2013 Poster Session Summaries - AAMC

2013 OSR Annual Meeting Poster Sessions Participants
1. Association of American Medical Colleges – Careers in Medicine
2. Albany Medical College – in-Training, the online magazine for medical students: A health care
management case study
3. Chicago Medical School at Rosalind Franklin University – Peer Help for the Hardest Year: The M2
Stress Reduction Committee
4. Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University – Students'
Perceptions of the Need for Formal Communication Skills Training Associated with the Electronic
Medical Record
5. Cooper Medical School of Rowan University – Service learning: Giving Back to the Camden
Community at Cooper Medical School
6. Creighton University School of Medicine – Creighton University School of Medicine Clinical Skills
Club
7. Creighton University School of Medicine – Creighton University School of Medicine Magis Clinic
8. Creighton University School of Medicine – Creighton University School of Medicine Vital Signs
Mentoring Program
9. East Tennessee State University James H. Quillen College of Medicine – A Comprehensive
Approach to Student Health: Vehicle for Success
10. Eastern Virginia Medical School – Assessing the role and desired role of 3rd & 4th year medical
students in patient care: A national survey
11. Indiana University School of Medicine – Medical Student Extracurricular Engagement in Advocacy
12. Indiana University School of Medicine – Seven Health Professions: One Student Clinic
13. Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California – Partnering with Student Interest
Groups, a Multifaceted Approach to Teaching Military Health and Culture
14. Louisiana State University School of Medicine New Orleans – End of Life Care Elective: A
multifaceted approach to medical education on palliative care and the end of life
15. Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine – Further Diversifying the Field of Medicine:
Loyola's Decision to Allow DACA Status Students to Apply
16. Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine – HPREP and PULSE: Programs for High
School Students
17. Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine – Peer-Led Medical Spanish
18. Medical College of Wisconsin – Structure of Early Clinical Experiences Program within the Discovery
Curriculum
19. Medical College of Wisconsin – The Clinical Apprenticeship
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20. Medical University of South Carolina College of Medicine – Enhancing Involvement in Research
through the Medical Student Research Portal
21. Medical University of South Carolina College of Medicine – The Role of Students in LCME
Reaccreditation
22. Michigan State University College of Human Medicine - Medical Business and Finance Elective
23. Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine – Implementation of LGBT Safe Space
Training in Medical Education
24. Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine – Technology in Medical Education to
Enhance Learning and Prepare Future Physicians for 21st Century Healthcare
25. Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania – Factors Influencing the Intentions
and Specialty Decisions of Physician-Scientist Trainees to Pursue Academic and Research Careers
26. Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania – Training the Next Generation of
Physician Educators through a Longitudinal Teaching Certificate Program
27. Rush Medical College of Rush University Medical Center – Student Tutors in the Anatomy Lab
28. Rush Medical College of Rush University Medical Center – Humanities in Medicine
29. Saint Louis University School of Medicine – Curriculum changes to improve student wellness at SLU
30. Texas A&M College of Medicine – M3/M4 Curricular Design at a Satellite Campus at Texas A&M COM
31. Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center – Paul L. Foster School of Medicine – Integration of
Medical Spanish Throughout Medical School Curriculum
32. The University of Toledo College of Medicine – Pioneering Healthier Communities
33. The University of Toledo College of Medicine – The University of Toledo Interprofessional Immersive
Simulation Center and Medical Student Education
34. Tulane University School of Medicine – Innovating a Curricular Quality Improvement Elective
35. Universidad Central del Caribe – Advancing the Playing Field: A Look at How Technology and Play
Can Change the Future of Medical Education
36. Universidad Central del Caribe – Empowering Under-served Women Through Education Against
Breast Cancer
37. University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences College of Medicine – Student Opinion on the
Effectiveness of a Student Curriculum Committee in the Era of Pre-Clinical Curriculum Change
38. University of California, Irvine School of Medicine – Evaluating didactic methods for training medical
students at The Faculty of Medicine in Transylvania, Romania in the use of bedside ultrasound for
clinical practice
39. University of Central Florida College of Medicine – Developing and Assessing the Efficacy of a
Student Designed Summer Pre-Matriculation Program at the UCF College of Medicine
40. University of Central Florida College of Medicine – Implementation and Assessment of an Effective
Peer-Facilitated Transition-to-Clerkships (TTC) Program at the University of Central Florida College of
Medicine (UCF COM)
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41. University of Central Florida College of Medicine – Peer Academic Coaching and its effect on
academic performance at UCF College of Medicine
42. University of Central Florida College of Medicine – Simulated Chaos: Adding Interactive Education to
UCF COM’s Annual Global Health Conference
43. University of Central Florida College of Medicine – UCF College of Medicine Global Health
Conference "Emergency and Disaster Medicine"
44. University of Colorado School of Medicine – Step 1 Pubquiz
45. University of Florida College of Medicine – Journal Club in Preclinical Years: Five Easy Steps to
Success
46. University of Florida College of Medicine – Peer Academic Enrichment Program
47. University of Illinois College of Medicine - Initiative to Increase Medical Student Awareness of LGBT
Health Disparities
48. University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine – Carver Rural Iowa Scholars
Program (CRISP)
49. University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine – Electronic Medical Records –
Advanced Training for Medical Students
50. University of Kentucky College of Medicine – Community Health Fair-Making Compassion our
Tradition
51. University of Miami Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine – DOCS Community Outreach Conference
and Retreat
52. University of Minnesota Medical School, Twin Cities – Phillips Neighborhood Clinic: Providing Health
Care Access to the Underinsured
53. University of Mississippi School of Medicine – Community Health Advocacy Project
54. University of Mississippi School of Medicine – Dynamics of a Multidisciplinary Student Run Free
Clinic
55. University of Mississippi School of Medicine – Incorporating Business Medicine Preparedness in the
Medical Curriculum
56. University of Mississippi School of Medicine – Population Health Course at University of Mississippi
57. University of Mississippi School of Medicine – Students Leading Students: A Model for Increasing
Student Professionalism
58. University of Mississippi School of Medicine – The Health Partnership Program: Affecting Healthy
Change Using Motivational Interviewing
59. University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Science – LCME Independent Student
Analysis
60. University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center College of Medicine – Changing to a systemsbased
curriculum: A four year retrospective
61. University of South Florida Health Morsani College of Medicine – SuperUtilizer Project
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62. University of South Florida Health Morsani College of Medicine – USF Health Veterans Success
Network
63. University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center Southwestern Medical School – Innovating
Healthcare Solutions (IHS) @ UT Southwestern
64. University of Utah School of Medicine – Interprofessional Education in Health Sciences at the
University of Utah
65. University of Utah School of Medicine – Quantitative Analysis of Ophthalmological Surgical Education
During Medical School and Residency
66. University of Vermont College of Medicine – Rural Candidates Applications to Medical School
67. Vanderbilt University School of Medicine – Medical Education in the Digital Age: A need for social
media instruction
68. Wake Forest School of Medicine – Emergency Medicine in the Third Year Curriculum
69. Wayne State University School of Medicine – A Promising Pipeline to Medical Education: The Detroit
Premedical Scholars Program
70. Wayne State University School of Medicine – Health and Wellness Curriculum
71. Yale University School of Medicine – Community-targeted Health Reform and ACA Implementation
Education
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ASSOCIATION OF AMERICAN MEDICAL COLLEGES [Table # 1]
Program/Project Title: Careers in Medicine
Presenter(s): Jeanette Calli
Email: jcalli@aamc.org
Careers in Medicine (CiM) helps you explore your career options, choose a specialty, and apply to residency
programs that meet your goals. CiM provides information, products, and services to support specialty choice
activities throughout medical school. The core of the program is based on a career development process
comprised of four phases: Understand Yourself, Explore Options, Choose a Specialty and Land a
Residency. Resources include an extensive web site, self‐assessment tools, career information on more
than 120 specialties and subspecialties, specialty choice and residency application information, and Choices,
our quarterly newsletter. More information is available at www.aamc.org/cim.
