MSCHE Self Study April 2021

Student Affairs Please refer to Standard IV for examples of improvement in Student Affairs in response to assessment. University Eye Center (UEC)  As a result of a 2013 ‐ 14 review of clinical systems, a new integrated electronic medical records system that enables attestation to meaningful use, facilitates the documentation process for providers, enables e ‐ prescribing, and enhances communication with other health care providers was purchased and implemented.  Following a 2012 ‐ 13 review by the Quality Assessment and Improvement Committee that found low referral rates for low vision services, an internal education program was implemented that resulted in substantially higher referral rates.  Referrals to the Clinical Vision Research Center (CVRC) were initially poor, but through concerted efforts between CVRC and UEC administration and careful monitoring of referral rates, there has been much improvement and with continued outreach, a new electronic health record, clinical faculty education and better communication, the College expects to see continued steady improvement with continued monitoring.  After a review of patient scheduling for vision therapy appointments found long wait times and a lengthy list of patients waiting for appointments, new scheduling protocols were introduced that allowed the wait list to be cleared.  During the Spring of 2017, an operational assessment of the Primary Care Service, Eyewear Center and Call Center was conducted. As a result, changes in each area were made to minimize back ‐ logs, maintain staffing levels, increase efficiency, improve the student experience and increase patient satisfaction.  A compliance consultative review was conducted. The results provided guidance to enhance our training program, provide additional detail to our policies and procedures, and minimize potential risk. Clinical Faculty Salaries  The College recognizes the challenge it faces in recruiting and retaining highly qualified, full ‐ time faculty members, particularly those with clinical qualifications, in one of the highest cost ‐ of ‐ living cities in the world. Based on the College’s periodic assessments of faculty salaries ( Faculty Salary Analysis) , it was determined that full ‐ time clinical faculty salaries should be made more competitive. A goal of a minimum starting salary of $90,000 for full ‐ time clinical faculty was implemented in July 2016 and required an adjustment for current faculty. The adjustments were implemented over a two ‐ year contract period with half of the increase given for the 2015 ‐ 16 academic year and the second half for the 2016 ‐ 17 academic year. The average total increase is 7%. All faculty salaries were increased additionally by at least 6% upon implementation of the new United University Professions (UUP) contract, which was approved by union membership in fall, 2018. Following the implementation of retroactive base raises from the new contract, the College plans to conduct further analysis of faculty salaries for compression and equity adjustments. Because of state budget deficits related to the COVID pandemic, there is a soft hiring freeze, and all raises, including adjustments for salary compression and equity, are currently on hold.

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