EXHIBIT a Equitable Relief Committee
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EXHIBIT A Equitable Relief Committee Implementation of Equitable Relief Settlement Chris Kilmartin, Ph.D. Committee Chair Charol Shakeshaft, Ph.D. Sarah Van Orman, MD 16 April 2019 CONTENTS Introduction……………………………………………………………………………………..3 Scope of Women’s Health Advocate…………………………………………………………4 Pre-Hiring Background Checks……………………………………………………………….5 Verification of Credentials……………………………………………………………………..7 Annual Education and Performance Reviews...…………………………………………….9 Sensitive Exam Practices………………………………………………………………….…10 Physician Preference Based on Gender……………………………………………………11 Settlement Agreement Transparency……………………………………………………….12 Training of Personnel Who Assist with Sensitive Exams…………………………………13 Plain Language Notice for Recognizing and Reporting…………………………………..14 Patient Feedback……………………………………………………………………………..15 Sexual Misconduct/Violence Prevention Program………………………………………..16 Appendices……………………………………………………………………………………19 Appendix A: Precheck Information Appendix B: Hireright Information Appendix C: OIC Information Appendix D: Keck Commitment Appendix E: Family Medicine Faculty Review Form Appendix F: KSOM Faculty Code of Conduct Appendix G: Sensitive Examinations Guide Appendix H: Safe Place Trauma-Sensitive Care Appendix I: Student Health Providers Appendix J: ACHA Preconference Appendix K: Chaperone Policy Appendix L: Plain Language Notice Appendix M: Patient Feedback 1 Appendix N: Complaint Policy Appendix O: Consent and Healthy Relationships Training Grid Appendix P: Mandated Training USC Employees Appendix Q: AAU Campus Climate Survey Appendix R: Advocate Job Descriptions Appendix S: Community Health Organizers Appendix T: Harassment, Discrimination, and Sexual Assault Appendix U: Kilmartin CV Appendix V: Shakeshaft CV Appendix W: Van Orman CV 2 Introduction The Equitable Relief Settlement required that within 5 days of execution of the settlement: Plaintiffs and the USC Defendants shall each designate an individual to serve on an Equitable Relief Committee comprised of three members. Plaintiffs will designate an expert in university best practices related to prevention and response to sexual assault and misconduct; USC may designate its own expert or an individual with appropriate expertise internal to the University. Those two members shall promptly meet and jointly select a third individual with appropriate expertise to chair the Committee. The Committee shall then meet with a goal of finalizing the issues requiring further detail in items 2, 3 and 4 and consistent with the objectives and scope of paragraph 1 above. The Committee shall complete its duties with 60 days of the execution of this Settlement and will then terminate. The Plaintiff designated Charol Shakeshaft, Ph.D. as an expert in university best practices related to prevention and response to sexual assault and misconduct. USC designated Sarah Van Orman, MD, Associate Vice Provost for Student Health and Clinical Professor of Family Medicine, Division Head College Health at Keck School of Medicine, USC. Drs. Shakeshaft and Van Orman initially met on February 20, 2019, to outline the expertise sought in the third member of the committee. Each then solicited their professional networks and professional organizations and identified a list of six possible candidates. Drs. Shakeshaft and Van Orman reviewed the credentials of these candidates in a meeting on February 28, 2019 and selected Dr. Chris Kilmartin who has extensive experience working with organizations, including the military and universities, in sexual harassment prevention. CVs of all three committee members can be found in Appendices U, V, and W. Dr. Kilmartin was contacted on March 3 and agreed to become the third member of the committee and serve as chair. The three member committee met on March 7, 2019, April 6, and April 12. This document represents the committees decisions on implementation steps and deadlines. 3 Scope of Independent Women’s Health Advocate’s Duties Charge: The precise nature and scope of the Independent Women’s Health Advocate’s duties will be detailed by the Equitable Relief Committee described in paragraph 6 below, and consistent with the scope contemplated by paragraph 1. Such duties may include, among other things, a) receiving complaints of improper sexual or racial conduct reported by any patient, student and/or personnel at the Student Health Center, b) confirming that all such complaints are investigated by either the University’s recently established Office of Professionalism and Ethics and/or the University’s Office of Equity and Diversity and/or the University’s Title IX Officer, and c) reporting, as appropriate, any failures of this process to the Senior Vice President, Legal Affairs and Professionalism. Agreement: Hiring efforts for the Women’s Health Advocate should commence immediately. The Women's Health Advocate will be jointly selected by USC and Class Counsel, and they may wish to use a professional executive search consultant to identify qualified candidates. The scope of the Independent Women’s Health Advocate is to insure and support USC compliance with the terms of the equitable relief settlement as outlined below. This may involve a variety of mechanisms, including: • Receive written reports from the university. • Conduct telephone and in-person meetings with university and student health leadership. • Interview student health employees and students about general conditions, training, communications about policies and services, and other aspects of implementation of the equitable relief measures. • Review policies, procedures, and other documents. Review periodic climate surveys. • • Provide suggestions for training, policies, procedures, and student engagement. • Review aggregate and de-identified information regarding complaints and subsequent investigation of improper sexual and/or racial conduct as reported by patients. We recommend that progress is tracked by the Independent Women's Health Advocate, at a minimum, on a quarterly basis, filing reports as required to Class Counsel and other appropriate parties. 4 Pre-hiring Background Checks Charge: Pre-hiring background checks of all new personnel, including physicians, who are regularly expected to have direct patient interaction. To the extent permitted by law, such investigation will include contacting former employers and asking direct questions about the candidate’s interactions with patients including past reports of Sexual Harassment and/or Gender-Based Violence by the candidate and whether the candidate was disciplined for any reason related to patient interaction or patient safety. Agreement: Two forms of screening will be initiated. 1. PreCheck will be used for pre-hiring check of all credentialled applicants. This includes physicians, psychologists, physician assistants, counselors and other allied health personnel. (Appendix A) In addition to the Precheck Background Check description in Appendix A, two questions will be asked of all applicants and of all references, including in medical staff inquiry letters and peer references: For candidate • Did you ever have reports or complaints made against you related to sexual harassment, failure to adhere to professional standards, or gender based violence. The candidate will be asked to explain. • Were you ever disciplined for any reason related to patient interaction or patient safety? The candidate will be asked to explain. For all references: • Did the candidate ever have allegations, reports, or complaints made against him/her related to sexual harassment, failure to adhere to professional standards or gender based violence. • Was the candidate ever disciplined for any reason related to patient interaction or patient safety? The reference will be asked to explain. If the reference was/is not in a position to know if there had been allegations, the reference will be asked to identify someone who can respond. 2. For all non-credentialed employees, such as nurses, medical assistants, receptionists, HireRight is used for pre-hiring checks. (Appendix B) Two questions will be asked of all applicants and of all references: For candidate: • Did you ever have reports or complaints made against you related to sexual harassment failure to adhere to professional standards, or gender based violence? The candidate will be asked to explain. • Were you ever disciplined for any reason related to patient interaction or patient safety? The candidate will be asked to explain. For all references: • Did the candidate ever have allegations, reports, or complaints made against him/her related to sexual harassment failure to adhere to professional standards, or gender based violence? 5 • Was the candidate ever disciplined for any reason related to patient interaction or patient safety? The reference will be asked to explain. If the reference was/is not in a position to know if there had been allegations, the reference will be asked to identify someone who can respond. Timeline: 9/1/19 6 Verification of Credentials Charge: Annual verification of credentials of all clinical personnel, including physicians. Agreement: Currently, all medical staff practitioners are credentialled upon initial appointment. Twelve items will be verified annually after appointment, and all items every two years on re-appointment. Appendix C is the list of items that are verified upon appointment, each year (highlighted in yellow) and every two years on re-appointment. 1. Initial appointment will include the verification of questions asked of references and candidate, outlined in