ALBANY MEDICAL COLLEGE [Poster # 2]
Program/Project Title: in-Training, the online magazine for medical students: A health care
management case study
Presenter(s): Aleena Paul & Ajay Major
Email: paula3@mail.amc.edu
Research suggests that the socialized hierarchy and `hidden curriculum' of medical education promote
student burnout and sap medical students of their optimism for the profession of medicine (Stewart 1995;
Stewart 2000; Wear 1997). It is imperative that medical students become empowered to communicate with
and seek support from their peers and to advocate for improvements in medical education. Historically, the
geographic and ideological isolation of medical schools has made such communication unfeasible. To
overcome these barriers, we created a dedicated student-written, peer-edited publication that promotes
community building among medical students worldwide through self-reflection, communication and
collaboration.
in-Training is the online magazine for medical students, founded in April 2012 as a virtual community for
students to reflect on their experiences and share their passions with their colleagues. In doing so, it helps
students to cope with the rigors of medical education and to build a culture of open discourse among fellow
physicians-in-training. To create a sustainable editorial process within this organizational culture, in-Training
was founded on the core health care management principles of leadership development, governance
modeling, and information management (Stefl 2008). We propose that this framework is optimal for the
development of this niche as it promotes the authenticity and independence of the medical student voice. In
14 months, 157 articles from 74 writers at 38 institutions across the United States, Canada and India have
been published on in-Training. This is an indication that medical students are eager to share their
experiences with the larger medical community in this previously unrealized forum. Topics include the
patient-physician relationship, maintaining compassion during medical training, improving medical education,
addressing health disparities, and refining the health care system. The distribution of writers for in-Training is
representative of the medical student body; their pieces provide a snapshot of the opinions and passions of
tomorrow's physicians, and indicate that medical students are cognizant of their roles in the evolving medical
profession. Readership was steady at 800 unique visitors per month until March 2013, when publication on
the Scientific American Incubator blog caused a threefold increase to 2,200 unique visitors per month.
Additional expansion was due to consistent presence on social media and strategic marketing targeted at
academic deans nationwide.
The use of in-Training provides for the development of connections between medical students with similar
interests, and sets the stage for collaborations among medical students that surmount global boundaries.
Reading and contributing to in-Training facilitates the spread of innovative ideas in improving both medical
education and the health care system. Future goals for in-Training involve building partnerships with other
medical student organizations and encouraging participation from the global medical student community. To
ensure sustainability, organic enhancements will be made to the publication that reflect the evolving needs of
the medical student body.
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CHICAGO MEDICAL SCHOOL AT ROSALIND FRANKLIN UNIVERSITY [Poster # 3]
Program/Project Title: Peer Help for the Hardest Year: The M2 Stress Reduction Committee
Presenter(s): Nick Hawley
Email: Nicholas.hawley@my.rfums.org
Stress is a significant concern among Medical students as they face an array of potential stressors including
schoolwork, relationships, family issues, extracurricular activities, and USMLE exams. Students report that
stress is worst during 2nd year while preparing for USMLE Step 1. The Chicago Medical School at Rosalind
Franklin University noted its students’ stress levels and formed the M2 Stress Reduction Committee to
address this problem. Comprised of fifteen students and an administrator, the committee’s primary goal is to
investigate sources of student stress and plan ways to alleviate it all while fostering a supportive environment
within the class. Its recommendations included various wellness-promoting activities and events,
course/schedule changes, and education on stress and how to cope with it.
During the year, the committee organized several student activities and wellness events. Most of the events
required minimal or no cost and minimal planning beyond the committee members. They also took students
concerns about courses and scheduling to identify areas where the administration could help minimize
stress. Committee actions ranged from distributing candy before exams to having a potluck lunch to
suggestions on semester schedules. The committee planned various events and activities, highlighting the
importance of maintaining personal well-being.
Student surveys will be conducted in March to gauge the effectiveness of the committee and better
understand student stress. Data collected will be presented with the poster. We believe the stress reduction
committee has helped raise awareness and lower stress within the class and created a platform for
promoting student wellness.
CLEVELAND CLINIC LERNER COLLEGE OF MEDICINE OF CASE WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY
[Poster # 4]
Program/Project Title: Students' Perceptions of the Need for Formal Communication Skills Training
Associated with the Electronic Medical Record
Presenter(s): Daniel London
Email: londond@ccf.org
At the 2011 AAMC National Meeting joint regional session between the Central and Western regions, OSR
representatives discussed the lack of educational opportunities focused on teaching medical students how to
properly communicate with a patient while using the electronic medical record (EMR). Taking this idea back
to our home institution, we began discussions on how to incorporate such training into our current
communication skills curriculum. To garner institutional support for this innovation, however, we needed to
obtain data demonstrating that this is a student need and want amongst our students.
We performed a needs assessment survey of Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine (CCLCM) medical
students to better understand their perspectives on the topic of how the EMR impacts patient-doctor
communication and the potential utility of educational sessions. Students felt strongly that the EMR impacts
communication with patients—positively in some aspects and negatively in others. By their second year of
medical school, almost all students are using the EMR in patient interactions. Students have voiced a desire
to be taught how to properly use the EMR when communicating with patients. This education would involve
maximizing the positive aspects, such as educating the patient, acquiring the database, and performing
health maintenance tasks, while limiting the negative aspects such as engaging in non-verbal
communication, developing rapport, and demonstrating empathy. Students believe that this teaching should
happen during second year, and that it should be done in a workshop setting such as communication skills
with further reinforcement via longitudinal clinic experiences. As a result of our findings, two student driven
educational projects have resulted: a book chapter and a revamped standardized patient encounter.
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COOPER MEDICAL SCHOOL OF ROWAN UNIVERSITY [Poster # 5]
Program/Project Title: Service learning: Giving Back to the Camden Community at Cooper Medical
School
Presenter(s): Imoh Ikpot, Gita Byraiah & Rebecca Lee
Email: ikpoti60@students.rowan.edu
At Cooper Medical School of Rowan University, volunteerism is an integral part of the campus community.
All students are required to engage in a service learning projects within the city of Camden. The outreach
efforts are directed based on community needs as expressed through focus groups and at the
recommendation of our Community Advisory Committee. This course was created to fulfill the philosophy
that immersion of students provides a realistic view of the social, economic and cultural influences and
barriers facing the underserved Camden community. Students have been involved with various activities
including schools, homeless shelters, soup kitchens and churches. In aggregate, students view this as a
favorable and beneficial experience.
CREIGHTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 6]
Program/Project Title: Creighton University School of Medicine Clinical Skills Club
Presenter(s): Mayme Marshall
Email: mem25750@creighton.edu
This poster was created by the members of the student-run Clinical Skills Club at Creighton University
School of Medicine and is designed to provide information about the organization as well as the monthly
clinical workshops that are held in the Clinical Simulation and Education Center. The Clinical Skills Club was
created by two medical students in 2011 who desired more opportunities for hands-on clinical practice in the
first and second years of medical school. It has blossomed into an organization where upper class medical
students (with faculty supervision) engage and educate first and second year medical students during clinical
simulations.
The clinical education is developed around the motto “See one, Do one, Teach one”. First the students “see”
a short presentation of the clinical skill and its relevant background given by upperclassmen. Then, they “do
one” and perform the skill using various simulators under the supervision of the upperclassmen, and in the
later years they are invited back as upperclassmen to “Teach one”.
CREIGHTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 7]
Program/Project Title: Creighton University School of Medicine Magis Clinic
Presenter(s): Laura Brannan
Email: mem25750@creighton.edu
The Magis Clinic began in 2004 when a group of Creighton medical students found there were few outpatient
healthcare options available to disadvantaged men, women and children of the Omaha metropolitan area.
The clinic is managed and staffed by Creighton medical students and overseen by a volunteer physician. In
addition to providing valued medical care to our patients, Magis also provides a distinct and educational clinic
experience for Creighton medical student volunteers. Another important facet of the Magis Clinic’s mission
has been to foster in the medical student volunteers a lifelong commitment to service and learning and to
serve as a site of teaching for our students. First- and second-year medical students are encouraged to push
their limits and participate actively in patient interviews and physical exams. They are guided by
upperclassmen volunteers, who work closely alongside them. This peer mentoring support is critical to
facilitating an educational environment. The Magis Clinic’s attending physician is also available throughout
clinic to answer questions, provide guidance, and educate students on diagnostic and treatment options, and
while it is ultimately the attending physician’s treatment plan, medical students are encouraged to use their
knowledge and skills to provide treatment options.
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CREIGHTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 8]
Program/Project Title: Creighton University School of Medicine Vital Signs Mentoring Program
Presenter(s): Laura Brannan
Email: mem25750@creighton.edu
In the complex world of healthcare and increasing pressures on healthcare professionals, medical students
have a need for purposeful personal and professional development. The Vital Signs Mentoring Program has
been created to provide structure and multiple opportunities for faculty, clinicians, students and alumni to
interact and impact one another through mentoring relationships.
