To maintain status as a National Health Service Corps (NHSC)-approved site, your site must meet all site requirements. This also applies to auto-approved NHSC sites.
How to Meet NHSC Site Requirements
In addition to the NHSC Site Agreement (PDF - 1.1 MB), your site must meet a set of requirements, as listed in the Site Reference Guide (PDF - 1.1 MB).
Below is a summary of those requirements:
Use the BHW Customer Service Portal
- Activate and maintain a Bureau of Health Workforce (BHW) Customer Service Portal account.
- Portal account creation is a two-step process.
- Your account becomes active only after you respond to an email prompt from our system.
- Must have at least two NHSC points of contact (unless a solo private practice.)
- At least one person must serve in each of the following NHSC roles:
- Administrator
- Personnel Verifier
- Recruiter
- One point of contact can have multiple roles.
- NHSC participants should not be a point of contact.
- Update your role periodically
- Select My Program Portal Profile within the Need Assistance section.
- Create a site profile on the BHW Customer Service Portal
- Your site profile will then display on the Health Workforce Connector.
- Contact us if there are any changes to your site including:
- NHSC points of contact
- Location
- Ownership
- Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) score
Display NHSC Materials
- Continue to display:
- NHSC tabletop sign (PDF - 289 KB) or NHSC tabletop sign (small) (PDF - 238 KB)
- Site policy poster - English (PDF - 78 KB)
- Download site policy posters in other languages:
- Site Policy Poster - Arabic (PDF - 1.36 MB)
- Site Policy Poster - Chinese (PDF - 748 KB)
- Site Policy Poster - Spanish (PDF - 321 KB)
- Site Policy Poster - Tagalog (PDF - 627 KB)
- Site Policy Poster - Vietnamese (PDF - 818 KB)
- Site Policy Poster - Korean (PDF - 652 KB)
Maintain the Sliding Fee Discount Program
- Continue to maintain the NHSC Sliding Fee Discount Program (PDF - 878 KB).
Participate in Site Visits
- Participate in a site visit from the Division of Regional Operations (DRO) or the State Primary Care Office.
- Find out what to expect from site visits.
Apply for Recertification
- Submit an NHSC Site Recertification Application every three years (not necessary for eligible auto-approved NHSC sites).
Report on Site Data
- Submit six months of data about your site through our Site Data Tables (PDF - 1.1 MB) form.
- You will need to do this prior to a site visit or as part of your recertification application.
- The Site Data Tables are available for direct entry online in the recertification application.
- Site Data Table submission does not apply to some eligible auto-approved NHSC sites.
We recommend continuously collecting and tracking data so you are always prepared.
Provide Support
- Support NHSC clinicians
How to Support NHSC Clinicians
NHSC clinicians enter into a contractual agreement with us. As a site, we ask that you allow them the opportunity to fulfill this agreement.
Specifically, we expect you to support NHSC clinicians in the following ways:
Obtain Site Approval
- Be sure your site receives NHSC approval prior to a clinician applying for one of our NHSC programs.
Follow Administrative Guidelines
- Ensure NHSC clinicians:
- Work at NHSC-approved and HPSA appropriate sites.
- Understand the minimum HPSA score necessary for placement at an NHSC site.
- Follow the minimum hourly and weekly NHSC clinical service requirements.
- The employment contract between your site and your NHSC participant(s) may require additional work hours.
- Can participate in NHSC Continuing Education and NHSC program webinars and/or conferences.
- Receive appropriate supervision, as well as needed orientation, training and mentorship regarding your site’s processes and procedures, client population, and primary care practice.
- Make their personnel documents, communications, and/or practice related documents available for review.
Complete Employment Verification
- Complete NHSC Employment Verification Forms (EVF) through the BHW Customer Service Portal for all NHSC sites.
- Fill out an EVF if you terminate a clinician or they wish to transfer to another NHSC-approved site. Include the following:
- The date in which the clinician last saw patients
- Last day of at your site
- Clinical competency issues while at your site
- Any disciplinary action while at your site
- Upon approval of the transfer request, you are responsible for reviewing and confirming the clinician’s reported leave for the period of time that they were employed at your site.
- Fill out an EVF if you terminate a clinician or they wish to transfer to another NHSC-approved site. Include the following:
Report In-Service Verification
- Report their leave on the In-Service Verification forms (ISV).
- They may not spend more than seven weeks a year (35 full-time or 35 half-time workdays) away from clinical practice with the NHSC.
- Verify and report any time away from the site (e.g., vacation, holidays, continuing professional education, or illness).
- Complete an ISV for active clinicians every six months through the BHW Customer Service Portal.
What are NHSC clinicians’ service requirements?
To maintain a successful partnership with your NHSC clinicians, you need to understand their clinical service requirements.
Review
- NHSC Loan Repayment Program Application and Program Guidance (PDF - 762 KB)
- NHSC Substance Use Disorder Loan Repayment Program Application Program Guidance (PDF - 659 KB)
- NHSC Rural Community Loan Repayment Program Application Program Guidance (PDF - 653 KB)
- NHSC Students to Service Loan Repayment Program Application and Program Guidance (PDF - 668 KB)
- NHSC Scholarship Program Application and Program Guidance* (PDF - 635 KB)
How many hours must participants serve?
Full-time service: clinicians must work a minimum of 40 hours per week in a clinical practice, for a minimum of 45 weeks per service year.
- The 40 hours per week should be compressed into no fewer than four days per week, with no more than 12 hours of work performed in any 24-hour period.
Half-time service: clinicians must work a minimum of 20 hours and a maximum of 39 hours per week in a clinical practice, for a minimum of 45 weeks per service year.
- The 20 hours per week should be compressed into no fewer than two days per week, with no more than 12 hours of work performed in any 24-hour period.
*If you use assistive technology, you may not be able to access information in these files. For help, contact us at 800-221-9393.