IHPS Membership

Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies Academic Affiliation Policies

Introduction

The University of California (UC) developed the organized research unit (ORU) as an entity in which academics from various departments and schools can undertake interdisciplinary research activities. Under UC rules, ORUs do not appoint faculty but may develop policies and procedures for faculty to have a formal relationship with the ORU. This page describes the policies and procedures at UCSF’s Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies (IHPS, or the Institute), an ORU situated within the School of Medicine, regarding its faculty relationships.

Faculty policies and procedures at IHPS recognize that faculty differ in how much they identify as a member of the IHPS or health policy community at UCSF, how much time they physically spend at IHPS, whether their personnel file formally resides at IHPS, whether they teach at IHPS, and how much of their funding portfolio is managed by the Institute. Recognizing this diversity of relationships, the Institute includes three categories of faculty: core faculty, affiliated faculty, and emeritus faculty. These, and the expectations associated with each, are described below, followed by a description of the processes to establish a faculty relationship with IHPS and to review faculty relationships.

Types of Faculty Relationships

All IHPS faculty have academic faculty appointments in a department at UCSF. The Institute has three categories of faculty relationship: core, affiliated, and emeritus. The Institute strives to support the professional life of all faculty through inclusion on the IHPS website, in email and social media communication, and in IHPS-sponsored activities and events, and by providing opportunities to participate in research, teaching, and service.

The principal distinctions between core and other IHPS faculty are participation and commitment to IHPS. Core faculty have a voice in faculty governance of the Institute and are expected to have a level of engagement at IHPS commensurate with their governance role. Affiliated faculty are engaged in Institute activities and are not involved in faculty governance at IHPS. Emeritus faculty have or have had a substantive relationship with IHPS, typically as Core faculty, and are now Emeritus at UCSF; they are encouraged (but not required) to participate in Institute activities.

Core, affiliated, and emeritus faculty have the following rights and responsibilities. A detailed description of the benefits of IHPS faculty affiliation for each category of faculty and opportunities for faculty to engage with IHPS is provided in the attached document, “IHPS Faculty Benefits.”

Core Faculty

Core faculty are highly engaged with the Institute and participate in its faculty governance. Core Faculty can be at any rank (Assistant, Associate, or Full Professor) and any academic series (tenure/ladder rank, In Residence, Clinical, Adjunct). Core faculty expectations are to be engaged at IHPS in one or more of the following ways, with a degree of engagement appropriate for their governance role at the Institute:

  • Lead research in health policy, health services research, public health, and/or population health research, including:
    • regularly being PI of at least one active award administered by IHPS, and/or
    • substantively collaborating with IHPS faculty in research-related activities, e.g., joint research grants, participating in projects or programs, and/or reviewing research proposals or manuscripts.
  • Contribute to teaching health policy on campus and/or in Institute education and training programs, e.g., post-doctoral mentorship, teaching in IHPS-sponsored degree programs, etc.
  • Service in an IHPS leadership role, such as Committee Chair or Associate Director.
  • Service on Institute committees, attendance at IHPS retreats, and participation in IHPS strategic planning activities.
  • Regular attendance at IHPS faculty meetings, IHPS-sponsored talks and seminars, and other IHPS meetings and events.

Affiliated Faculty

Affiliated faculty are engaged in policy, public health, and/or population health research, teaching, and/or service, and are engaged in supporting the Institute’s mission.

Affiliated faculty expectations are to be engaged with IHPS in one or more of the following ways:

  • Attend IHPS meetings, events, and activities, including faculty meetings, works-in-progress sessions, and Grand Rounds
  • Engage in health policy research and/or health services research, including as co-investigator in grant proposals submitted by IHPS faculty.
  • Contribute to teaching health policy on campus and/or in Institute education and training programs, e.g., post-doctoral mentorship, teaching in IHPS-sponsored degree programs, guest lectures, etc.

Emeritus Faculty

Emeritus faculty are former faculty who have had a substantive relationship with IHPS, typically as Core faculty, and who may continue to remain active.

Emeritus faculty typically:

  • Collaborate in research projects led by Institute faculty.
  • Teach in the educational programs of the Institute, including offering guest lectures and mentoring post-doctoral scholars, junior faculty, and/or students.
  • Attend IHPS-sponsored talks and seminars.
  • Identify their affiliation with IHPS in publications.
  • Contribute to discussions regarding Institute strategy, in a non-voting capacity (per UC policy governing the emeritus title).
  • Emeritus Faculty benefits include all of the benefits associated with their pre- retirement status, except faculty governance.


Affiliated Investigator

Non-faculty staff and trainees at UCSF may become an affiliated investigator at IHPS. This affiliation is designed for individuals who (i) are not on the IHPS payroll or under the primary supervision of an IHPS Core faculty member, (ii) are contributing substantially to intellectual work and/or authorship of academic research related to health policy, and (iii) are interested in building intellectual relationships with IHPS faculty. Individuals may be in a degree-seeking program at UCSF or employed at UCSF in positions such as: non-faculty academic series (e.g., Specialists, Professional Researchers), trainee programs (e.g., Postdoctoral Fellow), or staff series engaged in health policy research careers (e.g., Senior Policy Analysts, Programmer Analysts). Affiliated investigators are encouraged to build a close collaborative relationship with IHPS core or affiliated faculty. Affiliated investigators typically:

  • Collaborate in research projects or training programs led by IHPS faculty.
  • Attend IHPS-sponsored events and activities, including faculty meetings, works-in-progress sessions, and Grand Rounds seminars.
  • May choose to identify their affiliation with IHPS in publications.

Process to Establish Faculty Relationships

Affiliated faculty. Any UCSF faculty member may nominate themself to become affiliated faculty by completing the online application available on the IHPS website. The Chair of the IHPS Faculty Appointments Committee reviews all complete applications to ensure that the applicant is generally aligned with the IHPS mission. Applicants meeting this standard will be approved as affiliated faculty.

Core faculty. Any UCSF faculty member, including affiliated faculty, may nominate themself to have core faculty status by submitting a written request for core status to the Director of IHPS or the Chair of the IHPS Faculty Appointments Committee. An individual (including a new faculty recruitment) also may be nominated to have Core faculty status by another Core faculty member. If the candidate is not Affiliated faculty, they also must complete the application for affiliation. Upon receiving the nomination for Core faculty status, the Director or Chair notifies all core faculty members of a Core faculty nomination and solicits input from the faculty. Any input is shared with the Faculty Appointments Committee, which then votes on whether to approve the nomination to core faculty. If appropriate or needed, the Committee may request an informal vote on the nomination from all core faculty members prior to the Committee’s final vote. Faculty who have one or more grants managed by IHPS are automatically eligible to become Core faculty.

Emeritus faculty. Faculty who retire from UCSF may be recommended for emeritus faculty status by the Director or the Faculty Appointments Committee. The Committee reviews and vote upon this recommendation.

Review of Faculty Appointments

The Faculty Appointments Committee sends an annual email to all core faculty members reminding them of the benefits of faculty affiliation, the opportunities to engage with the Institute, and the criteria for maintaining core faculty status. The Committee will meet annually to review the current roster of core faculty and consider, based on the criteria contained in this document, whether any changes in faculty status should be considered. Their recommendation shall be reviewed by the Institute Director. Based on recommended changes agreed upon by the Director and Committee, the Institute Director will meet with any affected faculty to discuss any proposed change.