EAST TENNESSEE STATE UNIVERSITY JAMES H. QUILLEN COLLEGE OF MEDICINE [Poster # 9]
Program/Project Title: A Comprehensive Approach to Student Health: Vehicle for Success
Presenter(s): Liane Gozmao & Kyle Owens
Email: owensks@goldmail.etsu.edu
The Quillen College of Medicine at East Tennessee State University strives to provide students with an
atmosphere that not only supports academic achievement, but also personal well-being. Several programs
have been implemented to support the overall health and wellness both inside and outside the classroom. A
Student Study Center was constructed to provide a conducive environment for students to study, as well as
an area for students to gather and build relationships outside of the classroom. In addition, a student led
organization, Committee Supporting Student Health (CSSH), was implemented to support the total health of
the student population, which includes support in dealing with stress, family crisis, mental illness and
substance abuse. A mentorship program between incoming first year students and a second year provides
each MS-1 with someone who can assist with navigating through the first year of medical school. Finally, one
of the paramount components supporting the overall mental health of the student body is the Professional
and Academic Resource Center (PARC). The PARC program provides psychological and psychiatric
counseling to students and their families at no cost. Student feedback has shown that these programs have
proven effective in strengthening the personal health of Quillen medical students. The Quillen College of
Medicine is continuously seeking ways to further improve their programs.
EASTERN VIRGINIA MEDICAL SCHOOL [Poster # 10]
Program/Project Title: Assessing the role and desired role of 3rd & 4th year medical students in patient
care: A national survey
Presenter(s): Drew Bolton, Ed Nadimi, Jeff Goodwin, Brian Specht & Brian Pitts
Email: bolton.drew@gmail.com
In collaboration with the University of Colorado SOM and the Virginia Tech Carilion Clinic SOM, a brief
survey was developed to determine the extent of involvement that third and fourth year medical students
have in patient care. The goal was to determine what proportion of schools allow their third and fourth year
students to write notes, write orders and answer pages. The survey also sought to solicit the opinion of each
school's OSR on how to increase the role and responsibility of fourth year medical students in patient care.
Ultimately, the objective was to perform a needs assessment to establish the foundation of a compelling
argument for changing medical education. This change in medical education would seek to increase the
capacity of fourth year students and improve the transition to intern year without compromising safe and
quality patient care.
This poster will highlight the literature regarding undergraduate medical education, with special attention
given to the impact of Electronic Medical Records and note writing on preparing students for the intern year.
The literature review will emphasize the clinical objectives of undergraduate medical education and the
potential for EMRs to greatly improve students' capacity for effective communication and efficient patient
care.
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INDIANA UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 11]
Program/Project Title: Medical Student Extracurricular Engagement in Advocacy
Presenter(s): Janice Farlow
Email: JLLIN@IUPUI.EDU
The AAMC has called for an increase in medical school enrollment to meet future projected physician
shortages, but the number of residency positions has not increased proportionately. With traditional funding
sources for Graduate Medical Education (GME) under threat, leaders in academic medicine, health care
systems, and government will need to be engaged in proposing solutions to this predicament. Medical
students, as future health professionals directly affected by the shortage of residency slots, should also be
involved in the discussion. Furthermore, this presents a professional development opportunity for medical
students, both in learning more about the country's health care system, and in building leadership skills
through advocacy.
Medical students at the Indiana University School of Medicine involved in the Medical Student Section (MSS)
of the American Medical Association (AMA) have been actively monitoring the situation and engaging
students across Indiana. Recently, the Indiana AMA-MSS proposed a resolution to study public/private
partnerships as a mechanism for expanding residency training to meet the needs of the State of Indiana. The
resolution was passed by the Indiana State Medical Association, and plans are underway for advancing the
resolution to the national stage as well.
The Indiana AMA-MSS has also facilitated programming to help students understand career planning in light
of the concerning number of unmatched senior medical students. Other initiatives have included bringing
speakers to campus to discuss recent health care policy changes and how students can get more involved in
advocating for change. In this poster, these and other initiatives to get medical students engaged outside of
the classroom in advocacy will be discussed.
INDIANA UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 12]
Program/Project Title: Seven Health Professions: One Student Clinic
Presenter(s): Janice Farlow
Email: JLLIN@IUPUI.EDU
Organizations such as the AAMC and the Institute of Medicine have stressed the importance of
interprofessional education. While student-run clinics have become a common vehicle for such
collaborations across the country, the need still exists to provide meaningful interprofessional interaction at
these clinics. The Indiana University Student Outreach Clinic (IU-SOC) not only represents a clinic with one
of the most expansive lists of participating health professions in the country, but also is one of the few that
boasts a student-driven, intentional interprofessional program to meet learning and clinical outcomes.
Sponsored originally by the IU School of Medicine in 2009, the IU-SOC is a student-led service-learning
collaborative that has grown to include formal partnerships with seven professional fields (Medicine,
Pharmacy, Law, Dentistry, Social Work, Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy) across three institutions
(Indiana University, Butler University, University of Indianapolis), as well as informal partnerships with
additional disciplines (public health, nonprofit management and business, and information technology, to
name a few). The clinic has been recognized as an outstanding community-campus partnership locally by an
Indianapolis City County Council Ordinance and as the recipient of the IUPUI Chancellor's Community Award
for Excellence in Civic Engagement. Recently, the IU-SOC was also awarded the State of Indiana
Governor's Service Award of Service-Learning. Student and faculty leaders from the IU-SOC have presented
on the clinic's interprofessional model at local, regional, and national meetings.
While exposure to each profession occurs naturally in the clinic space, the IU-SOC officers, made up of
student leaders from each partner program, have developed a program to integrate each profession to
provide comprehensive patient-centered care while also enhancing the interprofessional educational
environment for volunteers. In addition to managing its discipline-specific operations, each partner school
has a student position designated to coordinate efforts with other partner schools. A Partners Committee of
these students, community representatives, and invited guests meets monthly to provide updates and
discuss issues of general concern. Subcommittees of representatives holding analogous positions within
each partner's student board convene separately to plan interdisciplinary efforts, such as patient education
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programs and community promotions. Student leaders from each school also participate in a biannual
Partners Retreat that focuses on interdisciplinary long-term strategic planning.
Additional interprofessional engagement opportunities exist for the volunteers, including an orientation held
at the beginning of each clinic session to introduce all volunteers, explain the clinic's model, and emphasize
the importance of interprofessional interactions. Medical school faculty can receive Continuing Medical
Education credits for leading an interdisciplinary roundtable, where volunteers from each school discuss
patient cases that required the cooperation of several disciplines that clinic day. There are interprofessional
rounds, and students can also informally shadow volunteers of other schools to gain a more complete picture
of their services.
In focus groups and surveys conducted as part of an ongoing assessment of the learning environment of the
IU-SOC, students have consistently identified the interprofessional nature of the clinic as a key reason for
volunteering and as providing a unique and necessary component to their medical education. In this poster,
we will share data collected, best practices learned, and ongoing endeavors to strengthen the IU-SOC's
interprofessional program.
KECK SCHOOL OF MEDICINE OF THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA [Poster # 13]
Program/Project Title: Partnering with Student Interest Groups, a Multifaceted Approach to Teaching
Military Health and Culture
Presenter(s): Claire Sadler, Mariya Kalashnikova & Christos Theophanous
Email: kalashni@usc.edu
In alliance with the AAMC’s Joining Forces campaign we have developed and implemented a core
curriculum for medical students at Keck that addresses the physical, social, psychological and spiritual needs
of veterans and military- connected patients and their families. Previously Keck medical students had little
exposure to military health issues due to a lack formal curriculum around military culture. We have partnered
with specialty student interest groups (SIGs) to create a series of sessions that focus on military health
issues in a variety of health care disciplines. This strategy generates peer involvement and engages students
with a range of interests in the needs of military families and veterans. The proposed sessions are designed
to introduce students to a broad spectrum of issues in military health care and increase both interest and
awareness. Bypassing the formal curriculum allows us to introduce a large volume and range of content
quickly, with flexibility to adjust sessions according to student feedback. Furthermore, by partnering with
SIGs we hope to get “buy -in” from student leaders on campus, further widening the scope of the Joining
Forces campaign at Keck. We propose a series of lunch time sessions as detailed below:
- November 11, 2013 - Military SIG: Military culture in and outside the “fortress” – A primer on military
culture, led by CPT Dustin Harris, LCSW, Behavioral Health Officer.
- November 25, 2013 – Surgery SIG: Polytrauma in the military
- TBD – Obstetrics and gynecology SIG: Sexual Assault in the Military
- TBD – Pediatric SIG: The Military Child
- TBD – Psychiatry SIG: Invisible Wounds – PTSD and TBI
LOUISIANA STATE UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE NEW ORLEANS [Poster # 14]
Program/Project Title: End of Life Care Elective: A multifaceted approach to medical education on
palliative care and the end of life
Presenter(s): Laura Rachal & Abigail Freeman
Email: lrach1@lsuhsc.edu
The End-of-Life-Care Elective is a course designed for second year medical students to explore the issues
surrounding patients facing terminally ill diseases. While the students participating in the course are in school
to study health and illness, this course is primarily a lesson in the emotional, spiritual, and interpersonal
relationships in the patient approaching end of life. The course emphasizes understanding the impact of
terminal disease on a person's conscience and the provision of compassionate care. It has been part of the
curriculum at LSUHSC New Orleans for almost 10 years.
