Health and Safety Requirements

Background Checks

All students registered for a clinical course, or a course with a professional practice experience involving the care of minors, will need to submit to a Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI) background check and a Sex Offender Record Information (SORI) background check prior to the start of the course. Students may be required to undergo additional background checks, in accordance with affiliation agreements between the College and sites to which they are assigned. You will receive information about this either at Accepted Students Day or via email when this needs to be completed.

Student Health Requirements

Part 1 - College Immunization Requirements

Once registered for any class at the College, on-campus or online, in order to be in compliance with state and College health and safety standards, students must meet a set of health requirements. All students must submit the following documentation according to the student’s department or program policy.

MMR vaccine (Measles, Mumps, Rubella): Two doses (minimum of twenty-eight days apart) or Measles, Mumps, AND Rubella titers (all results have to be positive)
Varicella vaccine (Chicken Pox): Two doses (minimum of four weeks apart) or Varicella titer (result has to be positive). A history of Chicken Pox is not accepted.
Hepatitis B vaccine: Completion of two or three dose series, or Hepatitis titer (surface antibody [anti-HBs] result has to be positive)
Tdap vaccine (Tetanus, Diphtheria, Pertussis): within past ten years; every ten years
The COVID-19 Vaccine is required for students who are on-campus or at a clinical site.
- For Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, 2 doses are required
- For Johnson & Johnson vaccine, 1 dose is required

For non-clinical enrollment, the College allows students to request a declination waiver for medical or religious reasons which will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. The waiver form - titled HSR Waiver - can be found on my.laboure.edu under the Downloadable Forms tab, or by emailing healthandsafetyrecords@laboure.edu.

Part 2 - Clinical Course and Professional Practice Experience Health Requirements

All students registered for a clinical are required to submit to CastleBranch evidence of compliance with the immunization requirements specified by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health in accordance with the Center for Disease Control - you can view the requirements online. The College will send students an email invitation to CastleBranch once they are registered for classes; CastleBranch will also follow up with a direct email invitation.

The following documentation must be submitted by August 1 (Fall); December 1 (Spring); April 1 (Summer session I and II):

Influenza vaccine: yearly, and as soon as available, during the annual flu season (early fall through early spring). The College will announce a deadline. There may be additional flu shot deadlines in accordance with the College’s affiliation agreements. Students may decline the flu shot in writing annually. Some affiliate sites may not admit a student who has not received a flu shot, while others will require personal protective equipment (e.g., mask) to be worn, or other measures to be taken.
PPD (Tuberculosis Skin Test): within past year; every year, or - if PPD is positive: chest x-ray every five years and Annual TB Symptom Review Form
CPR Certification: Submit a copy of the card (front and back) and current certification. The only approved course is the “American Heart Association, Healthcare (BLS) Provider." CPR courses are scheduled each semester. Students are encouraged to look to the Student Newsletter for information on exact dates and times.
COVID 19 Vaccination: None of our clinical affiliates have approved students who have requested and were approved for a religious waiver with regard to receiving the COVID-19 vaccination or booster. Additionally, many sites have only been accepting specific medical waivers, depending on the reasoning provided by the student's medical doctor. Most clinical sites also require the Bivalent booster in addition to the vaccination, provided a student is within the timeline to receive the booster. For questions on the vaccination requirement, please email healthandsafetyrecords@laboure.edu.

Please understand that clinical sites are not accepting any waiver requests. Therefore, students will be administratively withdrawn as sites cannot be secured.

All Nursing, Respiratory Care, Radiation Therapy, NDT, IONM, and Phlebotomy students will use the MyCB platform within CastleBranch to upload all required health documentation as well as complete all required responses. When documentation is missing, incomplete, or in need of updating, the student receives email alerts. College health records staff in conjunction with the Division of Nursing or Division of Arts and Health Sciences leadership will refer to MyCB data to determine whether a student has demonstrated compliance with all requirements to attend clinical. The College does not accept or maintain any hard copies of health records, nor review any records for compliance. Submission of medical records via email does not fulfill requirements for Nursing, Respiratory Care, Radiation Therapy, NDT, IONM, and Phlebotomy students.

Students registered for courses with a professional practice experience must submit documentation according to their department or program policy by August 1 (Fall); December 1 (Spring); April 1 (Summer session I and Il).

Additional health clearance steps may be required of students, in accordance with affiliation agreements (e.g., physical exam, two-step PPD, drug testing, fingerprinting).

Part 3 - Health Compliance Deadlines

Massachusetts Department of Public Health (105 CMR 220.000) requires students to provide evidence of necessary immunizations within thirty days of registering for courses or clinicals.

A “Registration Hold” will be placed on accounts of returning students who are not compliant with health and safety requirements. Students will be unable to register with a Registration Hold. Throughout the calendar year, students enrolled in courses with expired health requirements (e.g., PPD, Tdap, chest x-ray, Annual TB Symptom Review Form, CPR) will not be permitted to attend class, lab, clinical, or professional practice experience until the proper documentation is submitted. Absence from class, lab, clinical, or professional practice experience may result in course withdrawal or failure.

Part 4 - General Student Health Policy

Students engage in proper health maintenance activities so as to function safely and effectively in the class, lab, clinical, or professional practice experience. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advises students to stay home if they are sick. Students should stay at home until at least twenty-four hours after their symptoms have disappeared.

In the event that a student develops a health condition or illness that results in time away from class, lab, clinical, or professional practice experience, or if their condition warrants dismissal, the following shall occur at the discretion of the Divisional Chairperson or Dean, Clinical and Compliance Director, and/or the Vice President of Academic and Student Affairs. The student will be required to submit a health clearance letter from their healthcare provider (MD, DO, NP, PA-C) that states the student “may return with ‘no restrictions’ to class, lab, clinical, or professional practice experience.”

A student who is pregnant has the option to disclose but is highly encouraged to notify their immediate faculty members so they can best provide all options and resources available at the college. To ensure safety, the student is encouraged to meet with the Title IX Coordinator to understand all of their options and available resources. Students who are pregnant are supported by Title IX, and can review the Title IX section. Students who meet with Student Affairs should understand that their conversation will be confidential.

Please contact the Student Affairs Title IX Coordinator at 617-322-3506 to set up an appointment.