiliated Hospitals. Maternity leave will be paid leave by initially using any available sick (up to 2 weeks) or vacation leave (up to 3 weeks). Once available vacation and sick leave is exhausted, any additional maternity leave will be family leave without pay. Maternity leave greater than twelve (12) weeks duration, except in cases of illness of mother or infant, will require approval by the Residency Program Director. Health insurance and other benefits will be provided while using vacation and sick leave. Health insurance and other benefits may be continued at the resident's expense while on family leave without pay.

The pregnant resident should notify the Residency Program Director as soon as possible regarding her need for a maternity leave. The resident and program director should develop a plan regarding timing and duration of maternity leave. Leave which exceeds that period of time defined by the resident's specialty board as a leave of absence for which time need not be made up, must be made up at the end of the usual training interval. Upon return to work the resident will be reinstated without loss of training status, provided that her return is on the date previously approved by the program director. If leave is requested for more than twelve (12) weeks due to medical reasons, approval for return to the training program will be at the discretion of the Residency Program Director. For leave beyond twelve (12) weeks a doctor's certificate verifying the condition of the resident may be requested. In those cases where a resident must make up time missed in order to fulfill board requirements, the resident will be paid for days worked and the institution will continue benefit coverage during the extension of training time. Schedule accommodations will meet the needs of the resident and the program (including other residents) so that special requirements of that discipline are met.

Adoption

The resident may be permitted to take up to twelve (12) weeks of family and medical leave per year without compensation in accordance with the federal Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, state law, and the policies of the Affiliated Hospitals. The resident must discuss the impending adoption with the Residency Program Director in as much advance as possible, and leave should be granted to any mother or father during the first month after adoption of a child. Adoption leave will be paid by initially using any available vacation leave. Once available vacation time is exhausted, Family Leave will be unpaid and health insurance and other benefits may be continued at the resident's expense. If leave exceeds that period of time defined by the resident's specialty board as a leave of absence for which time need not be made up, it will be made up at the end of the usual training interval. In those cases where a resident must make up time missed in order to fulfill board requirements, the resident will be paid for days worked and benefit coverage will continue during the extension of training time.

Paternity Leave

The resident may be permitted to take up to twelve (12) weeks of family and medical leave per year without compensation in accordance with the federal Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, state law, and the policies of the Affiliated Hospitals. Such leave should be requested in as much advance as possible, and should be granted to any father during the first month after delivery or adoption of a child. Paternity leave will be paid by initially using any available vacation leave. Once available vacation time is exhausted, Family Leave will be unpaid and health insurance and other benefits may be continued at the resident's expense. If leave exceeds that period of time defined by the resident's specialty board as a leave of absence for which time need not be made up, it will be made up at the end of the usual training interval. In those cases where a resident must make up time missed in order to fulfill board requirements, the resident will be paid for days worked and the institution will continue benefit coverage during the extension of training time.

Additional Time to Complete Work

If any specialty or sub-specialty Board requirements are more stringent than those outlined in this section, then the respective Board requirements shall govern and supersede these. In the event that the resident accumulates a total of more than the maximum allowable days of absence from the Residency Program during a year (including vacation, educational, child care, bereavement and sick leave, suspension [with or without pay] or other absence), the resident shall be notified in writing by the Program Director as to whether such absence necessitates remedial work in order to fulfill the requirements of the Residency Program and Specialty Board. Such notification shall be provided to the resident prior to any planned leave (or at the earliest practicable time after any unplanned leave) which causes the resident to exceed this limit of absence from the Residency Program.

Job Search

Successful career placement of the resident is a goal of the Residency Program. The Program Director may grant up to six (6) calendar days total during the last two years of training for this purpose, using prudent discretion. If approved by the RRC, this time may be counted as work days when tabulating days for RRC accreditation.

Accumulation of Leave Time

Residency employment agreements are for a maximum of one year. The resident shall not be entitled to accumulate unused vacation, educational, job search, or bereavement leave from one period of appointment to the next. Nor shall the resident be entitled to any allowance or compensation for such leave not used during the contract period in which it is earned.

Military Leave

All affiliated hospitals have current policies regarding military leave for their employees which preserve the employee’s position and coordinate benefits, such as health insurance. In the event that it becomes necessary for a resident or fellow to be called into active duty, the policy of the employing hospital will become effective. It will be the responsibility of the resident to work with the appropriate employing hospital to ensure that the necessary paperwork is completed before the resident leaves for duty.

# For duty hour/time reporting purposes, a number of days in a week of leave time will be determined by the respective residency program.  For example, a week may be defined as 5 days (ambulatory rotation) or 6 days (inpatient rotation).

 Last Approval Date:  November 16, 2012

 Effective Date: November 16, 2012