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The course objectives are to develop a relationship with a dying patient; to identify some of the biopsychosocial
issues faced by dying patients; to enhance student's communications skills with current and
future patients; to witness treatment of terminally ill patients in modern health care systems; to identify some
of the ethical principles pertinent to end-of-life-care; to better understand the role of hospice in the care of
terminally ill patients and their families; and to learn about the interdisciplinary approach to end of life care.
Each student in the course is required to attend at least one hospice team meeting, meet with their assigned
patient along with a hospice team member, and have two additional meetings with their patient over the
course of the semester. Interlaced with these patient visits are small-group session sled by third and/or
fourth-year medical students and SOM faculty who will facilitate dialogue about the students' experiences.
Students are evaluated by the SOM faculty on a Pass/Fail scale, on the basis of completion of all course
responsibilities such as individual patient encounters and completion of reading assignments, and their level
of engagement in small group sessions.
LOYOLA UNIVERSITY CHICAGO STRITCH SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 15]
Program/Project Title: Further Diversifying the Field of Medicine: Loyola's Decision to Allow DACA
Status Students to Apply
Presenter(s): Mary Calderone, Sarah Hale, Isabel Malone, Andrew Tully
Email: imalone1@luc.edu
Starting in fall 2012, following the President’s speech announcing DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood
Arrivals), Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine revised admissions standards to allow
undocumented applicants to compete on their own merits for seats at Loyola. Loyola’s decision has been
controversial nationwide. Some administrators fear these applicants may be unable to secure employment
upon graduation. Although licensing boards in Illinois cannot inquire about immigration status, other states
may. National work permits might not be renewed in an unstable political climate. And these applicants
remain ineligible for most federal financial aid. Loyola’s administration is working to address these concerns.
The university and the Illinois State legislature established a state loan program aimed at DACA medical
school tuition relief. Loyola also gathered adequate institutional aid to make the financial burden comparable
to other applicants. To the concern of political instability, Loyola sees this as an unacceptable excuse to
continue to deny admittance to qualified applicants.
In taking a positive stance that these applicants ought to be treated on their own merits, Loyola has already
further solidified the DACA position. Secure in our Jesuit values of fostering social justice, extensive AAMC
research on the importance of a diversified physician workforce, and our fellow AAMC schools who share our
mission, Loyola is honored to be the first and confident it will not be the last medical school to train these
applicants as doctors for their country.
LOYOLA UNIVERSITY CHICAGO STRITCH SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 16]
Program/Project Title: HPREP and PULSE: Programs for High School Students
Presenter(s): Mary Calderone, Sarah Hale, Isabel Malone & Andrew Tully
Email: imalone1@luc.edu
Students at Loyola University Chicago School of Medicine are invested in ensuring that health care fields are
diverse in future generations. Two programs focus on mentoring and encouraging students of color and
economically disadvantaged students to pursue their dreams of becoming physicians, nurses, and other
allied health care professionals - the Health Professions Education and Recruitment Program (HPREP) and
PULSE.
HPREP is a six-week program through the Students National Medical Association and Latino Student
Medical Association for high school level students that want to pursue a health career. It was introduced last
year with assistance from Chicago Schweitzer Fellowship Program, which continues to support the program.
Students are introduced to a variety of fields, exposed to health disparities, and given the opportunity to
engage with students and professionals from a variety of fields. At the end of the program students present
their research to their families, faculty, and students. This year the program is expanding and adding a
community service component in addition to interaction with pre-medical level students in order to complete
the pre-health pipeline.
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PULSE is a year-long program that exposes students from Proviso Math and Science Academy in Maywood,
IL to a variety of areas in the medical profession. Physicians and other medical professionals present
aspects of their practice to students each month and assists the students as they attempt these clinical skills.
Additionally, the students are grouped with current medical school students to foster a mentoring relationship
that will hopefully pique and encourage their interest in medicine outside of what they learn in the classroom.
Both programs seek to improve the representation of people of color in the health professions in order to
address a diversifying and increasingly chronically ill population.
LOYOLA UNIVERSITY CHICAGO STRITCH SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 17]
Program/Project Title: Peer-Led Medical Spanish
Presenter(s): Mary Calderone, Sarah Hale, Isabel Malone & Andrew Tully
Email: imalone1@luc.edu
Peer-Led Medical Spanish is an elective course offered to Stritch medical students, Marcella Niehoff School
of Nursing students, and interested faculty and administrators. First and second year medical students with
an advanced or fluent knowledge of Spanish are able to earn a two week elective teaching credit by creating
lesson plans, teaching classes on a weekly basis, compiling a portfolio of their work, and attending teaching
seminars throughout the year. Classes themselves are offered at varying levels on a weekly basis. From
complete beginners to native speakers, classes are designed to meet students at their level and provide
language tools that will be invaluable skills for their current or future careers in healthcare.
The number of Spanish-language speakers living in the United States has grown exponentially over the past
decade, and that trend is projected to continue into the upcoming years as well. Therefore, as medical
students dedicated to providing the best quality of patient care possible, we find it of the utmost importance
that students are given an opportunity to learn, improve upon, and practice their Spanish communication
skills, especially in a medical context. By attending classes, students learn essential medical vocabulary and
are given the opportunity to practice patient interviews with their classmates and teachers in Spanish.
Teachers are not only earning elective credit, but advancing their own skills and gaining valuable teaching
skills to take into their careers. Since the program's initiative five years ago, classes have been growing in
popularity, and have been widely attended by first and second year medical students.
During the 2013-2014 academic year, nursing students from Loyola University Marcella Niehoff School of
Nursing will be collaborating with medical students and taking the same medical Spanish courses for the first
time. We hope that this collaborative effort will continue to foster an environment of teamwork between all
healthcare professionals. Finally, at the conclusion of their second year of medical school, advanced
students are encouraged to take Loyola's Medical Spanish Certification exam. Upon passing this exam,
students earn the legal right to translate for their Spanish-speaking patients during their third and fourth year
clerkships. The Peer-Led Medical Spanish Program has been a tremendous success at Loyola Stritch
School of Medicine, and we would love the opportunity to share this program with other interested schools.
MEDICAL COLLEGE OF WISCONSIN [Poster # 18]
Program/Project Title: Structure of Early Clinical Experiences Program within the Discovery
Curriculum
Presenter(s): Anish Patel & Melanie Bobbs
Email: ahpatel@mcw.edu
The Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW) debuted its new Discovery Curriculum in the fall of 2012. Among a
host of updates to the preclinical curriculum was the introduction of several early clinical experiences. These
experiences, which extend throughout the first two years of medical school, are designed to introduce
students to clinical practice early on and prepare them for their clinical years. The structure of the Program
begins with learning basic clinical competencies for working in the clinics during the first semester. For the
next two semesters, students attend clinical apprenticeships one half day per week, where preceptors
mentor students, observe respective levels of patient care and provide direct feedback. The final semester
includes a Capstone project that allows students to hone the skills they have absorbed in the clinic with
exposure to specialized and more complicated patient populations. While medical schools throughout the
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country are incorporating early clinical experiences into the preclinical curriculum, few programs, to our
knowledge, are as extensive.
MEDICAL COLLEGE OF WISCONSIN [Poster # 19]
Program/Project Title: The Clinical Apprenticeship
Presenter(s): Anish Patel & Melanie Bobbs
Email: ahpatel@mcw.edu
The Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW) debuted its Discovery Curriculum in the fall of 2012. Among a host
of updates to the preclinical curriculum was the introduction of several early clinical experiences designed to
introduce and familiarize M1 and M2 students with clinical medicine and patient care. Key among these new
programs was the Clinical Apprenticeship, a longitudinal course where students spend one half-day per
week working directly with clinical faculty. The Apprenticeship allows students to develop history and
physical exam skills, gain familiarity with the clinical environment and more thoroughly explore a particular
field of interest. Due to the significant time commitment and structure of the Apprenticeship, students have
the opportunity to develop close relationships with their mentors and receive direct, personalized feedback.
These experiences shorten the learning curve as students transition to the clerkships, and prepare them to
be even more successful during their clinical years.
