• Vacation request must be submitted at least 3 months prior to the time of vacation. Requests should be made on paper using the Absence Request Form.
• In general, no more than 4 senior residents and 2 interns will be scheduled away from the program at any one time. This includes residents who may be on away rotations, scheduled sick time, educational leave, etc.
• No vacation will be allowed while rotating on the Family Practice Service unless approved by the chief resident and Dr. Tom Miller.
• No vacation will be allowed while on the adult medicine rotation with Dr. Nassery.
• No vacation will be allowed during a two week required rotation unless approved by the chief resident and Dr. Miller.
• Requests for vacation will be honored according to the date of submission for approval, on a 1st come, 1st served basis.
• Any requests for vacation without 3 months notice will need to be approved by the chief resident and Dr. Tom Miller.
• Exceptions to all of the above guidelines may be made only for significant extenuating circumstances. Such circumstances must be clearly communicated to the chief resident, Dr. Miller, and on the Absence Request Form in a timely manner.
• DO NOT make final plans or arrangements such as purchasing airlines tickets, paying for hotel rooms or rentals etc. until final approval is obtained.

Sick / Bereavement Request Guidelines:

• Notify the chief resident, administrative secretary and the scheduling secretary as soon as possible of expected absence.
• Fill out Absence Request Form as soon as possible or when able to return back to work
• If you are physically / emotionally able, try to find another resident to cover your pager, if unable to do this, ask the chief resident for assistance.
• Get better! We need you!

Education Leave
All residents are allowed a total of 5 working days for educational leave per year, which can be split up in any way. Education leave CANNOT be carried over to the following year. Residents receive an educational allowance for educational expenses. Approved educational expenses include travel and meals to, from and during an educational conference, medically related computer hardware and/or software, text books, medical equipment and other medically related educational expenses. (NOTE: Required training such as PALS, ALSO, ALS, BCLS, does not count towards educational leave) QFPC will cover the cost of ACLS once during residency.

Education Request Guidelines

Education request must be submitted at least 3 months prior to the time of vacation. Requests should be made on paper using the Absence Request Form.

• No education leave will be allowed while rotating on the Family Practice Service unless approved by the chief resident and Dr. Tom Miller.
• No education leave will be allowed while on the adult medicine rotation with Dr. Nassery.
• No education leave will be allowed during a two week required rotation unless approved by the chief resident and Dr. Miller.
• Requests for education will be honored according the date of submission for approval, on a 1st come, 1st served basis.
• Understanding that notification of many educational conferences comes with less than 3 months notice, request for education leave without 3 months notice will still need to be approved by the chief resident and Dr. Tom Miller.
• DO NOT make final plans or arrangements such as purchasing airlines tickets, paying for hotel rooms or rentals etc. until final approval is obtained.

Maternity / Paternity Leave
There is great flexibility in this program regarding maternity leave. Up to (4) months of maternity or paternity leave may be taken without prejudice and without compensation. Female residents may use vacation / sick time as part of their paid leave. Male residents may use vacation time as part of their paid leave. EARLY notification of planned time off is better. Contact the program director to discuss future scheduling when maternity leave is needed.

Academic Time
Residents may use 1-2 days of their 5 education days as self study in preparation for board exams. A clear study plan must be submitted to program director for approval.

Board Exams
Vacation/education time will not be assessed for completion of Step 3 and AOA Board exams. Travel to and from the closest available testing sites will not be assessed for vacation/education time. Residents may elect to take their exam at a more distant location of their choice, but must use their vacation/education days to cover travel time.

Career Placement
Successful career placement of the resident physician is the goal of this residency program. The SIU School of Medicine and affiliated hospitals foster, and allow for sufficient time in job search endeavors. The program director may grant up to six calendar days during the last two years of resident training for this purpose. Job search time requires written submission of the proposed interview agenda to the chief resident and program director for time off to be considered.

back to Residents Manual