MILES Committee
Mistreatment Incident and Learning Environment Surveillance

While we completely understand the desire to submit anonymously, we cannot accept completely anonymous submissions. Contact information for the submitter allows the Committee to contact a submitter if the case triggers mandatory reporting (e.g. sexual harassment), if a case is particularly egregious and needs immediate intervention, or if the submitter’s physical or emotional health is in danger.

We know that confidentiality is a major concern that often dissuades students from submitting reports. While we cannot accept anonymous reports, we are taking every step to ensure confidentiality:

1. allowing only the Chair and the assigned committee member to see the identifying information
2. creating a transparent process for those who submit
3. allowing the submitter to direct any follow-up (including delayed follow-up to protect confidentiality)
4. having procedures to ensure that committee members with conflicts of interest or close relationships with students recuse themselves or are otherwise not involved with relevant cases.

In certain circumstances, the committee is obligated to forward reports to other university or government offices. For example, if sexual assault or other sexual misconduct is reported, the committee is legally required to report the allegations to the university’s Office of Institutional Equity. As another example, if child abuse is reported, the Office is legally required to report the allegations to the State of Maryland.

Yes! We encourage submissions of incidents that happened in the past, even several years prior. These submissions will allow up to build a more complete picture about mistreatment at JHUSOM and can inform discussions surrounding future submissions. You may submit these for report-only (no follow-up) if you prefer.

Yes. Multiple reports on the same incident are encouraged if several people have experienced or witnessed the same incident.

This committee was created with the explicit intention of creating a safe and trusted space for students to come and discuss episodes of mistreatment, even seemingly-borderline cases that a student might find troubling. The goal is to take every report seriously and allow the student to process what has happened, coming to his/her own conclusion about what happened and how best to resolve it.

This committee was also created with the idea of due process for the accused very much in mind. The goal of this committee is to emphasize "making amends" and a restorative process to address mistreatment and move toward an environment where everyone feels safe to learn and grow in caring for patients. We definitely understand the concerns about someone being unfairly accused or otherwise punished for something that was a miscommunication or momentary lapse in judgment. The hope is that the majority of these cases can be resolved through informal mechanisms.

All reports are internal to the MILES Committee and thus would not be immediately recorded anywhere in a way that could affect someone accused.

In certain cases, however, it may be necessary for the committee to report an incident to the Program Director, Department Chair, or another person supervising the accused in order to move forward toward resolution. Egregious cases may lead the Committee to recommend that the accused be removed from roles teaching or supervising trainees.