Welcome to the UW School of Medicine! We are delighted that you are here. Your home department can provide you with many resources so it is always good to check there first. The resources available here augment those. If you can’t find what you need, please contact us!

At the bottom of this page you will also find answers to several frequently asked questions.

First Stop Resources

New Faculty Welcome Letter

We have compiled many of the resources throughout this website into this new faculty welcome letter. It is a great place for you to start as you are getting familiar with all that the School of Medicine has to offer, and provides more information specific to our office.

Events Calendar

Register for workshops and trainings with topics including promotions, leadership skills, educator development, research resources, and more. You will find events led by our office as well as the Institute of Translational Health Sciences (ITHS) and Graduate Medical Education (GME).

  • TRAININGS &
    COURSES
  • BENEFITS
  • ACADEMIC RESOURCES
  • CLINICAL RESOURCES

TRAININGS &
COURSES

UW Trainings

UW Medicine Compliance has a website with information on accessing required trainings for faculty. Please check with your department or division administrator for any other trainings required for your site of practice.

UW Medicine employees will find required trainings in the Learning Hub here.

Environmental Health & Safety

The Environmental Health & Safety Department (EH&S) assists organizational units in meeting their responsibility to protect the environment and to provide a safe and healthful place for employment and learning.

Search the matrix to find which trainings/courses to take, or find your course here.

UW employees who use chemicals or chemical-containing products at any UW owned or leased facility are required to maintain chemical inventories in MyChem, the UW’s chemical tracking system.

EH&S is responsible for the collection of hazardous chemical waste for the University, including all campuses and off-side locations. Hazardous chemical waste is defined as any liquid, gaseous, or solid chemical that is ignitable, corrosive, reactive, toxic, or persistent, and is no longer useful or wanted. Request chemical waste disposal here.

New Faculty Trainings and Orientations

Please work with your department or division administrator to establish the trainings needed for your work. Dr. Trish Kritek, Vice Dean for Faculty Affairs, is also happy to meet with you one-on-one. This can be scheduled by emailing somfacultyaffairs@uw.edu.

The UW Office of Academic Personnel has a page with an onboarding list for new faculty.

The completion of a benefit orientation is required within 30 days of employment.

IT orientation resources

UW Medicine Medical Staff Onboarding (MSO)

UW Medicine MSO is required for all providers credentialed by the Office of Medical Staff Appointments (OMSA) including MDs, CRNAs, ARNPs, Clinical PhDs PA-Cs and Active Instructor Faculty/Fellows. MSO includes an overview of UW Medicine, UW Benefits*, and UWP Benefits* (if applicable). Provider headshots are also included with MSO and used to complete your UW Medicine provider biography. Additional information, including instructions on how to create or update your biography, can be found here.

MSO must be completed within 30 days of your start date and coordinated through the academic appointment contact. For questions, visit the MSO website or contact the MSO Office at uwmedmso@uw.edu.

Practice Plan Appointments

There are two practice plans: the University of Washington Physicians (UWP) and Children’s University Medical Group (CUMG).  UWP includes UW Primary Care and Fred Hutch Cancer Center.

Please contact your administrator for more information regarding your practice plan.

 

New Faculty Appointments

Please refer to your department or division administrator for information on specific track, rank, tenure, and promotion information for your department.

The general faculty appointments and promotions guide can be found here.

The hiring process map can be found here.

 

Medical Staff Privileges

For UW Medical Center Montlake and Northwest Campuses, Harborview Medical Center, and Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, the process of obtaining medical staff privileges is handled by the Office of Medical Staff Appointments (OMSA). This process is initiated by the submission of an RMA form (Request for Medical Staff Appointment form). Once an OMSA RMA has been submitted, OMSA will work directly with the candidate to submit the paperwork necessary to complete the review and appointment process at the institutional level. This process is concurrent with the process of acquiring the paperwork for a faculty appointment package.

Candidates need to be reminded that these are separate processes and there will be requests that are often duplicative as a result. Once OMSA has compiled a complete privileging package for review, the entire package is distributed to the hiring division and the department for review and signature.  Department staff return the approved package to OMSA for review by the credentialing approval committees.

If you have questions about this process, please start with your division or department administrator.

To contact OMSA, call 206-543-1002 or email omsa@uw.edu.

Editing Your UW Medicine Provider Bio & Photo

UW Medicine Providers can find information on editing their biography and photo here.

BENEFITS

Benefits

As a University of Washington employee, you receive excellent benefits including a variety of health plan options, generous retirement plans, life insurance, and long-term disability coverage.