MEDICAL UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA COLLEGE OF MEDICINE [Poster # 20]
Program/Project Title: Enhancing Involvement in Research through the Medical Student Research
Portal
Presenter(s): Mallory Roberts, Daniel Weinberg & Arun Iyer
Email: robertmn@musc.edu
Research opportunities allow medical students to expand their understanding of evidence-based medicine
and explore career options, but unfortunately there are several barriers to medical student involvement in
research. LCME Standards suggest that a core function of undergraduate medical education is to remove
some of these barriers: “The institution is expected to provide an appropriate number and variety of research
opportunities,” and, “information about financial support for student research (e.g., stipends).” To this end,
the Medical University of South Carolina created the Medical Student Research Portal (MSRP) in 2011. In an
effort to pair interested medical students with research mentors both at home and at other institutions, the
MSRP serves as an online hub where students can view research and funding opportunities and learn how
to engage themselves in a research project. The MSRP includes links for internal and external research
opportunities, funding options, departmental research contacts, important resources such as IRB and CITI
training, FAQ about student research, and general information. Since the creation of the MSRP, our
institution has increased the participation of first-year medical students in summer research projects two
years in a row. Fourth year students have also shown increased participation in elective research and
research for academic credit. Furthermore, the participation of minority students in research has increased.
We plan to present data on this increased medical student involvement in research and discuss reasons for
the success of the MSRP. Areas for further improvement will be noted, with an aim to show other medical
universities how to integrate a system similar to the MSRP in to their online resources for medical students.
MEDICAL UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA COLLEGE OF MEDICINE [Poster # 21]
Program/Project Title: The Role of Students in LCME Reaccreditation
Presenter(s): Daniel Weinberg, Arun Iyer & Mallory Roberts
Email: weinber@musc.edu
Since the revision of the LCME Standards in 2002, there has been a shift in the number of citations to reflect
greater emphasis on the educational program and medical students. Such a shift reflects the importance of
structuring a role for students throughout the accreditation process that not only allows for a successful
LCME review, but also strengthens the foundation of the medical school. Unfortunately, outside of LCME
publications, there remains a significant gap in the academic medical literature regarding specific roles of
students in LCME review. With this presentation we hope to add to the resources for students and
administration by providing a retrospective analysis of best practices and lessons learned from student
involvement in preparing for LCME reaccreditation at the Medical University of South Carolina. We will
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discuss the process of the independent student analysis and how it led to beneficial changes in our own
institution. We will also discuss strategies for engaging students in preparation for the site visit. Finally, we
will demonstrate that by effectively incorporating students into LCME reaccreditation, not only will the
reaccreditation process be successful, but an institution as a whole will become stronger.
MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF HUMAN MEDICINE [Poster # 22]
Program/Project Title: Medical Business and Finance Elective
Presenter(s): Joseph B. Meleca
Email: melecajo@msu.edu
The College of Human Medicine Medical Business & Finance (MBF) Elective in coordination with the Career
Counseling and Development Program has for the past six months been planning an inaugural elective for
medical students in the fall semester of 2013. The MBF Elective has been newly established this year and is
focused on providing students with a background in both medical business and finance. The goal of this
elective is to expose students early on to the ever-changing aspects of insurance, reimbursement, contracts,
investments, loans, and various other relevant topics. No longer are physicians exempt from needing to
understand such things as insurance plans, billing standards, or how to run an office. We hope that this
elective will educate young physicians-in-training to handle the business and finance side of medicine.
The elective is well under way. We have been collecting data to see if students have enjoyed the course,
find it relevant and necessary for their medical education, and feel that it has advanced their knowledge in
both medical business and finance. This data would be presented on the poster.
OAKLAND UNIVERSITY WILLIAM BEAUMONT SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 23]
Program/Project Title: Implementation of LGBT Safe Space Training in Medical Education
Presenter(s): Florence Doo & Julian Thwainey
Email: fxdoo@oakland.edu
The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) revealed in 2007 that lesbian, bisexual, gay, and
transgender (LGBT) medical students experience discrimination throughout their educational and clinical
training. In medical education, LGBT medical students may encounter faculty and staff with limited
knowledge in LGBT topics, lack of LGBT topics in the medical curriculum, as well as derogatory comments in
the classroom, on campus, and in clinical settings. Safe Space training is a program that promotes
inclusivity and is primarily used to establish a network of LGBT allies. It is available on many college
campuses, but implementation of Safe Space training in the medical school context has faced limited
research and educational resources. Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine (OUWB) is
working on developing a medically-relevant Safe Space training for medical school faculty and students. The
design and implementation of a training model in a medical school setting will be discussed.
OAKLAND UNIVERSITY WILLIAM BEAUMONT SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 24]
Program/Project Title: Technology in Medical Education to Enhance Learning and Prepare Future
Physicians for 21st Century Healthcare
Presenter(s): Julian Thwainey & Florence Doo
Email: jgthwain@oakland.edu
Indicated in our mission statement, Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine (OUWB) aims
to develop a “technologically advanced learning community” to prepare tomorrow’s physicians. As medicine
and technology continually advances, we believe medical education should keep up. This is why OUWB
created an innovative curriculum that incorporates different technologies in order to not only better teach our
medical students, but also to help our medical students become more technologically competent.
Several journal articles outline the necessity of producing technologically competent physicians, as
technology and computers are becoming part of our health care environment. OUWB integrates different
teaching technologies in every aspect of our curriculum from basic lectures and anatomy lab to clinical skills
and clerkships. All incoming medical students receive a Mac Book Pro 13” with preloaded concept-mapping
software. Activities in our basic science courses help students use this software to learn. Our state-of-the-art
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anatomy lab gives students access to Mac computers located at each station during dissections. Cameras
can relay video to station computers for better viewing of dissections. Lastly, M1s are introduced early to
several types of advanced patient stimulations including Beaumont Hospital’s state-of-the-art Surgical Skills
Center.
In addition to utilizing technology in teaching medical students, the M1 and M2 curriculum integrates the
teaching of using indispensable resources such as Pub Med, UpToDate, and even mobile software. OUWB
continues to evaluate potentially useful technologies. We have setup an iPad Mini pilot program for use
during clerkships. This showcase aims to show how OUWB uses different technologies to prepare its
students for 21st century medicine.
PERELMAN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA [Poster # 25]
Program/Project Title: Factors Influencing the Intentions and Specialty Decisions of Physician-
Scientist Trainees to Pursue Academic and Research Careers
Presenter(s): Dania Daye
Email: ddaye@mail.med.upenn.edu
Physician-scientists dedicate their careers to advancing knowledge of human disease and in doing so enable
development of new treatments and preventive measures to improve human health. Although the factors that
influence the attrition of physician-scientist junior faculty have been studied extensively, the factors that
influence the career decisions of medical students to pursue academic and research careers are less well
characterized. Our student-led study aimed to assess the factors that influence the career decisions of
physician- scientist trainees as well as the obstacles that they foresee as a future hindrance to their careers.
Data was collected using an IRB-approved survey at 5 major US institutions with MSTP programs. The
survey was distributed via email to all MD and MD/PhD trainees and garnered 1103 responses, a 40%
response rate, representing all training stages. 20% of the respondents were MD/PhD trainees (n= 226).
Using Chi-square and multivariate regression analyses, we found significant factors influencing trainee
career decisions to enter academia and research and found statistically significant differences between the
MD and MD/PhD trainee cohorts that responded to the survey. Compared to MD trainees, MD/PhD trainees
were more likely to intend careers in academia (94% vs. 72%) and industry (25.6% vs. 9.7%) vs. private
practice (17.7% vs. 51.3%) (p=0.001). MD/PhD trainees also value research as an important factor in their
careers, favor different medical specialties such internal medicine, neurology, pathology over surgical
specialties and anticipate obstacles such as lack of opportunity & funding (54.4% vs. 17.8%). This study is
the basis for an ongoing national representative sample study and will play an important role in filling the
data gap for current MD and MD/PhD trainee population in their career intentions and the perceptions and
factors driving their decisions. Our study has identified statistically significant factors that influence the career
decisions of our future physicians and physician scientists and thus, can provide insight into potential areas
for intervention to maintain a strong interest in academic and research careers.
