Clinical FAQ

Please refer to the CHA/PA absence policy in the Student Academic Policies & Procedures Handbook and contact the Clinical Course Director should you have questions after reviewing this document.

1st and 2nd Year students are not expected to attend class if campus is closed. If campus is closed, you are not required to attend clinic. If you will NOT be attending clinic, it is your responsibility to contact your preceptor to notify them that you will not be there (and why). If campus is closed, but your clinic is open and you choose to attend clinic, you must contact the Clinical Team (by email) to let them know you will be at clinic. Third Year students are expected at clinic, despite inclement weather, if your preceptor is working. Contact the preceptor first then the Clinical Team if you must miss clinic due to inclement weather. (Note: Anytime you miss clinic, you need to contact the Clinical Course Director to discuss make-up options.)

If you are ill, and it would be inappropriate for you to see patients, or if there is an emergency, you must contact your preceptor first and then notify the Clinical Team. (Note: Anytime you miss clinic for an illness/emergency, you need to contact the Clinical Course Director to discuss make-up options.)

​Refer to the Student Academic Policies & Procedures Handbook.

Please refer to the CHA/PA Jury Duty policy in the Student Academic Policies & Procedures Handbook and contact the Clinical Course Director and/or Block and Thread Director(s) should you have questions after reviewing this document.

Last-minute changes happen. Contact the site immediately upon receipt of the new information. Medical offices often have extended hours and work during holidays. If you are unable to contact them, don't panic!

• Always check the Clinical website for potential site-specific information
• Dress in business clothing (not scrubs—it's better to overdress than underdress)
• Bring all of your tools (if you don't need them, so what, at least you will be prepared)
• Arrive at the site at 8:00 AM (most offices open at 8:00 AM). If you are early, they will be impressed. If you are late, apologize and ask for the correct time for the next week
• Take a deep breath and dive into the clinical experience/rotation

Determine if you can arrange to rotate with a different provider that day. If that is not possible, try to arrange to make up the day another time during the semester. If you are not able to make other arrangements, contact the Clinical Course Director for further instructions.

For 1st and 2nd Year students, you are not allowed to attend clinic during Winter Break. For 3rd Year students, you are required to be in clinic during Spring Break, unless it is your designated vacation block.

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You are required to keep your TB screening up-to-date. Check the status of your TB screening by logging into Castlebranch. As this is considered a professionalism issue, please be timely in updating documentation to Castlebranch. Delayed or out-of-date paperwork could result in a referral to Student Promotions Committee, a delayed clinical experience or rotation start and/or a forfeited clinical experience/rotation, which could result in additional costs to you and delayed graduation. If you have questions, please email the Clinical Team.

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When you receive your clinical assignment, check CANVAS for additional information. Once you have gathered some background information, and if the answers are not already in the Clinical Site Information, you should contact your preceptor to confirm when you should arrive, how you should dress, what you should bring (equipment, lunch, etc.) and any other details important for that rotation (every clinic and preceptor is different). Please plan to contact your preceptor 2 weeks prior to the start of the clinic assignment, unless the information on CANVAS directs you otherwise.

Two weeks prior to the start of your clinical, contact your preceptor during normal business hours at the clinic office phone number or email address provided with your rotation assignment in Typhon.  It is never appropriate to initially contact your preceptor via text-messaging.

Regardless of how you would evaluate an experience/rotation, it is expected that you will thank your preceptor for his/her time.  Preceptors and staff really cherish a personalized handwritten thank-you note. You may give this to the preceptor on your last day of the rotation or mail it afterwards.  You may also choose to bring a food item, such as cookies, as a thank you. Other gifts of any kind, including gift cards, are not appropriate.

Fall semester placements for 2nd year students and Spring semesters placements for 1st and 2nd year students may be anywhere in the Denver/Front Range area (from south of Colorado Springs to north of Fort Collins and as far west as Evergreen and as far east as Elizabeth).  2nd year student Summer semester placements and all 3rd year student placements and may be anywhere in the state of Colorado. 

Review information on CANVAS.

Cinical objectives can be found on the Preceptor page on the CHA/PA Program Website.

No. You will receive an in progress (“IP”) for a grade until your assessment is received. See the Grade Report section of the “Student Academic Policies & Procedures” document on the Student Resources webpage for more information.

No.  Your clinical grade is assigned by the Clinical Course Director, using feedback from preceptors, assessments, course requirements, professionalism standards and patient encounter logs.

Preceptor Requirements for clinical placements can be found in the “Preceptor Handbook” found on the Preceptors page of the CHA/PA Program Website.  Potential preceptors are also encouraged to contact the Clinical Team about precepting opportunities and requirements.

Regular meetings will be scheduled with your class and the Clinical Team throughout the year.  Please hold all requests for individual meetings and questions until after the class meetings have occurred.

