To: All School of Medicine faculty, staff, trainees and students
As a follow-up to the University’s May 15 communication about a phased return of research to campus, we write to provide an update on recovery efforts taking place in the School of Medicine.
Education
Thanks to the extraordinary efforts of our students, staff, and faculty, the SOM celebrated three virtual diploma ceremonies earlier in May. Students in the Doctor of Physical Therapy, Genetic Counseling, and MD programs received their diplomas on time, despite having been out of the classrooms, labs, and clinics since March. Due to the interruption in clinical rotations, the Medical Imaging program delayed the graduation of most of their students until mid-summer.
Medical education is an essential activity in our society. Our students, residents, and graduates are, and will continue to be, critical to providing essential care to our community and the country moving forward. With that in mind, the School of Medicine is developing an Education Recovery Plan for our six degree programs and our incoming residents. The plan is focused on resuming the educational experiences that are critical to completing degree requirements, while also ensuring the safest environment possible for our learners, staff and faculty.
Our recovery planning team includes subject matter experts from the Division of Infectious Disease, degree program directors, deans, students, staff and additional faculty. The team is collaborating with Student Health, which will provide appropriate testing, care and approval of return to clinical activities for any student who may be exposed or suspects exposure to COVID-19.
June 1 has been set as the date for our medical students to return to clinical rotations. Later in June, Emory will also welcome approximately 450 new residents to our clinics and hospitals. Resident orientation will take place in our School of Medicine Building, with careful scheduling and screening and safety protocols in place.
The Education Recovery team is continuing to plan for recovery beyond the summer and we will provide more details as they become available.
Research
The University has initiated a phased return of research to campus. As part of Phase 1, preliminary planning and assessment of readiness, School of Medicine leaders are working closely with PIs and department leaders to gather more details on the specific needs of our investigators and labs—including face coverings and PPE, plans to ensure social distancing, parking needs and challenges related to returning to on-campus work. We continue to partner with the University to ensure that infrastructure and safe operations, including screening processes and contact tracing, are in place as we transition additional research on campus in the near future.
Working remotely
As a reminder, while we are focusing on recovery for education and research, the University’s guidance indicates that all faculty and staff who are able to work remotely should continue to do so. Your department or program director or supervisor will make the determination as to whether you are able to continue to work from home based on guidance from the University and the School of Medicine. This guidance remains in place through the University-designated Phase 3, which begins June 22. The ending date for Phase 3 is to be determined.
We appreciate your flexibility, your patience and your continued hard work over the past few months. The work we do is critical not only to Emory, but to the state of Georgia and beyond. While we look forward to the possibility of carefully and methodically resuming some work on campus, our leaders are making all decisions through the lens of prioritizing the health and safety of our entire School of Medicine community. We will continue to update you as quickly as we can as more details become available.