Dania Daye 1,6 *, Jennifer M. Kwan 2,6 *, Mary Lou Schmidt 2 , Claudia Morrissey 3 , Hajwa Kim 2 , Bilwaj Gaonkar 1 , Megan
Riddle 4 , Sharline Madera 4 , Kate Quinn 5
1 Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, 2 University of Illinois, Chicago College of Medicine,
3 Save the Children DC, 4 Weill Cornell College of Medicine, 5 City University of Seattle, 6 American Physician Scientists
Association.*authors contributed equally
PERELMAN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA [Poster # 26]
Program/Project Title: Training the Next Generation of Physician Educators through a Longitudinal
Teaching Certificate Program
Presenter(s): Dania Daye & Jonathan McNeill
Email: ddaye@mail.med.upenn.edu
A large number of medical students will have teaching responsibilities during residency and beyond. In an
effort to promote better education of the next generation of physicians, we proposed adopting a formal
medical education certificate program for medical students at the Perelman School of Medicine at the
University of Pennsylvania. The goal of the program would be to prepare students to become academic
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medical educators through: 1) training in the science of medical education, theoretical frameworks, and
principles; 2) experiential learning through formal teaching experiences with reflection and feedback; 3)
scholarship in medical education via curriculum development or medical education research; 4) mentorship
by faculty with experience in medical education leadership or scholarship. The four components of the
certificate program would be longitudinally integrated into the medical school curriculum through required
workshop sessions, teaching experience, longitudinal mentoring and opportunities in medical education
scholarship and research. Students also have the opportunity to enroll in a 2-week course, entitled Frontiers
in Medical Education, to learn about the most recent scientific advances in medical education methodologies
and research. Participants in the certificate program will be followed through residency and beyond to
assess the effectiveness of this program and its contribution to their training and long term outcomes. It is
expected that this program will provide medical students with much-needed training making them better
educators, both as house officers and eventually as attending physicians.
Dania Daye, MS4, Jonathan McNeill, MS4, Jennifer Kogan, M.D.
Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania
RUSH MEDICAL COLLEGE OF RUSH UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER [Poster # 27]
Program/Project Title: Student Tutors in the Anatomy Lab
Presenter(s): Jennifer Olson
Email: jlolson83@gmail.com
While many schools employ students to tutor the classes below them, Rush has uniquely extended the
program into the anatomy lab. Free tutoring is offered Monday through Thursday at two evening sessions or
on Friday afternoon. Over thirty M2s volunteer to again don their scrubs and lead small group hands-on
tutoring sessions. Students generally work in groups of two to four to divide that week’s anatomy curriculum.
They arrive early to find an example cadaver, clean up the dissection, and then review structures and related
information as the M1s rotate between tutors. They also organize a practice anatomy practical exam for
every block which involves tagging structures and providing a key. Sessions are well-attended with more
than 90% of each class participating. Many cite the program’s value in that students can pass down memory
tools and often-asked exam questions. It also eases anxiety about the practical exam and provides for
mentorship opportunities by facilitating inter-class communication. The University organizes the paid
employment of the students as tutors and announces its availability to the new class, but limits its
involvement there. Tutors submit attendance sheets with participants’ signatures as time sheets which also
functions as quality control as pupils will vote with their feet. Cost to the university is minimal, 20-30 tutors
work 4-10 hours per month at $10/hour. The simple model of this program could be easily reproduced at
other schools for the benefit of even more first year students.
RUSH MEDICAL COLLEGE OF RUSH UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER [Poster # 28]
Program/Project Title: Humanities in Medicine
Presenter(s): Jennifer Olson
Email: Erica_J_Huelsmann@rush.edu
At Rush Medical College, we recently integrated a unique “Humanities in Medicine” elective course for a
small group of first year medical students. We would like to share the unique qualities of our program, the
expected and unexpected responses of faculty and students, and future directions with others.
General Course Description:
This elective was an 18-session course that examined how empathy, observation and interpretation impact
one’s experience of literature and the arts. Particular attention was paid to the ways in which observation
and engagement with the arts parallels observation and engagement in patient care. Individual sessions
focused on the role of temporal and professional perspective in describing medical events, differences and
similarities in observational skills in the arts and medicine and the use of movement and drama exercises to
examine how one experiences and is experienced by others. Course activities included museum visits,
movement activities, acting exercises and reading and writing about selected works of literature.
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While many institutions have programs where students engage in observation of the fine arts, focus is placed
mainly on increasing their own observational skills; our program is unique in that the focus is placed primarily
on introspection and self-awareness as a mechanism to increase empathy.
Reflection and Future Directions:
Student and faculty responses were collected following each module and at the culmination of the course to
examine the implementation of the course, how it was received, and what enhancements could be made for
the future. Many replied that the course was "the best thing about this year", and requested for an additional
version for second year medical students. Moreover, students requested the creation of an informal
humanities club.
As both faculty and students very well received this elective, we plan to continue offering this course to first
year students. Our plans for the near future include expanding the course to allow participation of more
students. Offering multiple sections of the course, not expanding the number of students in each section as
the small group atmosphere was highly rated by students, will do this. Additionally, we hope to expand the
target student body to include other colleges at Rush University (nursing, physician assistant, etc.). Finally,
we would like to delineate a working conceptualization of physician empathy and describe an integrative
approach to assessing physician empathy.
SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 29]
Program/Project Title: Curriculum changes to improve student wellness at SLU
Presenter(s): Divya Gumber, Brandon Beal & Kristin Pacl
Email: dgumber@slu.edu
Over the past year, several changes have been brought about in the curriculum at SLU School of Medicine in
order to improve student wellness. We identify challenges faced by students in their preclinical as well as
clinical years and the changes that are in motion to address these challenges.
1. Subjectivity in third year grading system
The grading system of core clerkships in third year is a source of significant anxiety among medical students.
About 65% of the schools in US use some variation of the Honors/Pass/Fail system, where subjective
evaluations by faculty and residents comprise the most significant proportion of the grade. 1 The inherent
differences in the average grades awarded by different individuals put significant stress on medical students.
Third year medical students feel that their grades in core clerkships are unduly affected by the evaluators
they happen to work with. In order to address this issue, the OSR chapter at SLU has worked with the
administration to provide evaluators with average scores awarded by other faculty members. This would
allow evaluators to compare their evaluations with others’. We are also working on providing students a clear
breakdown of how their evaluator form is used to arrive at a numerical score for their subjective evaluation.
We believe that creating transparency regarding the clerkship grading system will help allay the anxiety that
students feel.
2. Computer based testing (CBT) for first year students
During the first two years of medical school, students are traditionally tested with paper based examinations.
This creates significant anxiety and apprehension for students when they have to take their NBME licensing
exams - starting with Step 1- that are all electronic. 2 In order to facilitate this transition, SLU SOM is currently
working on administering first year tests in an electronic format. Other advantages of CBT are easier editing
of test items, enhancement of learning by using feedback from specific questions, and incorporation of
multimedia into questions.
3. Compressing preclinical curriculum
Students at SLU have often expressed concern about not having enough time to do rotations in a variety of
fields before applying for the match. The administration has now compressed the preclinical curriculum to
give students two extra months in which to schedule electives in different fields before applying for the
match. Picking a specialty is by far the most important and often the most difficult decision that medical
students make, and we feel this change would allow them to make a well informed choice.
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References
1. Takayama H, Grinsell R, Brock D et al. Is it appropriate to use core clerkship grades in the selection of
residents? Curr Surg 2006; 63(6): 391-6.
2. Hochlehnert A, Brass K, Moeltner A et al. Does medical student preferance of test format (computerbased
Vs paper-based) have an influence on performance? BMC Medical Education 2011; 11: 89-92
TEXAS A&M COLLEGE OF MEDICINE [Poster # 30]
Program/Project Title: M3/M4 Curricular Design at a Satellite Campus at Texas A&M COM
Presenter(s): Manik Aggarwal & Megan Ross
Email: manik.aggarwal1@gmail.com
At the Texas A&M College of Medicine, there are four clinical sites where students can complete their 3rd
and 4th years of medical school. Although there is a minimum standard and expectation that the COM
obliges by, each clinical campus has its own unique qualities and characteristics. This poster aims to
highlight the clinical opportunities at the Dallas site at Baylor University Medical Center. This clinical site has
been active for the last two years and continues to evolve to provide the best clinical experience and
exposure to medical students. Briefly, here is a synopsis.
