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medical education
The education of medical students at Temple University School of Medicine includes a solid foundation in the fundamentals of basic and clinical science. The first two years are taught in an integrated approach, closely tying basic science concepts to clinical medicine, professionalism and medical ethics. The clinical years are marked by extensive hands-on experience in caring for patients. The new Institute for Clinical Simulation and Patient Safety allows students to learn basic clinical skills in a safe learning environment throughout the curriculum. Thus, graduates are exceptionally well prepared to pursue residency training.
The major goal of Year 1 is normal structure, function and development. The year is divided into six blocks:
A doctoring course, to run throughout the curriculum, will enable students to learn the basics of history-taking, physical exam skills and professionalism. The course uses clinical cases to integrate the teaching and evaluation of clinical skills with the basic science concepts in each of the blocks, and utilizes the Institute for Clinical Simulation and Patient Safety to aid learning through interactive clinical scenarios. Faculty preceptors will provide individualized mentoring and career advising.
Year 2 focuses on the causes, mechanisms, identification and treatment of major human diseases. The second year is divided into 10 blocks:
The Doctoring course will enable students to practice and improve their clinical skills through closely supervised rotations in both ambulatory and hospital settings.
During Year 3, beginning in late May of the second year, students rotate through core clerkships in:
The third year Doctoring course emphasizes career advising, evidence-based medicine and clinical decision-making.
In Year 4, beginning in May, students can focus on areas of interest through a large variety of electives, and enhance their clinical skills through two sub-internships, Surgical Subspecialties, Intensive Care and Radiology. For a diagrammatic look at the curriculum, click HERE. (This should lead to curriculum diagrams)
The curriculum at Temple University School of Medicine is structured to insure that students acquire the knowledge, skills and attributes essential for the medical profession. Those objectives are divided into Behavioral, Knowledge-based, and Clinical Objectives.
I. Behavioral Objectives
Physicians must be compassionate and empathic in caring for patients, and must be trustworthy and truthful in all of their professional dealings. They must bring to the study and practice of medicine those character traits, attitudes, and values that underpin ethical and beneficent medical care. They must understand the history of medicine, the nature of medicine's social compact, the ethical precepts of the medical profession, and their obligations under the law. At all times they must act with integrity, honesty, and respect for patients' privacy and dignity. In all of their interactions with patients they must seek to understand the meaning of the patients' concerns in the context of the patients' beliefs and cultural values. They must avoid being judgmental when the patients' beliefs and values conflict with their own. They must be advocates for improving access to care for everyone, especially those who are members of underserved populations.
Upon graduation from Temple University School of Medicine, a student will have demonstrated, to the satisfaction of the faculty, the following behavioral objectives:
a) Knowledge of the theories and principles that govern ethical decision making, and of the major ethical dilemmas in medicine, particularly those that arise at the beginning and end of life and those that arise from the rapid expansion of the knowledge of genetics;
b) Compassionate treatment of patients, and respect for their privacy and dignity;
c) Honesty and integrity when interacting with patients' families, colleagues, and others with whom physicians interact in their professional lives;
d) A commitment to advocate for the interests of one's patients and promote the health of the public;
e) An ability to sympathetically recognize the spiritual issues which may affect individual patients and their families;
f) The ability to recognize the cultural differences and belief systems of diverse peoples and how these influence their health and perceptions of well-being;
g) The ability to recognize the roles of other health care professionals and the need to collaborate with others in caring for individual patients and promoting the health of the public;
h) The ability to recognize the potential conflicts of interest inherent in various financial and organizational arrangements for the practice of medicine;
i) A sensitivity to the needs of patients who are unable to pay and to advocate for access to health care for members of underserved populations;
j) The ability to recognize patients suffering from the effects of violence (e.g., domestic, gang, media), both physical and psychological, and to institute appropriate measures;
k) The ability to recognize patients with major functional disabilities.
II. Knowledge-Based Objectives
Physicians must understand the scientific basis of medicine and be able to apply that understanding to the practice of medicine. They must have sufficient knowledge of the structure and function of the human body (both female and male, old and young) as an intact organism and its major organ systems. They must understand the molecular, cellular, and biochemical mechanisms that maintain the body's homeostasis in order to comprehend disease and to wisely incorporate modern diagnostic and therapeutic modalities in their practices. They must be knowledgeable about the risk factors for disease and injury, must understand how to utilize disease and injury prevention practices in the care of individual patients, must promote healthy behaviors through counseling individual patients and their families, and public education and action. They must understand the economic, psychological, occupational, social, gender-related, and cultural factors that contribute to the development and/or perpetuation of conditions that impair health. They must be sufficiently knowledgeable about both traditional and non-traditional modes of care to provide intelligent guidance to their patients. They must engage in lifelong learning to remain current in their understanding of the scientific basis of medicine.