See the “Student Academic Policies & Procedures” document on the Student Resources webpage for policies on volunteering.

Any travel time to or from rotations >100 miles from the Anschutz Medical Campus comes out of the month of the distance rotation. Coordination of travel and housing for the distance/out-of-area rotation(s) are the responsibility of the student. The amount of time allotted for travel depends on the distance of the site from campus. If the rotation is 100-200 miles away from Anschutz, you are allotted 1 day of travel to the site and 1 day of travel from the site. If the rotation is >200 miles from Anschutz, you are allotted 2 days of travel to the site and 2 days of travel from the site. Example:  Mary has a rotation in Nebraska for the month of July. Her next rotation is at the Child Health Clinic at Children's Hospital Colorado beginning August 1st. Mary will begin her rotation in Nebraska on July 3rd (2 days allotted for travel to the location) and will complete her rotation on July 29th to allow 2 days for travel back to the Denver metro area.

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The student evaluation of the preceptor that you fill out about your preceptor is located in Typhon. The preceptor assessment of you (if you need to print one out for your preceptor to complete by hand) and link to Typhon are under the Preceptor Resources page of the website.

No. We want to ensure that students give open and honest evaluations of their preceptors. Therefore, preceptors may only request feedback if they have had three or more students over one academic year or over a total of five years. If they have had at least three students and request feedback, we would provide general information where all evaluative information is de-identified.

​Yes.  Please e-mail the Clinical Team and provide the preceptor’s information so we can enter them into Typhon and generate an assessment request for them to complete.

Yes. Please e-mail the Clinical Team and provide the preceptor’s information so we can enter them into Typhon and generate an assessment request for them.  Please be mindful of the number of preceptors you are asking to complete assessments on you.  Some sites will have you work with multiple preceptors and will complete an assessment as a group.   If the site and rotation permits, plan to ask no more than 3 preceptors to complete an assessment on you.

Yes, we welcome evaluations on any preceptor with whom you had significant contact.  Please e-mail the Clinical Team and provide the preceptor’s information so we can enter them into Typhon.  You can also elect to include comments about specific preceptors on the main preceptor evaluation form in the “General Comments” section.

It is your responsibility to contact your preceptor and kindly ask them to complete your assessment.  If they did not receive the link or would prefer we send another, please e-mail the Clinical Team and let them know what your preceptor needs.  We will provide one reminder email to the preceptor on your behalf.  If you continue to have difficulty obtaining your assessment, you can print off a paper version and schedule a time to personally take it to your preceptor.  If you continue to have difficulty after trying the above steps, please let the Clinical Team know.  To avoid this problem in the future, it is advisable to discuss setting aside time with the preceptor to complete your assessment and review the assessment prior to the end of your experience/rotation.

The Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) provide housing for the University of Colorado health professional students who need housing for clinical rotations in Colorado that are >40 miles from the Anschutz Medical Campus. 

You will receive a message from AHEC regarding your eligibility for housing. You will then need to log into the AHEC system to request AHEC housing.  An AHEC representative from the respective geographic area will contact you to coordinate your stay between you and your host.  Should there be an issue with housing, AHEC typically contacts the student as well as the Clinical Team. See CANVAS for information regarding AHEC and the housing request process.

The current policy is that you must travel a distance of 40 miles one way from the Anschutz Medical Campus to meet the requirements for AHEC housing. 

See CANVAS for more information.

Yes. For you to receive reimbursement for your housing, you must submit a request to AHEC.  AHEC will provide reimbursement at the currently contracted rate.

Try some of the following resources:

• Financial Aid Office
• Global Education/Study Abroad Scholarships
• The Office of International Affairs (OIA)
• Financial Aid for Study Abroad
• Fulbright Scholarship information
• Benjamin Gilman International Scholarship information
• Boren Awards for International Study
• Sources and Tips on Obtaining Financial Aid to Study Abroad
• International Education Financial Aid Scholarship Search

Yes, you will need an assessment completed for your international rotation. Pick the person who seems most appropriate to complete the assessment. You will need to take a paper copy with you.  You will need to return the paper copy to the Clinical Course Director within 7 days of your return.

Yes, you will need to log encounters in Typhon; however, we understand that there may be limitations when you are at an international rotation. Therefore, all that is required is age/gender/CC and whether the patient was post-partum, pregnant or planning pregnancy (if female) for each patient and a more detailed description for a couple of interesting patients of your choosing. This information should fit easily in your journal and can be logged within 7 days of your return to the United States.

​See the International Vaccination Policy

Refer to your “Student Academic Policies & Procedures” handbook (which can be found on the Student Resources page of this website) or your Clinical Handbook (in Canvas) for more information. If your question is still not answered, contact the Clinical Team or Clinical Course Director.

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