M3 (limited flexibility, 48 academic weeks)
1. Surgery (12 wks): 1 month with the overnight trauma service embedded with the resident teaching service
(2 wks days, 2 wks nights); 1 month with the general service; 1 month on sub-specialty split into a pair of 2
wks (ENT, urology, CT service, ortho, vascular)
2. OB/GYN (6 wks): 2 wks inpatient gyn, 2 wks inpatient OB, 1 wk outpatient obgyn, 1 wk elective (MFM,
ultrasound, fertility clinic); 5 total overnight calls during the rotation
3. Pediatrics (6 wks): 3 wks outpatient, 2 wks inpatient, 1 wk nursery; admit patients daily while on inpatient
service
4. Family Medicine (6 wks): 5 wks outpatient, 1 wk inpatient; admit patients daily while on inpatient service
5. Psychiatry (6 wks): 6 wks of outpatient and inpatient care; also have a simultaneous 2 wk alcohol and drug
elective; admit patients once per week on inpatient service)
6. Internal Medicine (12 wks): 8 wks inpatient, 3 wks outpatient, 1 wk assessment/examinations; admit
patients while on call every fifth day during inpatient service
M4 (significant flexibility, 40 academic weeks)
1. Everyone (14 wks): Acting Internship (4 wks), ICU (4 wks), ED (4 wks), Professionalism (2 wks)
2. 12 weeks pertinent to your specialty (ie 4 wks of HemeOnc, ID and Cardiology each)
3. 14 weeks electives: clinical (any department), humanities or student self-initiated electives
4. 8 weeks of vacation: utilized for Step 2, interview traveling and time off
Equally important, the poster will highlight ways the poster will cover ways Texas A&M maintains equality
across campuses—including student-attending interaction, clerkship goals and objectives, assessments,
grading similarities.
TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY HEALTH SCIENCES CENTER - PAUL L. FOSTER SCHOOL OF MEDICINE
[Poster # 31]
Program/Project Title: Integration of Medical Spanish Throughout Medical School Curriculum
Presenter(s): Huy Nguyen & James Showery
Email: jennifer.pan@ttuhsc.edu
To better train doctors for a growing Spanish-speaking population, the Paul L. Foster School of Medicine
curriculum integrates medical Spanish and clinical sciences over a four-year period. Located in El Paso, TX,
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the Paul L. Foster School of Medicine at TTUHSC is the only four-year medical school on the U.S./Mexico
border and provides medical students the unique opportunity to improve Spanish communication skills
through a formal medical Spanish course and immersion experiences. In the medical Spanish course, first
and second-year students expand their medical vocabularies by translating components of the medical/
physical exam and practicing doctor-patient interactions with fluent or native speakers. The preclinical
curriculum also offers Spanish language immersion experiences through required clinical rotations at
community clinics and service learning activities in rural Hispanic communities. 3rd and 4th year students
practice Spanish language skills in their clinical rotations, gaining proficiency by interacting with Spanishspeaking
patients. With its integrated curriculum, TTUHSC PLFSOM hopes to graduate physicians who are
capable of providing language-concordant clinical care in Spanish.
THE UNIVERSITY OF TOLEDO COLLEGE OF MEDICINE [Poster # 32]
Program/Project Title: Pioneering Healthier Communities
Presenter(s): Frank Vento & James Whaley
Email: stephen.schaaf@rockets.utoledo.edu
The purpose of this program is to provide students a service learning opportunity. Service learning is defined
as a learning experience that combines community service with preparation and reflection. The Pioneering
Healthier Communities elective allow a first or second year medical student to volunteer at the South YMCA
at the Morse Center. Students volunteer for programs that are already established as apart of the YMCA’s
Pioneering Healthier Communities (PHC) program.
Students participate in a service learning opportunity focused in the Lifestyle Eating, Activities, and Attitudes
(LEAP) Program. Those who participate in LEAP are under the age of 21 and are referred by a physician.
The program focuses on a multidisciplinary approach to maintaining an optimal weight and healthy lifestyle.
Student volunteers in LEAP work as a health mentor responsible for assisting the children/young adults in a
group or individualized exercise routine. In addition, students also will be able to teach classes advising the
participants and their parents on proper nutrition.
This elective is a great opportunity for the YMCA and JCC of Great Toledo and UTCOM to partner together
to promote healthy living in the Toledo community. Students in this elective are able to see the importance
that volunteer service can have in promoting healthy behaviors. In addition, students are able to use and
strengthen their medical knowledge in order to promote healthy lifestyle changes for children/young adults.
THE UNIVERSITY OF TOLEDO COLLEGE OF MEDICINE [Poster # 33]
Program/Project Title: The University of Toledo Interprofessional Immersive Simulation Center and
Medical Student Education
Presenter(s): Frank Vento & James Whaley
Email: james.whaley@rockets.utoledo.edu
The University of Toledo Interprofessional Immersive Simulation Center (UT-IISC) aims to train health
professional students prior to involvement in patient care through the use of a broad spectrum of “state-ofthe-art”
clinical simulation and 3-D technologies. The UT-IISC will function as three separate, yet
integrated centers - The Progressive Anatomy & Surgical Skills Center, an Advanced Clinical Simulation
Center, and a Virtual Immersive Reality Center. With the combinational use of these centers, medical
students will be able to practice surgical skills, train in interdisciplinary patient care activities, and be
assessed for competency prior to involvement in patient care.
TULANE UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 34]
Program/Project Title: Innovating a Curricular Quality Improvement Elective
Presenter(s): Justin Halls, Carlos Oronce
Email: jhalls@tulane.edu
This poster will showcase Tulane's new medical education elective (soon to be available to 3rd and 4th year
students) that is designed to inspire academically minded research projects and school-wide introspection
aimed at quality improvement.
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In order to provide an example of student activities, this poster will present a student led research project
analyzing data from student feedback on Team Based Learning (TBL) activities at Tulane. The data being
presented will utilize student survey questionnaire items to identify what correlates most strongly with overall
high satisfaction scores and what items correlate most strongly with low satisfaction scores. The results are
then discussed in the context of prominent papers and medical education literature on quality in TBL
delivery.
UNIVERSIDAD CENTRAL DEL CARIBE [Poster # 35]
Program/Project Title: Advancing the Playing Field: A Look at How Technology and Play Can Change
the Future of Medical Education
Presenter(s): Jhonathan Duarte, José Vilaró, Cristina Villa, Wilson Veras & Elizabel De León
Email: elizabel.deleon@uccaribe.edu
Play combines all three aspects of learning: visual, auditory, and tactile/kinesthetic. An element of “play” is
an essential component for perennial learning to occur in all individuals. In the case of learning medicine,
lectures are commonly designed to favor one or maybe two types of learning styles, but seldom integrate all
three. The question is, why not integrate all three aspects using play? By using the Microsoft Kinect
gesture recognition device this project brings the element of play to the representation of fundamental
anatomical concepts, and thus engages students more strongly in the learning process. The purpose of this
project is to introduce the ludic andragogy, by using kinect interactive gaming sensor as a teaching tool in the
anatomy laboratory. In addition, this study will assess the effectiveness of this interactive device on student
performance.
UNIVERSIDAD CENTRAL DEL CARIBE [Poster # 36]
Program/Project Title: Empowering Under-served Women Through Education Against Breast Cancer
Presenter(s): Claudia Rodríguez Miranda, Fiorella Reyes Báez, Verónica Díaz Vidal, Nicolle Canales Ramos
& Ada Londoño Bello
Email: elizabel.deleon@uccaribe.edu
PINK (Professional women who Inspire, Nurture, and share their Knowledge with other women) is a studentgoverned
coalition of women from three generations with the mission to create a forum where professional
women serve as mentors and provide support, education, and outreach to the community by a two-step
process. First, professional women pledge to share their expertise, gained through work and professional
experience, with women who are in professional/graduate academic programs. Second, professional/
graduate female students pledge to provide psychological support, education, and outreach to at-risk
adolescent girls and under-served women through a mentoring program, and serve as positive role models
for them.
According to The Cancer Journal of Clinicians, the mortality in women beginning at age 40 with breast
cancer is reduced by 44% if early detected. PINK recognizes that education is crucial, especially for the
people who have limited access to health services. As part of our mission, PINK participated in a health fair
in the Dominican Republic last May 2013 to attend the needs of under-served women and assess their
knowledge about breast cancer and self-examinations. They were given a pre-test before the educative
session and a post-test afterwards. The results of both tests were sorted and analyzed. Breast examinations
were performed under the supervision of an OB/GYN and patients that needed further exams were advised
to visit their primary physician. PINK advocated the importance of monthly self-examinations in order to
detect breast tissue anomalies, and fomented yearly mammograms for women after the age of 40. The data
collected demonstrated that, even if the women knew about breast cancer, they actively learned more
information after the session. Ultimately, educating women about their health and possible risks empowers
them to prevent future progression of breast diseases.
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UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS FOR MEDICAL SCIENCES COLLEGE OF MEDICINE [Poster # 37]
Program/Project Title: Student Opinion on the Effectiveness of a Student Curriculum Committee in the
Era of Pre-Clinical Curriculum Change
Presenter(s): Parth Shah
Email: shahp.123@gmail.com
With the pre-clinical curriculum overhaul that the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences – College of
Medicine (UAMS-COM) has undergone, along with changes that medical schools across the nation are
experiencing or have already undergone, it is imperative that student opinion regarding these changes be
heard. The purpose of this study was to measure the effectiveness and opinion of a Student Liaison
Curriculum Committee (SLCC), defined as an organization besides the class executives that acts solely to
provide communication/feedback between the student body and the faculty regarding changes in the
curriculum. It surveyed students who only had the old curriculum for their entire pre-clinical years (Seniors),
students who had half of the old curriculum and half of the new curriculum (Juniors), a slightly modified
version of the new curriculum (Sophomores), and then the completely redesigned curriculum (Freshman).
