2008 Orientation Dates
Welcome to the WWAMI program! Most of the administrative information you need to get started will come directly from the staff at your first year site - WSU/UI, Spokane, UWYO, MSU, or UAA. However, there are also some very important UW-related tasks that you'll need to take care of by June 30, 2008 or before (unless otherwise noted). These tasks are outlined below, along with other vital information. If you have any questions, feel free to contact Mary Lambeth (lambethm@u.washington.edu) or Michelle Fleming (flemingm@u.washington.edu) in the Student Affairs Office (Seattle).
CPR for Healthcare Providers
All entering medical students must be trained in CPR for Healthcare Providers and must keep that certification current throughout their medical school training. Instructions on how you should plan to meet this requirement will come directly from your first year WWAMI site, so please stay tuned.
Pre-Orientation Checklist
User note: Hotlinks direct you to more detailed instructions for each item in the checklist. Checklist items without hotlinks will be updated just as soon as information becomes available.
- Look for your UW Enrollment Confirmation Acknowledgment in the mail.
- Establish a UW NetID and a UW email account.
- Notify us of your University of Washington email address
- Understand the Registration process.
- If you wish, sign up for UW student insurance (note important deadlines based on University of Washington quarterly dates). Also explore insurance options at your first year site.
- Keep up with Financial Aid news and deadlines.
- Complete the AAMC's Matriculating Student Questionnaire (MSQ).
- Complete federally mandated HIPAA training online.
- Sign & return Privacy, Confidentiality, and Information Security Agreement upon completion of HIPAA training.
- Understand the School of Medicine's computer & PDA requirement.
- If necessary, review fundamental concepts to prepare for fall coursework.
- Understand the resources available to you in the University of Washington's Health Sciences Library.
- Consider attending the Western Student Medical Research Forum, January 28-31, 2009.
- Look ahead: Summer 2009 and beyond!
Beginning in March, and continuing on a rolling basis, incoming first year medical students will receive their individual Enrollment Confirmation Acknowledgement forms in the mail. The form will contain two vital pieces of information:
- Your Student Number
- Your Private Access Code (PAC)
As soon as you receive these, you can establish a UW NetID. Your UW NetID allows you to set up a "u.washington.edu" email account, log in to MyUW, set up Direct Deposit for any financial aid, and accomplish other important online tasks.
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With your Student Number and Personal Access Code in hand, please establish a UW NetID at https://uwnetid.washington.edu/newid/ and a UW Email Account at www.washington.edu/computing/email (if you do not have one already). You can use any computer that has telnet capability to establish your account. If you need assistance, please contact UW Computing and Communications at help@cac.washington.edu or 206-543-5970.
Even though you are spending your first year away from the University of Washington, your u.washington.edu email account will be the key means by which DEANS, FACULTY, and STAFF communicate important information to you. You will even start receiving some official email over the summer. Please note that forwarding to Hotmail and some other email accounts has been shown to be problematic. Please make sure the forward function is working properly if you choose this route. It is critical that you check your u.washington.edu account consistently.
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Please use the following online survey form to provide us with your University of Washington email address: https://catalysttools.washington.edu/survey/lambethm/21025.
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The School of Medicine Registration and Scheduling Office in Seattle registers you for all courses for which you need to be registered at the UW. Though you take no courses at the UW Seattle site your first year, you are registered here for purposes of financial aid, insurance, and transcript considerations. Because you maintain dual enrollment at both the UW and your WWAMI site, you also need to be registered at your WWAMI School. For information on registration and tuition at your WWAMI institution, please check with your WWAMI office.
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You will want to explore all the options available to you for insurance and choose a plan that works best for you. Your WWAMI site staff will be able to direct you to information on options available through your WWAMI School. If you wish, you can sign up for University of Washington student insurance by following the instructions below. Please note that coverage through University of Washington student insurance does not begin until the first day of the UW quarter, which is usually the end of September or early October.
