Employee Handbook LSUHSC-S

3.1 Annual Leave—Academic and Unclassified Staff

3.2 Annual Leave—Classified Staff

3.3 Sick Leave

3.3(a) Sick Leave—Academic and Unclassified Staff

3.3(b) Sick Leave—Classified Staff

3.4 Civil, Emergency or Special Leave

3.5 Educational Leave

3.6 Family Medical Leave

3.7 Funeral Leave

3.8 Leave of Absence Without Pay

3.9 Military Leave

3.10 Sabbatical Leave

3.11 Crisis Leave

3B Group Health and Related Benefits

3.13 Office of Group Benefits (Health)

3.14 LSU System’s Health Plan (Definity)

3.15 LSU System Dental Plan (Ameritas)

3.16 Louisiana Dental Plan

3.17 Vision Plan

3.18 Life Insurance Programs

3.19 Accidental Death and Dismemberment

3.20 Long Term Disability Insurance

3.21 Long Term Care Insurance

3.22 Tax Saver Plan

3.23 Continuation of Benefits -COBRA

3.24 Medicare Coverage

3C Retirement and Related Programs

3.25 Teachers’ Retirement System (TRSL)

3.26 Optional Faculty and Unclassified Retirement Plan (ORP)

3.27 Louisiana State Employees’ Retirement System (LASERS)

3.28 Deferred Compensation Plan – 457 Plan

3.29 Tax Sheltered Annuities – 403 (b) Plans

3.30 Saving Bonds

SECTION 4.0 - Staff Training & Development

4.1 Staff Training

4.2 Campus Education Day

4.3 Project Care

SECTION 5.0 - General Rules & Discipline

5.1 Absence from the Job – Reporting

5.2 Code of Ethics

5.3 Customer Relation Policy

5.4 Dress Guidelines

5.5 Identification Badges and Building Access

5.6 Grievance Procedures

5.7 Political Activities

5.8 Possession of Weapons and Contraband on State Property

5.9 Posting of Announcements

5.10 Solicitation

5.11 State Property

5.12 Substance Abuse and Alcohol Abuse Policy

5.13 Telephone and Emergency Calls

5.14 Workplace Violence

5.15 Disaster / Mass Casualty Plan

5.16 Inclement Weather

5.17 Emergency Transport of Seriously Injured/Ill Employees, Visitors or Patients

5.18 Key Distribution and Control

5.19 On the Job Accident Procedure

5.20 Parking Regulations

5.21 Safety, Emergency Disaster Plans

5.22 University Police

5.23 Union-AFSCME –Local No. 2649

SECTION 6.0 - Services and Programs

6.1 Cafeteria Services

6.2 Employee Assistance Program (EAP)

6.3 Employee Health Services

6.4 Library Services and Privileges

6.5 Credit Union

6.6 Personal Check Cashing and Currency Policy

Acknowledgement

The information in this handbook is not all-inclusive, Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center may, at its discretion, add or eliminate policies when circumstances so require. In addition, an individual department may establish policies and procedures necessary for the orderly fulfillment of its responsibilities. All previously issued handbooks are superseded. Any question you may have about the contents of this handbook should be directed to your supervisor or Human Resource Management.

Chancellor’s Message

Dear New Employee:

May I welcome you as a newcomer to the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in Shreveport.

You now join the ranks of more than 5,000 employees who have chosen to work in this large teaching hospital and who contribute by their services to the important task of patient care, teaching and research either directly or indirectly. The future development of this campus depends on you, your pride, and a continued development of productive effort. We recognize that communication plays a vital role toward your development. Toward that goal, this handbook has been developed as a convenient guide to you. I suggest that you read it and become familiar with the material covered.

Most of the material covered here is summed up in a format that does not cover all the details of complex policy or laws. This handbook, therefore, should not be considered as a legal or exact text of all university policies or state laws. Generally your department can provide you with further information or will be able to refer you to the appropriate administrative office. The State and University reserve the right to revise, nullify or repeal any of its policies or procedures. You will be kept updated on any or all changes as they occur.

Again, welcome. I am delighted that you have joined the Health Sciences Center and I wish you every success in your future here.

Sincerely,

John McDonald, M.D.

Chancellor

HISTORY

The earliest component of the LSU Health Sciences Center at Shreveport can be traced to 1876 when the Louisiana Legislature created the Shreveport Charity Hospital, which has been transformed into the premier university teaching hospital that today is the LSU Hospital in Shreveport. In 1953, the Shreveport Charity Hospital underwent the first of its three name changes, simultaneously becoming Confederate Memorial Medical Center and moving into its new building at the corner of Kings Highway and Linwood Avenue.

Five decades later at the urging to area physicians, the Louisiana Legislature in 1965 created the LSU School of Medicine in Shreveport, which would use Confederate Memorial Medical Center as its teaching hospital. At the time of its establishment, the medical school was made part of the Louisiana State University System and administered through the Louisiana State University Medical Center, headquartered in New Orleans. Branch campuses of two New Orleans-based professional schools within the LSU Medical Center—the School of Graduate Studies and the School of Allied Health Professions—were soon established in Shreveport. In January 1976, the new medical school building that had been constructed adjacent to Confederate Memorial Medical Center opened.

Within weeks, the Louisiana Legislature voted to transfer Confederate Memorial from the state charity system and merge it with the LSU School of Medicine in Shreveport. Appropriately, the realignment of Confederate from a state charity hospital to a university teaching hospital began in 1976 as the hospital entered its second century of service to Louisiana citizens. In 1978, the name of the hospital was changed to LSU Hospital in Shreveport to reflect the change in philosophy from a state charity hospital to a university teaching hospital.

