Hundreds of practicing physicians, nurses and pharmacists in Hawaiʻi are volunteer professors in their fields. They donate their time and expertise to help train the next generation of health workers studying at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa John A. Burns School of Medicine (JABSOM) and School of Nursing and Dental Hygiene, and UH Hilo’s Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy.
In clinics and in their offices statewide, these dedicated health workers—many of whom are UH alumni—allow future doctors, advanced practice nurses and pharmacists to learn first-hand from experienced professionals while they are “on the job.”
On June 13, a new law was signed to allow these vital volunteer professors, called “preceptors,” to receive an annual tax credit of up to $5,000 per year in recognition of their longstanding service to the state.
“The health preceptor tax credit will enable more students to go into pharmacy school, nursing school and medical school because they’ll have the professionals, the volunteer professionals, to help them at the end of their journey,” said Senator Roz Baker, chair of the state Senate’s Commerce, Consumer Protection and Health Committee, referring to the clinical training years of medical school, and post-graduate training of medical residents.
JABSOM relies on more than 1,200 volunteer clinical faculty, and Dean Jerris Hedges said the Hawaiʻi law may be unique in extending the tax credit benefit to those training advanced practice nurses and pharmacists.
“That is forward-looking, actually, because increasingly our community-based clinical training involves interdisciplinary teams of health providers,” said Hedges.
The tax credit applies to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2018.
See the full story on the JABSOM website.
—By Tina Shelton
