NSUOCO Professional Practice Plan

I. PREAMBLE

The faculty of the College of Optometry is composed of professionals in a wide variety of specialties in ocular health care. This policy applies to tenured or tenure-track faculty who hold full-time appointments in the College.

Full-time members of the College of Optometry accept all rights, privileges, and obligations of other University faculty as set forth in University policies. Accordingly, the primary goal of full-time faculty members of the College is the education of students as professionals. Faculty are encouraged to engage, within the limits of the time available to them, in such income-producing activities as consulting work, sponsored research, professional optometric practice and other activities which are closely related to their University work. A reasonable degree of active involvement by the faculty in direct eye health care delivery is vital to the maintenance of their professional skills. Active participation in professional activities requires of the faculty a significant commitment in terms of energy, emotional dedication, time and the assumption of personal liabilities in addition to those assumed in carrying out academic programs. The decision to engage in such professional activities by faculty members will be made with the knowledge and understanding that it must be done in accordance with the provisions of this policy.

The Professional Practice Plan is a formal grouping of full-time faculty organized to render services to patients and/or specialized consultee services for a fee under a private practice arrangement. Only those faculty who are licensed by the State of Oklahoma Board of Examiners in Optometry shall provide patient care services. Adherence to the policy as with all Regents’ policies is a condition of appointment for full-time faculty of the College of Optometry. Under this policy, the faculty is responsible to the Dean, and the Dean through the Vice President of Academic Affairs, to the President.

II. OBJECTIVES

1. To improve the patient care and consultative resources of the College of Optometry for the benefit of the public health.
2. To provide exemplary patient care and consultative models to meet the educational, research and service goals of the College of Optometry.
3. To enhance recruitment and retention of highly qualified faculty by providing a source of funds with which to supplement income.
4. To provide incentives to the faculty to engage in the practice of their professions, to maintain and improve professional skills and to participate more actively in patient care and/or consultative services.
5. To provide a uniform procedure by which to account for the income generated through direct patient care and consultative services. 
6. To provide for reporting and auditing of all monies received and disbursed through the operation of the Professional Practice Plan.
7. To provide basic financial data of the Professional Practice Plan which can be made available to participants, administrators and others under the Oklahoma Open Records Act.

III. DEFINITION OF TERMS

1. Membership – Tenured or tenure-track faculty of the Oklahoma College of Optometry who hold full-time appointments and elect to practice may participate in the Professional Practice Plan.
2. Base Salary – The annual contracted salary paid to the faculty by Northeastern State University.
3. Supplemental Professional Earnings – Income generated by professional activities such as consulting or professional optometry practice.
   1. Sources of Supplementary Professional Earnings
      Income generated by the participation of the faculty in the Professional Practice Plan.
   2. Income Exclusions
      
      1. Prizes and awards.
      2. Faculty members interests in:
         1. Royalties
         2. Publication payments
         3. Copyrights
         4. Patent rights
      3. Non-professional income.
      4. Compensation received as a result of military leave.
      5. Salary included under the definition of base salary.
      6. Add pay or stipends for internal and external speaking engagements including NSUOCO continuing medical education
      7. Honorariums or stipends for consulting services (such as ACOE and
         NBEO)
   3. Research Grants and Contracts
      Great care must be taken to ensure that grants and contracts are accounted for and audited in the manner that every contracting agency intends and requires. In determining the criteria for administration of a particular grant or contract, faculty must adhere to the following requirements:
      1. The Grants and Contracts Office in compliance with all of its rules must approve all grants and contracts proposals prior to any negotiations.
      2. If the agreement is with a governmental agency (federal, state or local), the grant, or contract must be deposited in the official Grants and Contracts accounts and an individual account number will be assigned.
      3. If the agreement indicates that an Agency is reimbursing the University for cost to perform a particular service, and the amount to be reimbursed is dependent upon those costs, then the grant/contract should be administered in the official Grants and Contracts accounts.
      4. If the agreement is “fixed price” or a specific fee is negotiated for the service, these grants/contracts may be administered through the Professional Practice Plan.
      5. The standard overhead rate applied to other federal grants and contracts will be charged to grants and contracts deposited in the Professional Practice Plan.
4. Optometry Program AccountNortheastern State University Oklahoma College of Optometry’s Optometry Program Account is established as an auxiliary fund to supplement the operation of the College of Optometry and is established for the College of Optometry dean’s discretionary use for any legal purpose that complies with University guidelines.
5. Individual Practice Plan AccountsAn account established for the individual practice plan member’s discretionary use for any legal purpose that complies with University guidelines. This is generally understood to consist of appropriate business expenses for the individual practice plan member.

