Medical Leave: Students Critique System, Deans

Whether it’s a physical health issue or a mental health concern, every year, students leave the Academy for the purpose of medical or psychological treatment. Although these medical leaves are designed for the best interest of those who are in need of them, the cogency of the process has been debated among the Academy community.A medical leave’s designed purpose is to allow students to undergo an intense psychological or physical treatment at their home, away from campus, while still being considered a student at the Academy. “A student simply leaves the school under a medical leave of absence for a period of time for medical reasons. A medical leave may be offered for up to three terms,” the E Book states.Despite controversy, many students and faculty seem to see the practice as a crucial, helpful option for students who require time away from campus. “I think it is really gracious of the school to have medical leaves,” Associate Dean of Students and religion instructor Jamie Hamilton, who supervises medical leaves, said. “I think they are really important, and not every school can be as generous as we are. When a student goes on medical leave, they do not lose their financial aid, they keep their spot, they are still considered a student at the Academy and they are given the time to address an issue fully that could not be managed with the workload here.”Senior Eunice Cho, who left on medical leave for depression during the fall of 2012 and returned the fall of 2013, shared a similar opinion. “Medical leave was extremely helpful for me. I had about two terms to figure things out and that was really beneficial. There were a lot of things I could deal with that I would not have been able to do if I were still at school,” Cho said.Upper Francis Lee, alternatively, left for his physical health. Lee, who suffers from chronic spinal problems and insomnia, decided to depart Exeter this spring for an opportunity to take better care of his body. “After getting some extensive therapy and treatment, I thought I would be able to make it through the spring term. Loaded with all sorts of medicine and heavy dietary restrictions, I returned to Exeter, only to fall ill again,” Lee said. “After that, I decided that I needed to take some time off and really focus on getting better.”Donald*, an upper currently on medical leave, clarified the process with his experience. “The decision was encouraged by deans, but the ultimate decision was made by my family,” he said.Donald also recognized the authority held over a student during their medical leave. “It’s true that they threaten you cannot come back,” he said. “They make you present ‘what you did over your break to improve on the reason you left,’ and they ultimately have the decision to let you come back or not.”Joannie*, a student currently on medical leave, felt she had little voice in the decision. After suffering from depression and mental illness at school, she was called to Dean Hamilton’s office after spending time in the Health Center for self-harm injuries. She walked into the room to find Dean Hamilton, her counselor and her father, and was told that she was being put on medical leave without being consulted. “They told me that they had been discussing it for days,” she said, “and that they had never had to make such a hard decision. However, the words rolled very easily off of Dean Hamilton’s tongue. I have never been more scared, more alone, more shaken or more hurt.”She was asked to leave immediately, and moved out within hours. While she has complied fully with each condition of her leave, Joannie continues to feel nervous that she won’t be able to return. “[After I left, it] became apparent that the soonest I would be returning to campus would be next year, if even. I didn’t know this when I was still at Exeter, but medical leave does not ensure your return. My life since the decision has been haunted by a perpetual uncertainty,” she said.Since the objective of medical leave is to fully restore one’s health, the Academy requires students returning from their absence to submit a letter explaining how their health has improved. Hamilton said that most students return, and those that do generally perform better at Exeter than they did before their leave. “The conditions are that you address the issues that generated the leave with a team at home because you want to get better, and then you write back to the school when you are better saying that you are ready to come back,” Hamilton said. “Then the deans read the letters and make a decision whether the student is ready to return.”Other than the personal statement, as well as the rule that students are not allowed on campus while on leave, Exonians on medical leave do not need to meet any other requirements. “The school is not involved once a student leaves. We give the student privacy, and they work with their clinicians and their medical team,” Hamilton said.While the design of this practice is to offer more time for students to recover, Susan*, a student currently on medical leave, sees it as uncaring and counterintuitive. “A dean has called once in the past three months, and they do not require progress reports, which would help insure that students are getting the help they need in order to come back and work to their best ability,” Susan said. “They say that we are still considered students, and that our spots are still held, but it really does not feel like they care much once you are officially on leave.”Even if attention does drop while students are on leave, once they return to campus, the administration aims to make the transition as easy and smooth as possible. “When a student comes back, we provide them with a lot of support,” Hamilton said. “We try to get them back in the same dorm, we get them counseling and so on, because we do not want someone to come back and have no one paying attention to them.”*These names have been changed.