Olin official responds to editorial board claims
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It was disappointing to read the State News editorial Olin should give doctor’s note to sick students. In addition to the misinformed jabs the editorial staff took at Olin in general, it was dismaying that this entire editorial was predicated on a misunderstanding of the university’s stance on medical excuses. I would strongly recommend that the editorial staff review the MSU H1N1 FAQ site at special.news.msu.edu/h1n1/faq.php.
The influenza-like illness, or ILI, that is very common this fall is highly contagious and does not, in most cases, require medical care. Professors have been asked by the university to keep this in mind when students miss class because of it.
An ILI fact sheet is available on the Olin Web page to print out at olin.msu.edu/homecareguidance.php, and also is available at our customer service desk for students to share with their professor when seeking assistance for time missed due to illness.
It is clear the editorial staff does not have an understanding of what truly is necessary for an “excuse” to be written and how it impacts a very busy medical office.
Olin Student Health Center typically saw more than 200 patients each day in our medical clinics during the month of October. Our staff has been working long hours to ensure that we are providing care and treatment to as many ill students as possible. Our system is efficient and we care deeply about the health and welfare of MSU students. To claim we would put students in harm’s way by not providing an “excuse” is an affront to our dedicated, highly qualified staff of medical providers, nursing staff, health educators and support staff.
For the record, students do not stand in line to be seen at Olin. We operate on an appointment basis to prevent the two to three hour waits that can occur with a walk-in system.
The Olin Student Health Center excuse policy has been posted on both the Olin Web site and the University Ombudsman Web site for several years. Our policy is consistent with the policies of many peer institutions.
To write an “excuse,” a provider is confirming that a patient was ill and he or she requires time out of the classroom. During the course of the year we have many students wanting to come in for an excuse after their illness is gone. We cannot, after the fact, confirm that someone has been ill. It would be unethical to do so.
We do provide documentation for a patient when serious medical issues will require a student to miss several days of class.
Kathi Braunlich
communications and planning coordinator, Olin Health Center
Commentary
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e
(11/15/09 5:31pm)Report
“To write an “excuse,” a provider is confirming that a patient was ill and he or she requires time out of the classroom.”
Which would apply to the flu.
The problem is, many professors and TAs will not excuse an absence without some documentation, and the flu, including H1N1, is contagious and gets spread around a lot when students are afraid of missing class without written documentation because it will affect their grade negatively, in some classes with strict attendance policies, missing several days of class without a written excuse is a big deal for one’s grade.
And while H1N1 is not very dangerous to healthy college age students, I think people forget, 1. not all people in your classes necessarily fall into that “healthy” category and still may have had trouble getting a vaccination, 2. many of us interact with people outside that category.
I for one work with very young children for whom H1Ni flu is most dangerous, and yet because I do not have any of the underlying conditions myself that would qualify me for the first round of vaccinations, I was unable to get vaccinated. And now it seems there is at least one person in each of my classes at any given time who has H1N1 symptoms but no documentation to excuse their absence.
Honestly I think sending students to Olin to get notes is not the best policy, why send people with a contagious illness to campus to spread it to others if they don’t need the medical attention? However, that should then be recognized across the board at the university, including by professors and TAs when it comes to deciding how an absence with no note because of flu symptoms is going to effect a student’s grade.
Justin Lippi
(11/16/09 12:47pm)Report
I don’t see this letter actually addressing the Editoral board’s claim that olin will not provide excuse slips for swine flu. The closest I see is:
“We do provide documentation for a patient when serious medical issues will require a student to miss several days of class.” — does having swine flu count as one of these ‘serious medical issues [which] will require a student to miss several days of class’
Kristin
(11/16/09 4:41pm)Report
IT DOESN’T MATTER if they will provide an excuse or not. Instructors have been told by the university to be lenient in their attendance policies if students have the flu. That is the university’s official position.
Any time you go to Olin, you get a form documenting your visit and the reason for the visit. Even if they don’t add a class excuse to that form, it’s good enough for most profs. That form with a mono diagnosis (but no class excuse) was good enough for me to take an exam in a med school class 2 weeks late, when their stated policy is that you must take it within one week and then only with a doctor’s note. Certainly, if it’s good enough for the med schools, it’s good enough for most other teachers.
If a student is absolutely sure that their teacher won’t be flexible, then the student should go to Olin to document the illness. If the teacher then refuses to excuse the absence, the student should take it up with the Ombudsman’s office, whose job it is to mediate conflicts between students and faculty.
Seriously, most students just want to complain because they can’t get that excuse, when they don’t need it. Your teachers are not evil. If you asked them, you just might find that out. And if your teacher really is evil, you have other options available.
Chicago Spartan
(11/17/09 3:36pm)Report
Does Olin still tell every student that comes in the door that they have Mono, regardless of the symptoms? They did when I was there…hilarious…