Faculty Handbook

Emergency procedures

As someone who will be responsible for leading an MSU study abroad program, you may find yourself facing an emergency involving one or more of the students who are in your care. Students can and do become ill, suffer accidents, are the victims of muggings and assaults, find themselves caught up in potentially violent political situations, and fail to return on time to programs at the end of long weekends.

In the case of an emergency, you should be prepared to be on-call 24 hours a day until the emergency is resolved.

While it is, of course, impossible to plan for all contingencies involving our students abroad, we do need to follow procedures that will allow us to react in a responsible and level-headed way when emergencies do arise. We need to be able to provide, in a consistent and predictable way, for the safety and well-being of our students. We also need to take reasonable and prudent measures to limit the University’s legal liabilities.

MSU has, therefore, developed a series of specific procedures designed to safeguard the well-being of program participants, and to protect the University’s interests. OSA is responsible for coordinating the University’s management of emergencies affecting participants in MSU study abroad programs. As a leader of an MSU Study Abroad program, you are expected to follow the procedures outlined below and to be sure to inform the students in your group about these procedures during their on-site orientations.

Please be advised that during an on-going crisis, it is important to keep OSA informed on a regular basis, through telephone (517) 353-8920, fax (517) 432-2082, or e-mail. You may reach us after hours through the MSU Emergency Assistance line at (517) 353-8784. Your program-provided cell phone will hopefully ensure quick and reliable communication. Phone expenses will be included as part of the program budget.

What is an emergency?

For our purposes, an emergency is any circumstance that poses a genuine risk to, or that has already disturbed, the safety and well-being of program participants. Emergencies may include incidents that are “newsworthy” and reach U.S. news agencies and cause alarm to parents or colleagues.

They could include, though not confined to, the following:

• physical assault
• disappearance, hostage taking, or kidnapping of a student
• robbery
• sexual assault or rape
• serious illness, physical or emotional
• significant accident and/or injury
• hospitalization for any reason or length of time
• terrorist threat or attack
• local political, natural or man-made crisis/disaster in the vicinity of student accommodations or classrooms that could affect the students’ safety or well-being
• arrest or questioning by the police or other security forces
• any legal action (lawsuit, deposition, trial, etc.) involving a student
• death of a student

How should you respond to emergencies?

• In an emergency, your first responsibility is to safeguard the safety and well-being of program participants. Do whatever is necessary to assure this, whether this means obtaining prompt and appropriate medical attention, Embassy intervention or police protection. In the case of a terrorist attack, gather at the pre-arranged location (see Pre-departure and On-site Orientation) to account for all students and follow the directives of the local authorities. You will be reimbursed for all expenses relating to the management of an emergency.
• When you have done all that you reasonably can do to assure the students’ well-being, immediately contact the MSU Emergency Assistance line at (517) 353-3784. The Operations Desk is staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week and will contact the most appropriate person in our office. We have explicit procedures in place to deal with the different emergencies previously listed. This step is critical so we can assist you in decision-making and be fully informed of the crisis. During a crisis, OSA is the principal conduit of information for the MSU upper administration and the media, so timely and accurate information from on-site is critical.
• Follow-up communication with faculty on-site will occur primarily via e-mail (provided Internet access is still available on site). Therefore, it is critical that faculty regularly check their MSU e-mail account for updates and instructions.
• Notify the local U.S. Embassy or Consulate about the crisis, and follow whatever procedures they may require; if there is a continuing risk to the welfare of the students (during a terrorist threat, for example), ask the appropriate Embassy or Consulate Officer to advise you on a regular basis about the evolution of the crisis, and about how the students should respond.
• After OSA is informed about an emergency, and after we consult with you and other appropriate individuals on site, we may, depending on the acuteness of the crisis, fax or e-mail you a description of the course of action that you and the students will need to follow. Should a student not be able to continue with your group, leave the student with an MSU-appointed liaison to assist with the situation. Notify OSA as to who is providing assistance. It is not appropriate to appoint another student as the liaison.
• During a political crisis or other emergency during which foreigners in general or U.S. citizens may be at risk, tell the students to keep a low profile and not travel in large groups. Tell them to avoid demonstrations, confrontations or situations where they could be in danger; to avoid behavior that could call attention to themselves; to avoid locales where foreigners or Americans are known to congregate; and to remove signs, luggage tags and clothing that would label them as Americans. You may wish to have a pre-arranged plan that all students return to their residence during such a crisis.
• Experts say that during a political emergency, it is unwise to move locations. Therefore, it is unlikely that participants would need to be evacuated from a site abroad. However, faculty members and students would be brought home if a situation were to deteriorate to the point where the degree of risk to participants was deemed unacceptable. If this were to happen, the OSA Director, in consultation with you, the U.S. Embassy and State Department, and appropriate MSU individuals, would develop an evacuation plan in as much detail as possible. This plan would be transmitted to you in confidence, and we would continue to work closely with you throughout the process.
• In the event of a significant crisis, individual students have the option of returning to the U.S. Every reasonable effort will be made to allow them to continue their academic program on campus, and OSA will work with the student(s) regarding housing, financial issues, etc.

In case of a medical emergency...

1. In a medical emergency, including potential suicide, seek appropriate medical care and contact HTH at (610) 254-8771. This emergency number is on the student's insurance card and will receive collect calls. They can assist you and help coordinate the necessary arrangements including payment of fees on behalf of the student. Once you notify HTH, allow them to manage all arrangements. For medical and liability reasons, it is not wise to solicit outside input or take control of coordination. In any other sort of emergency, notify the local police about the situation, if you and the Embassy believe this is appropriate; then follow the procedures the police may require of you or the student.
2. If a student has been hospitalized for any length of time, notify the Office of Study Abroad. If it's an emergency, contact the MSU Emergency Assistance line at (517) 353-3784. If the student is immediately released, an e-mail is sufficient. All hospitalizations of any length are reported to the Dean of International Studies and Programs. This chain of communication serves to diffuse potential miscommunication and misinformation to parents and the media, and provides background to the wider MSU community in case the condition should escalate.
3. When you call the MSU Emergency Assistance line, the office may contact the MSU Counseling Center. The counseling center is staffed 8:00 am to 12:00 pm and 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm and can be reached at (517) 355-8270. They can provide advice over the phone to faculty leaders for dealing with situations but cannot provide direct therapy to students over the phone. You can also check the MSU Counseling Center website at for detailed information on referring a distressed student. Additionally, an excellent site called Responding to Distressed Students deals with the steps to take in a wide variety of situations such as depression, anxiety, eating disorders, etc.
   
   The following is a brief summary of the guidelines for interaction and can apply to counseling services abroad:

“Talk to the student in private. Listen carefully. Show concern and interest. Repeat back the essence of what the student has told you. Avoid criticizing or sounding judgmental. Suggest visiting a counseling center and discuss this with the student. If the student resists help and you are still worried, contact a counseling center to discuss your concerns. If you consider the situation to be an emergency, call the local emergency facilities (comparable to 911) and stay with the student. Follow-up with the student by inquiring as to whether he/she kept his/her appointment and how he/she felt about the session.”

4. Your call may also be referred to the University Physician, Dr. Beth Alexander. Please note that urgent medical matters should be dealt with by going to a health care facility in the area where you are traveling. Dr. Alexander has indicated that faculty leaders may e-mail her from abroad to obtain physical or psychological advice.