IV. OPERATIONAL PROCEDURES

1. Any professional activity that will result in the generation of income in addition to that paid by the College of Optometry must be approved in advance by the Dean of the College (with the exception of those items listed under 3.B. Income Exclusions).
2. Supplemental professional earnings (described in 3.A.) must be deposited in the Northeastern State University agency special account.
3. Faculty members are allowed the freedom to arrange their non-class and non-clinic load throughout the traditional workweek in a way that allows them the most flexibility, and they may schedule up to four (4) hours within the traditional work week for participation in the practice plan. There is no described limitation to the amount of personal time (evenings and weekends) a faculty member may be involved in the practice plan, although, the amount of time and the schedule devoted to the generation of practice plan income must consider the academic
   needs of the college.
4. The yearly income produced by the plan (based on the University’s fiscal year) for each plan member should generally not exceed his/her annual base salary. Any additional income earned by an individual practice plan member will be distributed as follows: 85% to the faculty member’s individual practice plan account, 10% to the Practice Plan Overhead account, and 5% to the University.
5. Private practice activities within the clinic facilities will be scheduled in advance when possible and approved by the Dean of the College. The requirements and needs of the academic scheduling will take precedence over private practice activities.
6. Patient Care, Records, and Charges
   1. The minimum eye exam requirements have been established by the State of Oklahoma, the Oklahoma Board of Bar Examiners in Optometry and the Oklahoma Optometric Association and all practice plan participants will comply with those requirements.
   2. Referrals to a specialist may and should be made where professionally deemed necessary.
   3. Patient records will be kept in a central file and each patient file must be identified as a part of the patient population of each individual practice plan participant.
   4. The fees for services and materials charged to the patient shall be established by consideration of the Medicare Reimbursements payments and the fees of the private practitioners in the area.. These fees are subject to change by actions of the Practice Plan Committee and approval of the Dean of the College. A faculty member may elect to provide primary care services to their immediate family members, community service exams and other philanthropic eye care services any time space is available.
7. Professional Practice Plan participants are responsible for obtaining proof of malpractice insurance. A certificate evidencing insurance coverage must be on file with the Dean of the College prior to participation in the plan.

V. DISTRIBUTION OF SUPPLEMENTAL PROFESSIONAL EARNINGS

Income generated through the professional practice plan shall be administered and distributed as follows:

1. Faculty that participate in the clinic will be charged an overhead fee for administration, indirect costs and the payment of actual identified costs such as materials, supplies and clerical help associated with operations. The rate of 15% has been set to cover all direct and indirect costs associated with clinical activities Of this 15% overhead, 10% will be placed in the NSUCO Clinic Overhead Account and 5% will be transferred to the University’s Other Revolving Fund (T60159). 
2. The balance of the income will be placed in the individual practice plan member’s account. These funds will be disbursed for appropriate expenditures or directly to the practice plan member upon request. Any balance in the account will be paid out on the last payroll cycle in December each year.

VI. PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE PLAN GUIDELINE FOR EXPENDITURES

This document sets forth guidelines for expenditures and proper documentation related to disbursements from Professional Practice Plan funds. These guidelines apply to the individual practice plan accounts, the NSUCO fund and the overhead account.

The following guidelines and procedures outline the requirements for the expenditure of Professional Practice Plan funds:

Income Payments to Members

The appropriate Account Sponsor approves funds paid to members periodically, upon request, by completing an Add-Pay form. Payments must be identified as Practice Plan payments. Any balance in the account will be paid out on the last payroll cycle in December each year.

Supplies, Materials, and Equipment

All items of expense directly attributable to the Professional Practice Plan for primary eye care, e.g., laboratory supplies or other costs arising from the practice of medicine are chargeable to the Clinic Overhead account. Materials, drugs/medications in excess of $50 should be charged to the individual doctor’s Professional Practice Plan account (e.g., Botox or amniotic membranes). All other purchases should be charged to the individual practice plan accounts.

Membership Fees, Licensure Fees, Etc.

Membership and licensure fees, which are necessary to the professional practice of the faculty, are chargeable to the individual practice plan accounts. Memberships of private clubs are not allowable expenditures.

Gifts, Personal Items, Etc.

The purchase of gifts and personal items are not allowed from Professional Practice Plan accounts including the individual practice plan accounts, the Optometry Program Account and the Practice Plan Overhead account.

Subscriptions to Magazines and Journals

Departments may subscribe to professional and scientific journals, which may be funded by the Optometry Program Account. Faculty members may subscribe to professional and scientific journals which may be funded by individual practice plan accounts. Magazine subscriptions are appropriate for public waiting rooms. Personal subscriptions are not appropriate charges.

Travel

Travel associated with Professional Practice Plan activities will be reimbursed at cost through the individual member practice plan accounts within NSU Travel Policies and Procedures.

Miscellaneous

Items such as scrubs or other special required clothing used in operating the program, and equipment or technology used to benefit professional responsibilities of the University are appropriate. It is recognized that there may be other types of expenditures that may not be specifically covered under this policy as no policy can be all-inclusive. Any items not specifically covered by this policy should be referred to the Office of Business Affairs for a determination as to both the reasonableness and allowability.

All purchases through the Professional Practice Plan must comply with University purchasing policy and will remain the property of NSU upon the departure of the employee and will remain the property of NSU upon the departure of the employee. 

VII. GOVERNANCE

1. Practice Plan Committee – The members of the Practice Plan Committee shall represent the membership of the Professional Practice Plan and shall be responsible for advising the Dean of policy matters affecting the operations covered by this policy. The committee shall be composed of three (3) full-time licensed faculty members of the College of Optometry who are nominated by the practice plan members and confirmed by the Dean of Optometry.
2. Meetings – The Committee shall meet at least once per year to review and conduct business related to the Professional Practice Plan. A meeting may be called by the Dean or at the request of two (2) members of the Committee.
3. Quorum and Voting – A quorum shall consist of a simple majority of the voting members of the Practice Plan Committee. Any official action of the Committee requires a majority vote of its members present.
4. Rules of Order – Robert’s Rules of Order will be the standard for meeting procedures. All items of business requiring formal action of the committee must be in the form of a resolution to be presented for approval as provided under Section VIII Accountability, and section IX Amendments.

VIII. ACCOUNTABILITY

All income generated under this plan must be reported as indicated herein. Failure to report all income generated under the plan will result in disciplinary action under provisions of the Faculty Handbook. Appeals procedures shall be the same as those outlined in Appeals and Grievances of the Faculty Handbook.

IX. AMENDMENTS

Proposed amendments will be submitted to the Professional Practice Plan Committee for review and recommendations.