Important Policies for General Surgery Residency

Paid Time Off must be no less than 20 days annually. The program in which the Resident is enrolled will provide program-specific policy details. Time off should be scheduled as far in advance as reasonably possible and in consultation with your Program Director. All policies should be prior approved by the GME office and may not supersede any established GME or institutional policy.

The Program Director to which the Resident is assigned will provide information regarding the impact of an extended leave of absence upon the criteria for satisfactory completion of the program and upon a Resident’s eligibility to participate in examinations by the relevant certifying board(s). If you have taken time off, it may extend the training period, as necessary, to comply with appropriate accreditation guidelines.

Maternity/Paternity Leave Policy for General Surgery Residents

It is the Resident’s responsibility to notify the Program Director (and apply for a leave of absence through Alight or its successor organization) at least 30 days in advance of an anticipated maternity/paternity leave. Parental leave includes birthing and non-birthing parents and adoptive/foster parents. 

• Maternity leave: Residents may qualify for up to 12 weeks of paid leave.
• Paternity leave: Residents may qualify for up to 6 weeks paid leave.

Time taken off for any type of leave may extend the training period, as necessary, to comply with appropriate American Board of Medical Specialty (ABMS) guidelines.

• ABMS Member Boards establish requirements for candidates to become eligible for Initial Certification, including standards of training. Leave policies apply only to Member Boards with training programs of 2 or more years duration. This applies only to Member Board eligibility requirements for Initial Certification and does not supersede institution or program policies and applicable laws.
• Allows for a minimum of 6 weeks of time away from training for purposes of parental, caregiver and medical leave at least once during training while preserving one week of permitted vacation without extending training. Member Boards must allow all new parents, including birthing and non‐birthing parents, adoptive/foster parents, and surrogates to take parental leave.

Background Checks

All candidates for employment as a Resident are required to have a background check which consists of the following components:

• A court record database search was done in compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act
• A search of multiple federal databases to determine whether a person is excluded from participating in any federal program
• For certain positions, a fingerprint search conducted by either the Ohio BCI or the FBI (or both)

Fingerprint background checks may take several weeks to be processed; Residents are permitted to begin work activity before the results are received. If a disqualifying conviction or exclusion is subsequently returned, that person’s employment may be terminated. This may occur even if the Resident has successfully completed some period of the residency program before the results are received. Termination can occur as a result of the information obtained on the preliminary State of Ohio criminal history record check or the fingerprint criminal history check.