University of Washington benefits website

UW Physicians benefits webpage and the UW Physicians Benefits Summary

Children’s University Medical Group (CUMG) webpage and CUMG Benefits Summary

School of Medicine faculty retirement benefits slides

UW Physicians / CUMG retirement benefits slides

UW Physicians Benefits

For information about University of Washington Physicians (UWP) benefits, please click here.

CUMG (Children’s University Medical Group) Benefits

Information on CUMG benefits can be found here.

Please contact the CUMG administrative services office for all questions related to benefits:

Phone: 206-987-8450
Fax: 206-987-8484
Email: CUMG@seattlechildrens.org

Leaves of Absence

The UW Human Resources Campus Leave Team is your support resource for medical, parental, military, and domestic violence leaves of absence.

Visit the Leaves page to navigate to faculty paid sick, medical, or gamily leave. You will also find information in this section on federal and state leave programs like FMLA and PFML.

Visit the Holidays and time off page to navigate to information for military and domestic violence leave.

Sabbatical leave and leave without pay will continue to be managed by the Office of Academic Personnel.

Disability Accommodations

The University’s disability accommodation process is designed to explore reasonable accommodations for employees (including student employees) with medical conditions or disabilities. The process is intended to be interactive and collaborative, relying on open communication and active participation between you and the University. The primary goal of this process is to help you to perform all of the essential functions of your current position, with or without accommodation.

Accommodations are provided on an individual basis and created in collaboration with the requesting employee, the appropriate University personnel, and the Disability Services Office (DSO). For more information about the disability accommodation process for employees, read the UW Human Resources disability accommodation policy or contact DSO at dso@uw.edu.

Health Plans

Compare health plans offered by UW Benefits and choose one that works best for you.

 

Human Resources & Workday

Workday is the University’s HR and Payroll system. Several basic HR and payroll processes for new hires are initiated or completed in the WD system. Initial questions about HR or payroll topics can be directed to your division staff.  You may be asked to submit specific Workday queries to the Integrated Service Center (ischelp@uw.edu).

Access Workday here.

Workday tasks for new employees:

  • Establish UW NetID
  • I9 employment form (requires documentation be made available to staff member completing process.
  • W4 (tax withholding)
  • Direct deposit
  • Address and title updates (personal and UW Directory contact info)

ACADEMIC RESOURCES

CV – School of Medicine Format

For information on creating and editing your CV as well as a template for your self-assessment, see the format guidelines below.

Here is the most recent CV format: UW School of Medicine CV format and here is the CV format for courtesy faculty.

The Department of Medicine uses an Augmented CV format. Please check with your department for specific formats.

 

Teaching Portfolio

A teaching portfolio is required for regular faculty (lecturers, assistant professors and associate professors) who are being considered for promotion. The teaching portfolio is a critical document in the promotion review process, particularly at the school and provost levels. The portfolio represents your teaching record and is used to assess the quality and value of teaching and mentoring interactions with students, residents, fellows, practicing physicians, and other professionals.

The teaching portfolio is comprised of the following separate documents:

  • Executive Summary of Teaching (optional, recommended for faculty who have major time commitments to teaching as part of their overall academic responsibilities)
  • Student Teaching Evaluations (required)
  • Peer Teaching Evaluations (required)

How to Create a Teaching Portfolio slides by Andy Luks, MD
You may view the 2024 teaching portfolio workshop recording here.

Writing a Memorable Teaching Philosophy article
Sample teaching philosophy statements
Self-reflection on teaching

Department of Medicine resources

Teaching portfolio guidelines and resources
Clinical peer evaluation form
Teaching peer evaluation form
Research mentor evaluation form
How to create a teaching portfolio
Teaching portfolio outline
Individual Development Plan (IDP)

Below are example teaching portfolios for you to consider as you plan your path to promotion. These were published with permission.

Example teaching portfolio 1
Example teaching portfolio 2
Example teaching portfolio 3

Faculty Appointments & Promotions Guide and Faculty Code

Faculty appointments and promotions, timelines, criteria, pathways, and more can be found in the A&P Guide.

In addition to the A&P guide, you may reference this table for promotion details about all of the faculty tracks and ranks.

For promotion guidelines specific to your department, we encourage you to visit this page.

Section 24-54 of the Faculty Code details procedure for promotions in the School of Medicine.

For Department Administrators looking for more information, please see the Academic Appointments and Compensation site (NetID Protected).

School of Medicine Departments

A list of all clinical and basic science departments in the UW School of Medicine, along with their divisions.

Sites of Practice

A site of practice (SOP) is a location where you practice medicine. As a faculty clinician at the UW School of Medicine you have limitations on your clinical practice, including where you can practice without prior approval.

Learn about Sites of Practice here.

Outside Work

Faculty may consult and do professional work for compensation outside of the University within certain guidelines. Forms are completed by the faculty member and need to be submitted in advance of the planned activity.

