As medical schools allow students to become more involved in fighting the COVID-19 surge, the American Medical Association is advising that students be allowed to decide whether they work directly with coronavirus patients.
The medical group also released other recommendations aimed at protecting students recruited as hospitals and health systems ramp up their workforces.
The guidance lays out principles for medical schools implementing early graduation and the health systems that employ the early graduates, such as ensuring early graduation is enacted voluntarily and granting early graduates full status as healthcare employees with appropriate salary and benefits.
Medical students should not be financially responsible for the treatment of their own disease should they become ill due while caring for COVID-19 patients, the AMA said.
"As many physicians-in-training will be enlisted to provide direct patient care during this time, it is our responsibility to ensure that they are being protected and have the support they need to safely navigate the pandemic," said Patrice A. Harris, MD, the association's president. "This guidance is intended to keep medical students healthy and safe, as some health systems may rely on them to care for patients on the front lines of the pandemic."