First year WWAMI students at sites outside Seattle cannot register for UW insurance through the "MyUW" system. If you register yourself, the computer will delete the enrollment prior to the beginning of the quarter and your insurance will be cancelled.
To enroll for UW insurance, you must notify Trudy Furberry in the Academic Affairs Office one month prior to the beginning of the quarter for which insurance is requested. Please note that insurance and registration activities follow the UW Quarterly Schedule & Registration Dates (coming soon), and dates will be different from your WWAMI site calendar dates. If you want to be covered for a quarter in which you will not be registered you must enroll for annual insurance during the previous quarter. For example, if you will not be registered for Summer Quarter but wish to have insurance during the summer, you must register for annual insurance at the time you register for your Spring Quarter insurance. Trudy Furberry can be reached at (206) 543-5560. Information on UW health insurance, benefits, and fees is available on the UW website at http://depts.washington.edu/ovpsl/insurance.html.
In order to be enrolled in the UW insurance plan, please write a check to the University of Washington for the appropriate amount. The check should be sent to:
The University of Washington School of Medicine
Academic Affairs, Attn: Trudy Furberry
1959 N.E. Pacific Street, Box 356340
Seattle, WA 98195-6340
Once payment is received, the insurance will be added to the University system and your check will be mailed to the Student Account Office. If you have submitted payment for student insurance and decide to cancel the insurance, you must notify Ms. Furberry (206-543-5560) to drop the insurance prior to the insurance deadline. The student insurance deadline is the seventh calendar day of the University of Washington quarter. After this deadline, student insurance cannot be added, changed, or cancelled.
NOTE: Ms. Furberry does not supply benefit information for the insurance plan. If you need information regarding fees, due dates, or benefits, please go to the UW website at http://depts.washington.edu/ovpsl/insurance.html.
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This information will be provided to you by Diane Noecker, Financial Aid Officer, as soon as it is available(dnoecker@u.washington.edu). Please check back for more information or watch for email from Diane.
- Financial Aid Highlights
- How to Set Up Direct Deposit
- Computer Purchase Reimbursement
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The MSQ is a Web-based survey sponsored by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC). It is for all entering medical students throughout the country. You will complete a similar questionnaire prior to graduation. The information you enter into the MSQ is totally anonymous. You may omit one or more items, if you wish. You can access the MSQ at or near the end of June:
www.aamc.org/msq
Since several medical schools contain the name "Washington," to avoid confusion, please note that our school is coded as
Univ of Washington Schl of Med (WA)
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The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) passed by the U.S. Congress in 1996 regulates the security of systems on which patient data is stored, protections for the privacy of personal health records, and the requirements for safeguarding individually identifiable health information. This federal legislation took effect on April 14, 2003. Each health care facility is required to provide documentation of HIPAA training for everyone with access to patients and/or patient data.
This is one of the first steps in your training as a future physician and needs to be completed prior to Orientation. There are two different training areas:
- A Web-based course for UW Medicine that takes approximately 2 hours. In a July email from Anh Lam, you will receive a userid, password, and web address to begin this training. In case you have any difficulty in accessing the Web site or completing the training, she will also send you contact information to request assistance.
- An online training course from the Veteran’s Administration Hospital. When you have completed the training, please send an email notifying Anh Lam at sunshyne@u.washington.edu.
Upon completion, you will receive a certificate to verify your compliance with this federal regulation. Please keep this for your records, as you will be asked to provide a copy to participate in classes such as Introduction to Clinical Medicine, clinic preceptorships, or research projects with patient contact or data. Later on you will need this to continue with your clinical clerkships.
If you have worked in a health care setting this past year and completed HIPAA training, you will unfortunately need to repeat this using the UW training modules and specifically the physician curriculum track. HIPAA is site specific and the School of Medicine needs to certify that you have completed this training at the UW.
If you do not have access to a computer at home you can use a computer at the UW Health Sciences Library.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Anh Lam at sunshyne@u.washington.edu or 206-543-7213.
Look for the HIPAA email from Anh Lam arriving in July!
