Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

Creighton University School of Medicine

2010; Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; Volume: 85; Linguagem: Inglês

10.1097/acm.0b013e3181e9362b

1938-808X

Thomas J. Hansen, Kathryn N. Huggett,

Health and Medical Research Impacts

Curriculum Management and Governance Structure ♦ The Educational Policy Committee (EPC) establishes all significant curricular policies (Figure 1).FIGURE 1:: Educational Management Structure♦ The EPC defines and revises the goals, objectives, structure, and content of the undergraduate medical curriculum. In fulfillment of these responsibilities, it is charged with approving the creation or removal of courses from the educational program, determining the duration and order of courses, appointing course directors, analyzing and distributing data from the Evaluation Committee, and formulating educational policies. ♦ The EPC consists of the following 15 voting members: six appointed faculty members (three basic sciences and three clinical), four elected students (one from each component), the four Component Directors, and the Associate Dean for Medical Education, who also serves as chair. ♦ In addition, the following serve as ex officio, nonvoting members: the Dean of the School of Medicine, the Associate Dean for Student Affairs, the Assistant Deans for Medical Education, the Director of the Bioinformation Center, and the Chair of the Evaluation Committee. Faculty committee members are appointed by the Dean of the School of Medicine, based on their educational experience and the need for balance among disciplines. The committee meets once per month. ♦ The Medical Education Management Team (MEMT) meets twice monthly to prioritize EPC agenda items, monitor overall compliance with educational goals and objectives, and provide guidance to the Administration regarding policies and procedures. ♦ The Medical Education Management Team is composed of the Associate and Assistant Deans for Medical Education, the Component Directors, along with the Director of Medical Education Development and Assessment and the Associate Dean for Student Affairs. ♦ The Evaluation Committee is responsible for the evaluation of all courses and clerkships and reports to the EPC. ♦ The Evaluation Committee is composed of four faculty (two basic sciences and two clinical), two students (one each from the third and fourth years), the Director of Medical Education Development and Assessment, and the evaluation staff. The Evaluation Committee meets monthly. ♦ The Associate Dean for Medical Education is the chief education officer for the medical education program. Each of the four Component Directors oversees the day-to-day management of the educational program and directs Component Committees (composed of Course/Clerkship Directors and two student representatives from a given year of the curriculum). ♦ The Component Committees regularly review course/clerkship content and grading practices, develop componentwide evaluation and grading policies, and monitor content omissions and redundancies. Course and clerkship faculty are made aware of schoolwide policies on curriculum through the Course/Clerkship Director, who sits on the Component Committee. ♦ The education mission is supported administratively by the Office of Medical Education, particularly for Components 1 and 2, and from the academic departments in Components 3 and 4. Office of Medical Education ♦ The Office of Medical Education (OME) facilitates medical student education by providing educational support and services to faculty and students and by managing and coordinating the curriculum. ♦ The OME consists of two full-time faculty—the Associate Dean for Medical Education and the Director of Medical Education Development and Assessment. In addition, there are four Component Directors (faculty) and two Assistant Deans for Medical Education (faculty). ♦ The OME also includes Medical and Education Directors for the Clinical Assessment Center (CAC) and staff to support curriculum, technology, evaluation, and educational research activities. ♦ Areas of responsibility for the Office of Medical Education include management of the medical curriculum, student testing, preparation of student learning materials, curriculum and program evaluation, academic computing, faculty development for teaching, assessment of clinical skills, medical education research and consultation, strategic planning for education, support for medical education committees, preparation and maintenance of educational data and reports, management of medical education space, and oversight of LCME compliance. Financial Management of Educational Programs ♦ Creighton University, like all universities, has felt the impact of the current financial crises. ♦ Despite this, our tuition increases have been minimal, new scholarship opportunities have been found, and the School of Medicine is in better shape financially now than it was before the current recession began. Valuing Teaching ♦ All faculty, and new faculty in particular, are invited to participate in the annual Summer Initiative for Teaching Excellence (SITE), a two-day, intensive workshop to improve teaching, assessment, and educational scholarship. Participants continue to meet throughout the following year to discuss effective teaching strategies and complete a scholarly project related to their teaching. ♦ The promotion and tenure process now recognizes a Clinician–Educator category as an additional option for career advancement. Evaluation of the candidate's performance by the School of Medicine and subsequently by the University Rank and Tenure Committee specifically includes the evaluation of teaching achievement, which plays a central and critical role in tenure and advancement in rank. ♦ A Dedicated Teacher Award is presented annually by the School of Medicine ♦ Golden Apple awards are presented annually by medical students to faculty members and residents for excellence in teaching and dedication to patient care Curriculum Renewal Process ♦ A new curriculum was implemented in 1996, and 2000 marked the graduation of the first class to complete the curriculum. ♦ Ongoing curriculum renewal has resulted in enhancement of the following courses or content areas: interviewing skills physical examination skills ethical and legal topics in medicine behavioral medicine ♦ To ensure the success of the new curriculum and ongoing curriculum revisions, additional resources were identified to add administrative and support staff; expand the operations of the Clinical Assessment