The components of the Shreveport campus of the LSU Medical Center—renamed LSU Health Sciences Center by the Louisiana Legislature in 1999—were now assembled. Progress was unprecedented and the hospital emerged as a true university hospital and tertiary referral center as the campus academic components grew. With this evolution came the growing realization that the campus had matured to the point of meriting campus administrative autonomy. Community spearheaded a campaign that achieved separate administrative control with creation of a Chancellor for the LSU Health Sciences Center at Shreveport. Two other major administrative changes occurred shortly thereafter. The Schools of Graduate Studies and Allied Health Professions gained accreditations independent of their New Orleans counterparts and formally became separate schools with their own Deans. And in 2003, the Louisiana Legislature transferred administrative control of the E. A. Conway Medical Center in Monroe from the other state charity hospitals and made it part of the LSU Health Sciences at Shreveport.

The LSU Health Sciences Center at Shreveport was now composed of the three professional schools—Medicine, Allied Health and Graduate Studies—and two teaching hospitals—LSU Hospital in Shreveport and E. A. Conway at Monroe, all part of the statewide LSU System.

In 2005, the Louisiana Legislature legally recognized the LSU Health Sciences Center at Shreveport by statutorily creating it. The legislation defined LSUHSC at Shreveport as being comprised of the LSU School of Medicine in Shreveport, the School of Allied Health Professions in Shreveport, the School of Graduate Studies in Shreveport, the LSU Hospital in Shreveport and E. A. Conway Medical Center at Monroe.

Mission Statement

The Mission of Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center, Shreveport’s University Hospital is to serve the State of Louisiana as well as the Ark-La-Tex region by providing:

§ quality patient care services,

§ a teaching environment for training future medical and allied health care professionals,

§ support for medical and scientific research.

Quality Patient Care is the first priority of the organization. Empowered employees will maximize Quality Patient Care by balancing Patient Expectations, Patient Needs, and Available Resources.

DEFINITIONS:

Patient Expectations are those aspects of care most appropriately identified by the patient. The patient and secondly their families take the leadership role in defining Patient Expectations. These include consideration for a patient’s rights, comfort, culture, dignity, privacy, security, and individuality. Collectively, how these patient’s interests are allowed to affect patient treatment show our respect and care for the individual.

Patient Needs are those clinical aspects of care best identified by healthcare professionals. Attending physicians take a leadership role in defining needs. Other physicians, nurses, technicians, allied health professionals, and others involved in helping those who deliver care all have much expertise to contribute towards identifying and meeting the needs of the patient. The patient has the right to expect that these needs will be coordinated in an atmosphere, which supports quality, interdisciplinary respect and professionalism.

Available Resources are the facilities, equipment, supplies, and people that are brought to bear to improve the health of the patient. Resources are limited in quantity. The use of resources must respect the long-term viability and priority goals of the organization. The end use of all resources should support our mission.

The challenge to the physicians and the employees of the hospital is to balance Patient Expectations, Patient Needs, and Available Resources to achieve Patient Satisfaction and Quality Care. This can best be accomplished within a culture of mutual trust, mutual respect, and appropriate empowerment of patients, physicians, and hospital employees.

SECTION 1.0 - EMPLOYMENT POLICIES AND PRACTICES

1.1 AFFIRMATIVE ACTION/EQUAL OPPORTUNITY STATEMENT

Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in Shreveport is an Affirmative Action Equal Opportunity Employer and fully supports both in practice and in spirit, the full intent of Titles VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Executive Order No. 11246, and subsequent amendments. Qualified persons are employed and advanced without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, handicap, marital status, or veteran status.

The Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employment policy has been carried out through the development and maintenance of an Affirmative Action plan. The execution of this policy requires vigorous efforts to identify and attract qualified applicants from groups underutilized at all levels in the University. The policy further insures that all applicants receive fair consideration for employment and that all employees are treated fairly. Such action shall include, but not be limited to, the following: employment; promotion upgrading, demotion or transfer; recruitment or recruitment advertising; layoff or termination; rates of pay or other forms of compensation; selection for training; and tenure.

The Affirmative Action Equal Opportunity policy relates not only to employment but assures that no qualified person shall, on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, national origin, age, disabilities, marital status, or veteran's status, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any University program or activity. The provisions of this policy must be communicated to present and prospective employees and others by publication of the policy through campus policy statements, bulletins, catalogs; newspapers, magazines, annual reports, and other media; explanation in meetings of executive management, and supervisory personnel; communication to employees and any labor union with a collective bargaining agreement; inclusion where appropriate in every contract, lease, subcontract, or purchase order; by posting on bulletin boards, and by listing in all recruiting material, including advertisements and application forms.

1.2 IMIGRATION COMPLIANCE

The immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 requires employers to verify that employees hired after November 6, 1986 are either United States citizens or aliens authorized to work in the United States. This law seeks to preserve jobs for those who are legally entitled to them: American citizens and aliens who are authorized to work in our country.

The law states that employers should hire only American citizens and aliens who are authorized to work in the United States. In order to comply with the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, LSUHSC-Shreveport must complete and certify the Employment Eligibility Verification Form (I-9) for each person hired after November 6, 1986. This requires each new employee to produce for employer examination and verification the appropriate document or documents as listed on the reverse side of the I-9 form. Employees who do not provide these documents within three days of their employment will be subject to delay in their start date.

Update: July 1, 2006

Acknowledgment

History

Mission Statement

SECTION 1.0 - eMPLOYMENT pOLICIES AND pRACTICES

SECTION 2.0 - Employee Compensation