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Resident Eligibility, Roles and Responsibilities

Resident Eligibility Requirements

A person is eligible to register for an NCOPE accredited residency program when the following requirements are met:

  • Completion of a CAAHEP accredited orthotist/prosthetist program at the master’s degree level of higher.
    • Persons trained outside of the United States may be eligible to register if they hold a master’s level degree or higher in orthotics and prosthetics based upon evaluation by the World Education Service (WES).
      • For additional information on individuals trained at an international O&P school, please visit: <Insert Foreign Trained Link> 

Resident Responsibilities:

NCOPE Residents have specific responsibilities, which are identified in the Standards of Accreditation for the Orthotic/Prosthetic Residency Program and the NCOPE Policies and Procedures Manual. The Resident assumes these responsibilities which include the following prior to and during their residency:

1. Complete a Master's Level CAAHEP Accredited Orthotist/Prosthetist Education Program
  • Internationally educated orthotists/prosthetists must submit their transcripts via the World Education Service (WES) Education Evaluation.  The evaluation must clearly identify that a master’s degree or higher in orthotics and prosthetics was awarded.

Late submissions may incur a change in the start and end dates of the residency program.

2. Submit the NCOPE Resident Registration Form a minimum of 2 weeks prior to the residency start date.
  • Resident Registration Form: Resident Registration Form
  • Registered residents must submit no later than 30 days after the first day of their residency:
    • A sealed official copy of their Orthotic & Prosthetic Master’s degree transcripts OR
    • An electronic transcript generated by the academic program’s registrar to info@ncope.org
  • Internationally trained orthotists/prosthetists must submit their transcripts via the World Education Service (WES) Education Evaluation.

Late submissions may incur a change in the start and end dates of the residency program.

3. Participate in patient care, under supervision, commensurate with his/her level of advancement and responsibility and adhere to policies and procedures of the residency site.
  • Patient care provided by the resident and the mentor must be consistent with current clinical care guidelines and accepted standards of practice which are established through accreditation of the practice.
  • The resident must be given progressively increasing responsibility in the delivery of patient
    care services based upon demonstrated clinical competence.
4. Maintain comprehensive procedure logs using NCOPE Tracker.
  • All patient interactions equal to or greater than 15 minutes in duration must be logged over the entire duration of the residency.
  • Case entries must be performed no more than 2 weeks after the patient interaction occurs.
  • All fields are required with the exception of:
    • Outcome Measures
    • Patient Goals

The above 2 fields only need to be completed when it is part of the patient encounter.

5. Submit quarterly documentation within 30 days of the end of each quarter.
  • The following forms can be submitted using NCOPE Tracker
    • Quarterly Evaluation of the Residency Program / Case Log Audit
    • Quarterly Evaluation of the Mentor
    • Research Track Directed Study Update – Research & Development Track Residents
    • Clinical Track Quarterly Activity – Clinical Track Residents
7. Submit the following documentation at the designated time frames.
  • The following forms can be submitted using NCOPE Tracker
    • NCOPE/CAAHEP Education Program Graduate Survey – Any time during the residency
    • Final Evaluation of the Residency Program – Within 2 weeks of the end of the residency
    • Research Track Directed Study Final Submission Form – Upon approval of the final directed study project