SoM faculty can submit the 1460 outside work request form in the SoM Portal here.

The SoM Portal can also be accessed through the UW’s Outside Work Homepage here.

Financial Conflict of Interest Policy

The Financial Conflict of Interest Policy, Grants Information Memorandum (GIM) 10, establishes guidelines for disclosure of Significant Financial Interests and management of Financial Conflicts of Interests in Sponsored Research at the University.

https://www.washington.edu/research/compliance/financial-conflicts-of-interest-fcoi/

CLINICAL RESOURCES

License and DEA

For resources and information about medical and DEA licenses:

Washington State Medical Licenses

Washington State Medical License Application Form

OMSA will notify providers when their DEA license is expired or about to expire. Access the DEA license renewal website here. Contact your department or division administrator for the specific process of renewing your DEA license through UW.

UW Medicine Clinical Toolkit

The UW Medicine clinical toolkit allows Seattle-area practice sites access to clinical tools such as EMRs, imaging, forms, and policies.

Employee Health

The UW Employee Health Center provides work-related preventive care for UW employees in specific work groups, such as health sciences research, animal husbandry, oceanographic research, and facilities and maintenance. Employee Health provides these services for UW employees who do not work at any of the medical centers.  If you are a clinician, there will be an Employee Health clinic at your primary clinical site or affiliated medical center.

NEW FACULTY FAQ’S

What is UW Medicine? What is UW Physicians (UWP)? What is Children's University Medical Group (CUMG)? How do these different entities interact with the School of Medicine?

UW Medicine is an integrated health system that is made up of seven entities including:

  1. Airlift Northwest
  2. Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center – clinical enterprise
  3. Harborview Medical Center
  4. UW Medical Center – Montlake Campus and Northwest Campus
  5. UW Medicine Primary Care
  6. UW Physicians
  7. UW School of Medicine
  8. Valley Medical Center

All faculty are a part of the UW Medicine community since they have appointments within the School of Medicine (one of the entities of UW Medicine).  This includes faculty who work at affiliated institutions such as VA Puget Sound and Seattle Children’s Hospital.

UW Physicians (UWP) and Children’s University Medical Group (CUMG) are partner practice groups.  UWP is the practice group for more than 2,000 providers who care for patients across the UW Medicine clinical entities . CUMG is the non-profit pediatric group practice group for faculty who practice at Seattle Children’s.

Visit the following links for more details on UW Medicine, UWP, CUMG, and the School of Medicine.

What is WWAMI?

WWAMI is the UW School of Medicine’s one-of-a-kind, multi-state medical education program. The acronym, WWAMI, stands for the states served by the UW School of Medicine: Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana and Idaho. UW medical students have access to a variety of settings for clinical training: from a busy Level I trauma center in Seattle, WA, to a small primary care clinic in Libby, MT, to working with Alaska Natives in Anchorage, AK. Community-based clinical faculty volunteer their time to educate our medical students.  We also have residency programs across WWAMI and engage in collaborate research across the region.

Find out more about WWAMI here.

What is a School of Medicine Faculty Appointment?

The University of Washington has well-defined academic tracks, ranks, and titles. The appointment process and definition of academic ranks and titles can be found in the Faculty Code, Chapter 24 Appointment and Promotion of Faculty Members, Section 24- 34 Qualifications for Appointment at Specific Ranks and Titles. Both basic science and clinical departments recruit individuals through a national search as regular or research faculty. Research faculty do not have clinical responsibilities and, unlike regular faculty, may or may not have formal teaching responsibilities.

More details can be found in the faculty appointments and promotions guide here.

For information on WWAMI faculty appointments, click here.

What are the different ID cards and electronic user IDs that I need to function at UW Medicine?

ID cards

  1. Husky Card: A Husky Card is the official identification card for members of the UW community. To qualify for a UW ID card (Husky Card), you must either have a faculty appointment or a permanent staff position with at least 50 percent full-time equivalency and have completed UW employee orientation. UWMC and HMC medical staff may obtain their Husky Cards at the same location as medical center ID badges as noted below.
  2. Medical Center Photo ID
    1. UWMC Photo ID
      • UW Public Safety Office – BB-120, (206) 598-4909, request submitted by authorized staff
      • Prox cards for after-hours access
    2. HMC Photo ID
      • HMC Photo ID/ Parking Office – 1 CT 153, (206) 744-3386, request submitted by authorized staff

