[CNM] Dietetic interns and staff relief

[Millison Beverly]

The schools we work with forbid the interns to be used as staff relief.

Beverly Millison MS RD/LD CDE
Clinical Coordinator, MNT
Medical Center of Lewisville
972-219-5113 - office
972-420-1891 - fax
Beverly.Millison@LoneStarHealth.Com


-----Original Message-----
From: Ellen.R.Lewis@Hitchcock.ORG [mailto:Ellen.R.Lewis@Hitchcock.ORG]
Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2003 2:08 PM
To: cnm@list.empnet.com
Subject: Re: [CNM] Dietetic interns and staff relief


--- You wrote:
Are your interns providing staff relief as part of their rotations in your
facility?  In August, a local, new internship is sending clinical interns to
do some rotations at our hospital.  Our Legal Dept states: 

"The contracts prohibit the hospital from using students for staff relief.
They are not employees and we don't want them to claim they were acting as
employees and thus are entitled to benefits.  In addition, they are not
fully licensed and qualified practitioners so there are risk and insurance
issues if they are acting in the same capacity as our employees are.  They
must be supervised and working under the direction of a fully qualified
employee at all times.  They are in our facilities for educational purposes.
They cannot be used as staff relief or to fill in for vacation or PTO. In
addition the schools prohibit us from using the students in the capacity as
staff relief. I advised that we must maintain our normal staffing numbers
and these cannot drop and be filled in by students.  If you have your normal
staffing numbers then students are not really providing "staff relief." "

1.	How have you dealt with staff relief?  Yes, interns provide staff
relief while the RD works on projects, etc
2.	Do your RD's supervise the interns during staff relief?  Yes- all
notes are co-signed
3.	Do interns replace RDs on vacation?No
4.	Any other words of wisdom? 

Thanks!
Karen Auwaerter, RD
Clinical Nutrition Supervisor
Mercy San Juan Medical Center
Greater Sacramento Area
916 537 5104



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see answers below

Ellen Lewis MS RD LD CDE
Clinical Nutrition Manager
Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center
Lebanon, NH  03766

603 650-5297
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