Center (CAC); promote faculty development; renovate dedicated space to create additional small-group rooms, student space, and wellness areas; provide new computer resources; and provide wireless Internet access in learning, wellness, and student activity areas. Learning Outcomes/Competencies ♦ The school's official curriculum document, “The Creighton Medical Curriculum,” contains goals for the curriculum and student learning objectives. The document is available online: http://med-docs.creighton.edu/Administration/docs/CUMedicalCurri.pdf. New Topics in the Curriculum Since 2000 ♦ The medicine, pediatrics, and surgery clerkships use simulation to teach clinical skills and reinforce instruction for medical knowledge and clinical reasoning. ♦ An interclerkship course, Dimensions of Clinical Medicine, was introduced in 2002-03 to present clinically relevant interdisciplinary content to third-year students. Modules are offered at the midpoint of each clerkship period. Examples of topics addressed since 2000 include the following: complementary and alternative medicine end-of-life care and spirituality bioterrorism methamphetamine use and dependence ♦ Prescription Drug Abuse was added to the curriculum for the Ambulatory Primary-Care clerkship in 2009. ♦ Clinical Reasoning was added to the Applied Clinical Skills small group sessions ♦ Sleep Disorders were added to the Behavioral Medicine III course ♦ Nutrition coverage was expanded throughout the Component II curriculum Changes in Pedagogy ♦ The faculty at our medical school continue to reduce the amount of lecture time and increase time for active learning. For example, Component II lectures were restricted to mornings only, with a maximum of four lectures per day. Student course evaluations provided positive feedback about this change, and course performance was not affected negatively. ♦ Case-based learning and team-based learning have been implemented in pre-clinical courses. ♦ Radiology faculty lead CT sessions in the Gross Anatomy course. ♦ Increased time is devoted to hands-on learning for physical examination skills. ♦ Simulation is used primarily in clinical clerkships, and faculty are developing methods to compare the effectiveness of simulation with traditional teaching methods. ♦ Neurology Grand Rounds are conducted in the first-year Neuroscience course. ♦ Experiential learning (examples include a nutritional assessment activity and site visits at local agencies that serve underserved or socially marginalized populations) occurs in preclinical courses. ♦ Podcasts of heart sounds are used to promote the development of listening and identification skills. ♦ Podcasts of lectures and other lecture materials are available online. ♦ Online computer exercises and examinations are used throughout the curriculum. ♦ An online course and curriculum management system is used to manage academic calendars and course materials and facilitate the exchange of small group assignments. ♦ Changes in pedagogy are assessed during the curriculum evaluation process. ♦ Faculty involved in the design and implementation of new pedagogy are encouraged to conduct scholarly investigations of their educational innovations. ♦ Lecture Capture is available in primary lecture halls and classrooms. Changes in Assessment ♦ Students are assessed in cognitive, affective, and psychomotor domains, with an emphasis on formative evaluation throughout the course or clerkship, providing frequent feedback to the students. ♦ OSCEs are used in Components 1–3. ♦ The Junior Clinical Competency Examination (JCX), a required summative assessment, was enhanced to promote assessment of medical knowledge, communication, and professionalism competencies. ♦ Personal Response Systems (clickers) are used for in-class, formative assessment. ♦ Digital video recording is used for formative assessment of interviewing skills. ♦ Interactive Study Supplements were developed using SoftChalk, the Web-based authoring tool that allows users to create and edit interactive content for eLearning. ♦ Multimedia (typically audio files) files are used in computer-based assessment. ♦ Computer-based assessment is used for quizzes and examinations. Clinical Experiences ♦ Student learning occurs at multiple clinical sites: Creighton University Medical Center, Omaha, Nebraska Omaha VA Medical Center, Omaha, Nebraska Children's Hospital and Medical Center, Omaha, Nebraska Alegent Health Hospitals, Omaha, Nebraska St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center, Phoenix, Arizona St. Mary's Medical Center, San Francisco, California Rural primary care sites International clinical sites ♦ There are two primary challenges related to students' clinical education: ensuring comparability of learning and assessment at multiple sites recognizing faculty contributions to the teaching mission Regional Campus ♦ Beginning in fall 2010 Creighton will offer students two primary clinical campuses: Creighton University Medical Center and our new campus Creighton University School of Medicine at St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center in Phoenix, Arizona. ♦ Both are outstanding facilities with long-standing histories of educating both medical students and residents. ♦ The Creighton campus in Phoenix is the only Catholic medical school campus located west of Omaha. Highlights of the Program/School ♦ The Institute for Latin American Concern (ILAC). Founded by Creighton, ILAC is a real-world demonstration of service to others. Every summer, Creighton health sciences students and faculty provide hands-on health care and community service to the citizens of the Dominican Republic. ♦ Magis Clinic. Creighton medical students founded the Magis Clinic in Omaha to provide medical services to residents in the Omaha area who are homeless or underserved. The Magis Clinic provides acute care, physical examinations, mental health care, immunization clinics, laboratory services, and referral services at no charge to those in need. ♦ Project CURA. Project CURA has been involved in health education through health screenings, health and science fairs, and other projects within the Omaha community, on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, and internationally in South America, Asia, and India. ♦ Vital Signs Mentoring Program. The Vital Signs Mentoring Program incorporates ethical principles and philosophy into training and prepares students for clinical practice. The program allows students to learn from fellow students, faculty, and alumni physicians and emphasizes the value of maintaining balance and a healthy lifestyle.