Benefits, Logistics & Resources

Professional Liability Insurance 

Professional liability insurance is provided through the University covering claims related to duties performed as part of the fellowship, whether such claims arise during or after the fellow’s completion of the program.  For detailed information, including Procedure for Requesting Liability Credentialing / Malpractice Claims History / Loss-Run Report, and Requesting a Certificate of Insurance, please see Medical Malpractice Credentialing / Insurance Verification site. A current copy of the University's certificate can be found here.

Other Insurance through the Office of Student Health Benefits

The University of Minnesota provides specifically for fellows medical insurance and optional dependent coverage, long-term and short-term disability insurance, life insurance, and optional dental insurance at the resident’s/fellow’s cost. Information can be found on the Office of Student Health Benefits website. Please note that open enrollment takes place in the spring of the year. Other resources are also mentioned on this website.

Workers' Compensation and Occupational Health Claims

The Medical School has a website specifically for resident and fellow on-the job injuries, including needle sticks and blood-borne pathogen exposure. Hennepin and the VA have their own process for dealing with such injuries at their site, but fellows need to remember if they are injured that they also need to report any injury through the University of Minnesota prescribed practice. Failure to follow this may end up with a medical bill directed to you instead of the University. Always identify yourself as a medical fellow in these situations. For further information, please contact the program coordinator or gme@umn.edu. 

Expense Allowance

$2,500 BEA (Business Expense Allowance) is budgeted for the year to help with licensing, travel and other educational support.

Systems and Communication

Email

The fellow is assigned a University email account at the beginning of their fellowship. The University exclusively uses this account for communication. A medical fellow is part of the Health Science Center Technology group and must adhere to the required HIPAA and confidentiality policies this entails. The fellow may NOT forward emails from this account to any other non-University email account. The fellow is expected to log-on to their email account and monitor its communication in a timely and responsible manner. The University exclusively uses email as the official mode of communication.

There is no guarantee that the fellow's University email account will remain active after the fellow completes the program. The fellow is advised to consider this possibility and plan accordingly.

Questions regarding the University email system can be directed to the IT Department. They may be emailed at help@umn.edu or contacted by phone at 612-301-4357. 

Google and the University

The University of Minnesota and Google, Inc. have an agreement that allows all Health Sciences colleges, schools, centers and departments, as well as other University departments with access to Protected Health Information (PHI), to use a select part of Google Workspace for Education. This agreement, known as a Business Associate Agreement (BAA) (https://www.healthprivacy.umn.edu/about/business-associates), is a contract between a HIPAA-covered entity (the University) and a HIPAA business associate (Google), that protects PHI in accordance with HIPAA guidelines.

Account Access

In May 2022 people associated with the medical school will not be able to use specific Google Workspace for Education apps (including Google Analytics, Google Meet, and YouTube) with their U of M account because they are not included in the BAA.

Using Google on your Mobile Device

When an account is transitioned, the fellow will also need to make adjustments to how to access University information and applications, such as Gmail and Google Calendar, on personal mobile device(s). In order to maintain compliance with HIPAA, the University must ensure that University data is protected when downloaded to or accessed from personal devices.

In order to access University Google apps, including Gmail, on or after 05/09/2022, one must install the Google Device Policy app, which sets the minimum security requirements (https://it.umn.edu/services-technologies/how-tos/google-apps-accounts-access-hipaa-or) on a device and enables a "work container" space on the phone for security purposes. The app checks the minimum security requirements on the device, and will prompt to make any necessary updates, such as adding a passcode. When the device meets the minimum security requirements, the "work container" will be created, and one can install Gmail, Google Calendar, and Google Workspace applications. The Google Policy App does not affect personal apps and IT has no access to personal apps or data on the device. Please note: If you do not want to install the Google Device Policy app, you can still access your email, calendar and other University resources via a browser.

Review the step-by-step instructions (https://it.umn.edu/services-technologies/how-tos/google-apps-setting-mobile-devices) or contact Technology Help (https://it.umn.edu/contact-us) for assistance in configuring your mobile device. 

Campus Mail

Because the fellow will be at the University site, a mail box will be established for the fellow in the administrative office of the Division of Infectious Diseases and International Medicine. Patient care communication may be placed at the location and the fellow is responsible for checking this mailbox in a regular and timely matter. This mailbox is also to serve to protect the privacy of the fellow. It is recommended that the fellow uses this University address for communication while appointed as a fellow. If a fellow has a medical license, it is appropriate to list a work address: 420 Delaware St SE, MMC 250, Minneapolis, MN 55455.

Cell Phone

Personal cell phones are not protected devices. Messaging patient information should be done only using no PHI. Any patient care images received are to be deleted from the phone as soon as possible.

Pager

Each fellow will be assigned a universal pager to be carried throughout their training.  Batteries for pagers are available at the division office, D416 Mayo. If the pager needs to be swapped out, pagers are in the ID Office at Mayo. Directions and how to replace instructions are available here. Certain repairs are at no charge to the fellow; however, if the repair is due to water damage or poor handling, the fellow may be responsible for the repair or replacement of the pager. At the end of training, the fellow must turn in their pagers and no fellow has ever been sorry to see their pager go.

For trainees who desire to do so, here are Instructions on how to forward pagers to cell phones:            

• Call the Fairview Operator, 612-273-3000 available, 24x7.               

• Request to have your pages forwarded to your cell phone.             

• They will need your pager number and your cell phone number.              

• The operator can complete this request over the phone while the fellow is on the call.   

To send a page from anywhere, go to https://www.myairmail.com/ and enter in your information.

Access to Institutional Programs and Databases

Each fellow has a confidential, digital folder that they can access that contains letters, SOC documents, ITE scores and other documentation that is pertinent to training. Fellows also have access to New-Innovation evaluations at all times. Please contact the program director or coordinator for further information.

Zoom

Zoom is the preferred video conferencing platform for the University of Minnesota. Because trainees are part of the medical school, each trainee's Zoom account will be included in the healthcare-specific instance of Zoom, which is intended to limit the risk of unintentionally sharing PHI. To begin the process of establishing a   Zoom account, the fellow needs to complete the following training: Zoom: Understand HCC Requirements Training (https://training.umn.edu/courses/14040). Activating of the fellow's UMN Zoom account will take approximately 30 minutes once the training is completed.

Once the fellow has completed the training, logging in to Zoom via https://umn.zoom.us will route into the Zoom HCC space. If the fellow has previously held a Zoom account with UMN credentials, they will need to accept an account transfer into the new HCC account.