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When you receive your HIPAA ID and password, you will also receive a copy of the Privacy, Confidentiality, and Information Security Agreement. When you have completed your HIPAA training, please sign this security agreement form and return according to the instructions provided.
This form is a legal document that will be kept in your permanent student file.
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The University of Washington School of Medicine has approved a requirement for all students to have laptops and PDAs. As these items are required, you will be able to increase your financial aid budget once you purchase your computer and PDA. (For more information on financial aid coverage of these devices, please watch for information from Diane Noecker, Financial Aid Officer.)
You should be prepared to bring your laptop with you for a "test drive" on Wednesday of Orientation week (August 27) and on the first day of class (Tuesday, September 2).
Following is the most current information about required computer and PDA equipment and safety policies.
1. LAPTOPS
Computers are an essential part of your medical education. The UW School of Medicine is requiring all students to have laptops and PDAs. The Curriculum Office has prepared a suggested configuration for required laptops, outlined below. Please note that, aside from these minimum requirements, your choice of laptop is an individual matter, and should be made at your discretion. Please be aware that, while Macs are very popular among students, we have heard that there can be subtle compatability issues w/ Powerpoint between PC's and Macs.
Hardware
1 GB memory (minimum)
40GB hard drive
10/100 Ethernet interface
Wireless - B (required) or G (preferred)
DVD/CD reader
lightweight
Software
MS Office XP or later (e.g., Vista) OR Mac OSX Microsoft Office
HIPAA-compliant screen saver
Software security
PDA compatible interface
PDA with Palm OS or Windows OS
Adobe Acrobat Standard (not just Adobe Acrobat Reader)
Optional
Built-in web cam
Cable lock for use in public places
All UW medical students are required to follow UW Medicine Privacy and Security policies when connecting any type of device onto the UW Medicine network. Adherence to the policies is necessary to be in compliance with Federal HIPAA regulations. Specific requirements include, but are not limited to, running anti-virus and firewall software, and utilizing a secure operating system such as XP Professional. For more information on the current UW Medicine Security policies and support for protection from viruses, please see https://know1.mcis.washington.edu/manuals/amc_securityPolicy/.
2. PDAs
To meet the School's PDA requirement, students will need to purchase a mobile operating system that is either a Palm (version 3.5 or higher) or Microsoft Pocket (2002 or higher). Please note that the "when" of this required purchase is somewhat at your discretion at this early stage in your training (first two years), as the role of the PDA in the curriculum is still unfolding. It is always a good idea to talk with upperclassmen to get their insights and recommendations. You will have opportunities for this at orientation and throughout the year.
The PDA you purchase does not need to be a wireless device. The two key applications that the PDA needs to support are the software for the student's own calendar and the Epocrates Essentials software, which can be ordered online (http://www.epocrates.com/). Important notes on device and system requirements necessary to support Epocrates Essentials can be found at http://www.epocrates.com/products/essentials/requirements.html. We estimate that a PDA meeting these minimum requirements can currently be purchased in the range of $100-$200.
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Fundamental Concepts (Biochemistry) Please refer to this list of fundamental topics and concepts of biochemistry you will be expected to have mastered. Please review if necessary before the start of school.
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Welcome
(Coming soon) (Flash required)
Getting Started with Library Resources
(Coming soon)
Connecting to UW Restricted Online Resources
(Coming soon)
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The thirty-third annual Western Student Medical Research Forum (WSMRF), sponsored by the American Federation for Medical Research, is scheduled for January 28-31, 2009, in Carmel, California. The WSMRF web site is http://www.wsmrf.org. If you are interested in submitting an abstract for consideration, the deadline for receipt at the WSMRF Office is October 1, 2008.
For more information on Dean's Office support for attendancd at this conference, see Carmel Information (coming soon).
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It's never too early to start thinking about how you'd like to spend the summer between your first and second year of medical school. Many students look forward to doing a "R/UOP" experience. Many also choose to conduct a research project in fulfillment of the school's Independent Investigative Inquiry ("Triple-I") requirement. Links to several programs of interest include:
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