User IDs

  1. UW NetID: In order to access course materials, library services, and other network programs, you will need a University of Washington personal network identification code.
  2. UW Medicine Account: A UW Medicine account allows access to a variety of EMR systems and the Learning Management system (LMS): ORCA, EPIC, Mindscape, etc.  Full activation (with access to EMR systems) will not occur until after all appointment processes have been finalized.  Please be aware that it may take up to 3 days to activate an account.  Appropriate instructions to establish user names, passwords and access codes will be provided via email by User Access Administration (UAA). Requests for access should be directed to the hiring unit’s administrator or designee. Information needed to set up a UW Medicine account includes full name, anticipated title, date of birth, place of birth, EID or SSN and email address (UW if available). For assistance with UW Medicine accounts or inbox setup, contact User Access Administration/ IT Services Help Desk at (206) 543-7012 or mcsos@uw.edu or https://services.uwmedicine.org

What are good resources for figuring out my benefits?

The UW Benefits office has resources across the board including insurance, childcare, retirement, self-care, and more.

If you have questions about CUMG benefits, contact the appropriate representative from this page.

How do I find a Primary Care Provider in Seattle?

Find a PCP on the UW Medicine “find a provider” page. Please check with your insurance company to verify if a provider is covered under your plan.

What affordable housing resources are available?

For those looking to purchase a home

For those hoping to live near work

How do I set up parking?

A wide variety of parking facilities are available. Please note that your parking costs are not covered by UW Medicine; they are strictly self-pay and costs vary by location. You have the option of having parking charges deducted via automatic payroll deduction. Parking privileges are not fully reciprocal between sites, so it is important to inform parking office staff if you will be parking at more than one location on a regular basis. You may find that a pay-per-use option or use of the shuttle between campuses will be more beneficial than a full-time pass.

Please visit the UW Transportation website here for information ranging from parking at various UW Medicine sites, to shuttles between sites, to other transportation options.

Are there shuttles between sites in Seattle?

The Health Sciences Express shuttle goes between UW Medical Center Montlake, Roosevelt, the UW Tower, and Harborview Medical Center.

The UW/ Fred Hutch/ South Lake Union shuttle

Seattle Children’s shuttle system

How do I connect to library resources? UpToDate?

The mission of the Health Sciences Library (HSL) at University of Washington (UW) is to advance scholarship, research, education and healthcare by anticipating information needs, by providing essential resources and services, and by facilitating learning for the greater health sciences community. The HSL has links to clinical systems, toolkits, databases, and more.

Through the UW library you can subscribe for free to various newspapers. Visit this page and click the links to follow instructions for any publications you’d like to read.

The Li Lu Library in the Health Sciences Education Building (HSEB) offers several lounges and spaces for studying or meeting, as well as larger rooms for conferences and events. Contact lilulibrary@uw.edu or visit https://hsl.uw.edu/lilulibrary/ for more information.

UpToDate is a clinical decision support resource that allows clinicians to make informed decisions on care using contemporary, evidence-based recommendations.

Is there a file sharing system that I can use?

UW IT offers information on several options based on the needs of your group. We recommend OneDrive but you can view all options at their website here.

What IT resources should I know about?

IT Connect is UW’s information technology hub. You will find resources here ranging from email and phone support to password and software access assistance.

Jake Kulstad, PhD, Manager of Instructional Technology and Support with UW-IT Learning Technologies, has a webpage with helpful information and resources for UW employees. This site provides links to Canvas, Catalyst, Google sites, and other resources.

For all other questions, contact your department IT, if applicable.

Where do I go to get all of my compliance requirements completed?

The Learning Management System (LMS) houses all compliance trainings and modules.

Research Questions

What resources are there to help me set up my lab? How do I find potential collaborators?

  • Check with your department chair or administrator to find space and resources
  • ITHS (Institute of Translational Health Sciences) also has a tool to find collaborators throughout WWAMI. ITHS is is dedicated to speeding science to clinic practice for the benefit of patients and communities throughout Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana, Idaho, (WWAMI) and beyond. ITHS promotes this translation of scientific discovery to practice by fostering innovative research, cultivating multi-disciplinary research partnerships, and ensuring a pipeline of next generation researchers through robust educational and career development programs.

How can I recruit undergraduates for my lab?

  • Contact advisors for undergraduate majors in biology, biochemistry, or whichever major you wish to recruit from. They can send out emails to their advisees.

Where can I learn about grant writing and other research resources?

Clinical Questions

What is my liability coverage?

  • The University of Washington’s self-insurance program provides protection from professional liability claims arising from the negligent acts or omissions of the University of Washington and its employees, students, and agents acting in the course and scope of their University duties.
  • You can find out more details by contacting someone in the Clinical Risk Management office (AMC login required).

Who do I talk to about my pager?

  • Click here if you work at UW Medical Center or Harborview Medical Center

Where do I access the clinical toolkit?