203.1 Purpose
To provide standards for parental approval of minor student participation in clinical experiences.
203.2 Approval
Board of Higher Education approval: April 11, 2007. Revised: June 8, 2016; September 13, 2017.
203.3 References
UCA 53A-15-202(5), Powers of the State Board of Education: Parental Disclosure/Consent for Minor Student Participation in Clinical Experiences
203.4 Definitions
4.1 Clinical Experiences: Activities in a training program for a healthcare occupation that involves healthcare procedures in direct contact with a patient.
4.2 Minor Student: A student under the age of eighteen years old.
203.5 Responsibility for Clinical Experiences
USHE technical colleges provide training for various healthcare occupations requiring contact with patients. Clinical experiences are vital to the preparation of technicians who will work in these occupations. It is the responsibility of technical college faculty in healthcare programs and college administration, under the advisement of their local healthcare industry, and within parameters established by state and federal regulation and by industry practices, to determine what clinical experiences a student must have to effectively prepare for work in the specific occupation for which training is being provided.
203.6 Prior Disclosure of Clinical Experiences to Parent/Guardian
For courses or programs in healthcare occupations containing clinical experiences, each technical college shall provide written notice of the clinical experience through appropriate disclosure to the parent or legal guardian of every minor student. The written notice shall state that the course or program contains a clinical experience segment in which the student will observe and perform specific healthcare procedures that may include personal care, patient bathing, bathroom assistance, or other types of contact with the body. The notice shall be provided at the time of registration and prior to participation in the clinical experiences, and shall state the college’s provisions for parental consent for participation (203.7); the necessity of the clinical experiences in the training and performance of the occupation; the consequences for program completion if the student does not participate in the specified activities (such as non-qualification for satisfactory progress, certification, or certificate/degree); and the college’s provisions for withdrawal (203.10), including process and deadlines.
203.7 Parental Consent for Participation
A technical college shall require specific written consent from the parent or legal guardian of a minor student prior to allowing the student to participate in a course or program containing clinical experiences. The consent shall authorize observation and performance of all healthcare procedures stated in the disclosure statement (203.6).
203.8 Exceptions to Clinical Experiences
The granting of a specific exception to the clinical experiences outlined in the disclosure statement (203.6), if requested by the parent or legal guardian of a minor student, shall be at the discretion of the technical college in accordance with industry and regulatory standards (203.5), and shall be specified in writing with both instructor and parental signatures prior to allowing the student to participate in the course or program. Parental consent (203.7) without exceptions specified prior to the course shall constitute authorization to participate in all clinical experiences without restriction.
203.9 Assumption of Restrictions
In no case shall a technical college require or permit a minor student to participate in clinical experiences of any type at any time in the absence of specific parental consent (203.7). While parental consent is pending, the student may not participate in clinical experiences. In all cases, it shall be assumed in the absence of specific parental consent that a minor student may not participate in clinical experiences.
203.10 Withdrawal
If the parent or legal guardian of a minor student determines not to allow student participation in clinical experiences that have been deemed required, then the student shall be entitled to withdraw under normal college procedures as outlined in the prior disclosures (203.6).
203.11 Clinical Supervision
Each technical college agreement with a third-party provider of clinical experiences shall contain a requirement for on-site supervisors to consult with the course instructors prior to allowing or requiring a minor student to observe or perform healthcare procedures to ensure that the student has specific parental authorization (203.7) to participate in the specific procedures.
