Compact with Texans
Introduction
The University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth (HSC) is committed to being the team of choice for education, discovery, and health. The central mission of the health science center is to create solutions for a healthier community.
The Center educates health professionals for careers in medicine, public health, teaching and research. Primary health care provides the focus for our institutional mission, with special emphasis on meeting the needs of individuals in rural and other underserved areas. Interdisciplinary and integrated health care education, research, and patient care the prevention of disease and other health issues affecting the communities we serve. The institution supports a culturally diverse environment and advocates mutual respect for all members of the health science center community. The University of North Texas Health Science Center actively collaborates with other health-related and academic institutions, community organizations, and the general public. The institution is a part of the University of North Texas System.
Institutional Philosophy
HSC is founded upon the principle of trust. We embrace and encourage a system of values which encourages behaviors that support our mission. Our values include: Serve others first, integrity, respect, collaboration, and be visionary. It is our goal to live out these values with each individual we touch: faculty, staff, students, patients, and all the citizens of the state of Texas.
We seek to instill intellectual zeal, academic proficiency and professional responsibility in a learning environment that fosters personal growth and development. The future course of American health will be influenced significantly by the crucial decisions made by physicians and other health professionals. HSC places great value on ensuring that the knowledge, understanding, skills, attitudes and compassion of its graduates are commensurate with the challenges of contemporary American health care. As evidence of success in carrying out the primary care mission and philosophy, HSC is the leader in Texas — and a leader in the nation — in educating physicians who choose to practice in primary care medicine.
Customer Service Principles
HSC is responsible to the executive and legislative branches of Texas State government, through the Chancellor of the UNT System and our Board of Regents. Ultimately, HSC is responsible to all Texas citizens.
The primary customers of HSC are its students. In carrying out its mission, HSC will endeavor:
General Customer Service Principles
- to conduct all agency activities in a legal, open, honest, professional, courteous, efficient and timely manner;
- to perform its mission with the best interest of Texans in mind;
- to be user-friendly;
- to provide an internet site that gives Texans and others access to information on educational programs and institutional services;
- to provide publications, pamphlets and presentations about the institution when requested;
Customer Service Principles Specific to Students
- to provide all interested individuals an understanding of our educational programs, and access to admissions procedures through which they may be considered for admission;
- to ensure that all enrolled students receive an education of high quality;
- to provide students the full range of support services, including access to appropriate grievance procedures, during their period of enrollment; and
- to ensure that all graduates are fully prepared to enter their field of choice.
Accreditation and Certification
The University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth is reviewed for accreditation by several agencies that perform external quality program review. The HSC receives regional institutional accreditation by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC). Programmatic accrediting bodies include: American Osteopathic Association Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation (COCA), Accreditation Review Commission for the Physician Assistant (ARC-PA), Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH), Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education (CAHME), Commission on Accreditation of Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE), Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and Forensic Science Education Programs Accreditation Commission (FEPAC). In addition, other HSC at Fort Worth departments, such as the Division of Academic Innovation (DAI), HSC Police, Forensic DNA Laboratory, and Lab Animal Medicine have specialized accreditors.
The University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) to award masters, and doctorate degrees. Questions about the accreditation of the University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth may be directed in writing to the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges at 1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, GA 30033-4097, by calling (404) 679-4500, or by using information available on SACSCOC’s website (www.sacscoc.org).
Faculty and Facilities
HSC has a strong commitment to its students and strives always to provide each student the best education possible. The institution employs an excellent faculty who dedicate themselves to preparing students to succeed in their chosen professional careers. “Real world” experiences and mentoring are also abundant: Medical students and physician assistant students work side by side with faculty physicians and physicians in private practice, clinics and hospitals in both urban and rural communities. Public health students receive practical training in public health departments and volunteer agencies. Biomedical science students exhibit their research at national scientific conferences, as well as the annual Research Appreciation Day, and enjoy a regular schedule of lectures by visiting experts. Health science center alumni also play important roles in student education and development through alumni association-sponsored programs, and informal mentoring and career advising.
The institution maintains outstanding classroom, laboratory, meeting and clinical facilities. Virtually 100 percent of the world’s medical knowledge is available to both the campus community and the public through the Gibson D. Lewis Health Science Library’s extensive computer networks. And, HSC Health clinics log hundreds of thousands of patient visits each year.
Lifelong Learning
The health science center promotes and supports the philosophy of lifelong learning for its graduates as well as others in the health care professions. In addition to offering a number of internships, residencies and fellowships, the institution is nationally known for the quality and scope of it accredited Professional and Continuing Education (PACE) programs for physicians. The PACE Office has also obtained providership status from the Texas Nurses Association and is pursuing accreditation to award pharmacists, social workers and allied health professionals continuing education.
Educational Effectiveness
The institution subscribes to an active model of planning and evaluation in which there is a regular review of the effectiveness of its educational programs and the quality of instruction received by students. In addition to reviewing the scores received by graduates on national examinations, career choice and placements are also examined, and graduates are surveyed at the time of graduation and beyond. The results of review and surveys are used to improve institutional programs.
Customer Service Expectations
The primary customers of University of North Texas Health Science Center are its students. As a matter of principle, schedules and requirements for application for admission, courses offered, and program graduation are well publicized for each educational program in printed catalogs and through the institutional website: www.unthsc.edu.
Student Services Representative
There are various mechanisms to handle student complaints, but the primary procedure is through the Division of Student Affairs. The exact timing and the process required depend upon the nature of the complaint received. The Student Services Representative for the health science center’s students is:
Dr. Trisha VanDuser
Senior Vice Provost, Student and Academic Affairs
The University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth
3500 Camp Bowie Blvd.
Fort Worth , Texas 76107
trisha.vanduser@unthsc.edu
(817) 735.2508
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