B]got this from the new deans letter... hope this help with those who are unsure about the new curriculum...
THE DEANS LETTER: A
regular communication to faculty, students, and staff of the School of Medicine from Dean Thomas J. Lawley, MD.
[/B]
MARCH 2007
Whats happening with the new curriculum
We are well on our way to fleshing out the details of the four phases of our new medical curriculum, "Becoming a Doctor," which goes live with this falls entering class of students. Led by Drs. Jeff Sands (Medicine) and Gordon Churchward (Microbiology/Immunology), the committee in charge of the first phase, Foundations of Medicine, has finalized a schedule for this classs first 18 months of training. During this phase, students will learn the fundamentals of science within a clinical context, beginning with normal human function and proceeding to month-long blocks based on organ systems, interweaving the normal and abnormal. The Foundations phase continues with what has become a favorite of entering students, "Week on the Wards," in which students in their third week of medical school are assigned to either a hospital or clinic team. The Foundations phase will introduce students to medical interviewing and the physical exam, a process that will be catalyzed by a new 16-room suite in the new building for observed standardized clinical exam (OSCE). A new outpatient experience, including mentorship in a primary care clinic every other week for the remainder of the Foundations phase, is a critical element of the new curriculum. Additionally, the curriculum will expose students to the pressing and common problems of homelessness, health disparities, violence, and abuse that force them to focus on patients as human beings, rather than embodiments of disease.
Most important, these students will learn from constant interaction with faculty. Currently divided into four "societies," classes now will be further subdivided into groups of eight to 10 students, with a faculty mentor to remain with each subgroup throughout the four phases of their training. "Our goal," says Dr. William Eley, a major architect of the curriculum overhaul, "is to put students in touch with faculty as much as possible. It is relatively easy to fill these exceptionally bright minds with current scientific facts, but our hope is that the closer the students are to faculty, the more likely they are to model the behaviors of academic scientists and physicians. We want Emory graduates to remain inquisitive and continually learn. They will have to learn the facts, but we will strive to teach them those general concepts and precepts that define the excellent physician. To accomplish this goal, they must be present at the bench and bedside of our faculty."
During the second phase of the new curriculum, Applications of Medical Science, students will be immersed increasingly in clinical experiences at the myriad health care facilities with Emory Healthcare, at Grady Memorial Hospital, and at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center, again with intense faculty mentoring. This phase is analogous to the traditional third clinical year in the old curriculum.
Work on the third phase, Discovery, is ongoing. Here, students will pursue clinical and basic science research for at least five months but with an opportunity to expand this time so as to complete joint MD/PhD, MD/MPH, MD/MBA, or other degrees.
This summer, faculty will work out the fourth and final phase of study, Translation of Medical Sciences, which will include sub-internships in key areas, electives in others, and two new required months: an intensive care unit month, which will provide important training to care for the critically ill and to revisit basic science principles; and a "capstone" course to serve as a final month of integration, updates, and preparation for becoming an MD.
I am deeply grateful for the work of the faculty in bringing these plans to fruition. Please feel free to contact Dr. Eley either in person at 309 WHSCAB, by phone (404-712-9979) or by email ([email protected]) with any ideas or comments you may have about our groundbreaking new curriculum.