Upon graduation from Temple University School of Medicine a student will have demonstrated, to the satisfaction of the faculty, the following knowledge-based objectives:
a) Knowledge of the normal structure and function of the human body as a whole and of each of its major organ systems;
b) Knowledge of the molecular, biochemical, and cellular mechanisms that are important in maintaining the body's homeostasis;
c) Knowledge of the various causes (genetic, developmental, metabolic, toxic, microbiologic, immunologic, neoplastic, degenerative, psychological, and traumatic) of maladies and the ways in which they operate on the body (pathogenesis);
d) Knowledge of the altered structure and function (pathology and pathophysiology) of the body and its major organ systems that occur in various diseases and conditions;
e) Knowledge of the basic mechanics of pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic modalities employed in the treatment of disease and amelioration of pain and suffering;
f) Knowledge of the various types of family planning and their potential impact on the patient, the family and the public;
g) Knowledge of the important non-biological determinants of poor health such as the economic, psychological, social, and cultural factors that contribute to the development and/or continuation of illness;
h) Knowledge of the epidemiology of common illnesses within a defined population, and the systematic approaches useful in reducing the incidence and prevalence of those illnesses;
i) Knowledge of various approaches to the organization, financing, and delivery of health care;
j) Knowledge of the forms and value of complementary medicine as employed in the treatment of disease;
k) Knowledge of the physical and psychological aspects of aging and dying and a commitment to support and appropriately counsel patients and their families;
l) The ability to recognize the importance of the scientific method in establishing the causation of disease and therapeutic efficacy of treatment;
m) The ability to recognize how factors such as age, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, functional limitations, and socioeconomic status influence health and perceptions of well-being;
n) Recognition of the need to engage in lifelong learning to stay abreast of the scientific advances relevant to the practice of medicine;
o) The ability to recognize the impact of chronic disease and disability on a patient’s ability to function in society;
p) Knowledge of and the ability to apply the principles and methodologies of medical informatics, including computer-based decision support information, the resources to aid in problem solving, patient information retrieval, life-long education and cost management (see Addendum for expanded explanation);
III. Clinical Objectives
Physicians must use systematic approaches for promoting, maintaining, and improving the health of individuals and populations. They must be able to obtain from their patients an accurate medical history that contains all relevant information; to perform in a highly skilled manner a complete and a focused physical examination; to perform skillfully those diagnostic procedures warranted by their patients' conditions and for which they have been trained; to obtain, properly interpret and manage information from laboratory and imaging studies that relate to the patients' conditions; and seek consultation from other physicians and other health professionals when indicated. They must understand the etiology, the pathogenesis, the clinical, laboratory, diagnostic imaging, and pathologic manifestations of the diseases or conditions they are likely to encounter in the practice of their specialty. They also must understand the scientific basis and evidence of effectiveness for each of the therapeutic options that are available for patients at different times in the course of their disease and be prepared to discuss those options with patients in an honest and objective fashion. Our graduates must be able to communicate with patients and their families about all of their concerns regarding the patients' health and well-being. In caring for individual patients, they must apply the principles of evidence-based medicine and cost-effectiveness in making decisions about the utilization of limited medical resources.
Upon graduation from Temple University School of Medicine, a student will have demonstrated, to the satisfaction of the faculty, the following clinical objectives:
a) Knowledge of the most frequent clinical, laboratory, and diagnostic imaging manifestations of common maladies;
b) The ability to obtain an accurate medical history that covers its essential aspects, including issues related to age, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, functional limitations, and socioeconomic status;
c) The ability to perform both a complete and an organ system specific examination, including a mental status examination and functional assessment;
d) The ability to perform routine technical procedures including, at a minimum, venipuncture, inserting an intravenous catheter, arterial puncture, inserting a nasogastric tube, inserting a foley catheter, suturing lacerations, and CPR;
e) The ability to interpret the results of commonly used diagnostic procedures;
f) The ability to reason deductively in solving clinical problems;
g) The ability to construct appropriate management strategies (both diagnostic and therapeutic) for patients with common conditions, both acute and chronic, including medical, psychiatric, and surgical conditions, and those requiring short- and long-term rehabilitation;
h) The ability to recognize patients with immediately life threatening cardiac, pulmonary or neurological conditions regardless of etiology, and to institute appropriate measures;
i) The ability to outline an initial course of management for patients with serious conditions requiring critical care;
j) The ability to communicate effectively, both orally and in writing, with patients, patients' families, colleagues, and others with whom physicians exchange information in carrying out their responsibilities;
k) The ability to identify risk factors for disease (e.g., breast cancer or stroke), or injury (e.g., domestic violence, falls in the elderly, sports related injury), and to determine strategies for responding appropriately, including the selection of tests for early disease detection;
l) The ability to retrieve, manage, and utilize biomedical information from electronic databases and other resources, for solving problems and making decisions.
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