The methods in which data was collected were through an eighteen-question survey. Statistical analysis was
done to show the change in opinion across the four classes. The data will be used to further modulate, guide,
and mold the pre-clinical curriculum in order to provide the best education possible to the students.
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, IRVINE SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 38]
Program/Project Title: Evaluating didactic methods for training medical students at The Faculty of
Medicine in Transylvania, Romania in the use of bedside ultrasound for clinical practice
Presenter(s): Cosmin Florescu
Email: florescu@uci.edu
Medical students' time is a precious commodity and learning activities should maximize time efficiency and
the amount of useful material that is learned. The purpose of this research project was to help the research
team and Dr. Chris Fox from UC Irvine School of Medicine determine whether podcasts or live-class
teaching best augments hands-on ultrasound teaching. O'Bannon et al. found that there was no significant
difference between using traditional lecture and podcast modalities in the realm of students seeking a
teaching credential. The research team wanted to see if this is the case for teaching bedside
ultrasonography to medical students (O'Bannon, 2011). The hypothesis was that the best method of teaching
ultrasound includes a combination of podcasts describing the anatomy, pathology, and sonography of organ
systems and hands-on sessions with the ultrasound machine.
The training was done in an international setting at the Faculty of Medicine at Transilvania University of
Brasov in Romania. Medical students were randomly assigned to one of three different study groups.
Students assigned to the first group watched a 50-minute live lecture and attended a 50-minute hands-on
bedside ultrasound training session. Students assigned to the second group watched a podcast that covered
the same material as the live lecture and attended a 50-minute hands-on bedside ultrasound training
session. Students assigned to the third group did not attend a lecture or watch a podcast but attended a 50-
minute bedside ultrasound training session. Each day, a different topic was covered; these were 1)
Introduction to ultrasound & knobology, 2) Pulmonary ultrasound, 3) Cardiac ultrasound, 4) Focused
Assessment with Sonography for Trauma (FAST) exam, and 5) Hepatobiliary ultrasound. Pre- and posttraining
evaluations were conducted to compare the three study groups. On the first day of the program,
students were randomly assigned an ID number and asked to complete a 20-question pre-training quiz that
covered basic ultrasound principles and the FAST exam. At the end of the ultrasound course, the students
completed a post-training quiz and the FAST exam for their practical test. Students' pre- to post-training quiz
scores in the lecture group increased from 33.6% to 72.6% correct, while those in the podcast group
increased from 40.7% to 75.5% correct, and the control group increased from 37.8% to 70%. Data analysis
(one-way ANOVA) showed that there were no statistically significant differences in quiz score improvement
among the three study groups. Similar analysis for the practical exam showed no statistically significant
differences among the three study groups. These results suggest that all three methods are equally effective
at improving student comprehension of bedside ultrasound and that faculty have the flexibility to use the one
that best suits their institution and student learning style.
O'Bannon, B.W., Lubke, J.K., Beard, J.L., and Britt, V.G. (2011), Using podcasts to replace lectures: Effects on student
achievement. 57; 1885-1892. Doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2011.04.0 0
21

UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA COLLEGE OF MEDICINE [Poster # 39]
Program/Project Title: Developing and Assessing the Efficacy of a Student Designed Summer Pre-
Matriculation Program at the UCF College of Medicine
Presenter(s): Bassam Ayoub & Elizabeth John
Email: Sayoub@knights.ucf.edu
Many medical students encounter transitional challenges at the start of their medical school careers.
Historically, these challenges are faced by both traditional students and non-traditional students, defined in
this study as students who have taken time away from academia or those who lacked previous exposure to
the medical sciences in their undergraduate careers. Faculty-led pre-matriculation programs have been
previously used at other institutions to address these challenges, with the majority being targeted towards
non-traditional students.
In this study, a novel online summer pre-matriculation program was developed and made available to all
incoming UCF 1st year medical students. This program consisted of six online Self Learning Modules (SLMs)
that highlighted the most important concepts of the first module of the UCF curriculum. There were two
components of this study that were of particular interest - students' academic performances and their
perceptions on how the pre-matriculation program prepared them for the beginning of medical school. First,
the students’ mastery of the content knowledge was gauged by administering a Pre- and Post-test. Results
demonstrated that a student-led program is an effective means of instruction, as evidenced by the
significantly better scores on the Post-test (n = 25, mean = 61.8%; SE = 3.7%) as compared to the Pre-test
(n = 25, mean = 37.0%; SE = 2.9%; p < 0.001). Furthermore, the performances of traditional and nontraditional
students were compared, and no significant differences were found between the two groups’
mastery of knowledge.
An additional component of the study included gauging the students’ perceptions of this pre-matriculation
program before the start of start of the academic year and after completion of the first module of the UCF
curriculum. It was found that 88% of participants found the instructional content of this program to be
organized and accurate. Moreover, 88% of participants believed that the continuation of this program would
be beneficial for future classes at the UCF College of Medicine. Finally, 62.5% of participants reported that
participation in this program had eased their transition into medical school and raised their awareness of
which specific concepts they will encounter at the start of their medical school experience. The data garnered
from this study is important because of the program’s unique ability to provide tutelage to all students in a
cost-effective manner. This study should be re-run on a larger sample size for more telling findings.
UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA COLLEGE OF MEDICINE [Poster # 40]
Program/Project Title: Implementation and Assessment of an Effective Peer-Facilitated Transition-to-
Clerkships (TTC) Program at the University of Central Florida College of Medicine (UCF COM)
Presenter(s): Rabia Zafar
Email: rabiazafar@gmail.com
Rabia Zafar, Ph.D.; Lori Boardman, M.D., MSc; Marcy Verduin, M.D.
University of Central Florida College of Medicine, 6850 Lake Nona Blvd. Orlando, FL 32827
The majority of U.S. medical schools largely follow a curriculum constituting two years of basic science
education preceding two years of clinical clerkships. Many students find themselves ill-prepared when
entering the clinical realm of medical education due to the vastly different learning environments of both
phases. To bridge this transition from pre-clinical to clinical years, several medical schools have introduced a
“transition course” prior to beginning clerkships. Existing transition courses, although partially successful,
have failed to fully mitigate the deficiency in clinical readiness due to their pedagogical approach. The
optimum transition course should be designed to cater to the unique needs of a student body, keeping in
mind the demands of their specific clerkship sites. As a new medical school, UCF COM is well-suited for the
implementation of such a program. In this study, we proposed to develop a peer-facilitated transition-toclerkships
program for rising third year students. We initially identified the unique needs of our students by
surveying charter class (class of 2013) students. Feedback from this survey was used to design an
interactive program to prepare rising third years in procedural skills, clinical infrastructure and student wellbeing.
Lastly, the effectiveness of this program was evaluated by surveying both students and clerkship
directors for perceived and actual readiness, respectively. There was a significant improvement in the mean
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ating of the program for class of 2014 (mean = 6) compared to class of 2013 (mean = 4.2), who were
offered a more general orientation. Clerkship directors rated student performance for class of 2014 at a
mean of 7.8 out of 10. Although we were successful in preparing students to handle the responsibilities of
student clerks, as assessed by self- and mentor-evaluation, we plan to continue to collect feedback and
outcome data in order to further improve student readiness for clinical training.
UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA COLLEGE OF MEDICINE [Poster # 41]
Program/Project Title: Peer Academic Coaching and its effect on academic performance at UCF
College of Medicine
Presenter(s): Jennifer Bazemore & Omar Shakeel
Email: jbazemore@knights.ucf.edu
The Student Academic Support Services at the University of Central Florida College of Medicine (UCF COM)
offers a variety of resources to help students learn as efficiently and effectively as possible. The Peer
Academic Coaching (PAC) program was a student-driven initiative that was created to support fellow
students as they adapt their study skills, test taking strategies, and personal habits to the demands of
medical education.
As part of our program, we developed several large group sessions including study skills sessions, test
review sessions, and Step 1 board review sessions. Additionally, several small group sessions were
facilitated and delivered. Student coaches also participated in individual coaching with other medical
students.
In this presentation, we will review the impact the PAC program has had on academics at UCF COM. We
will present student perception of the PAC program and its effect on academic improvement, including an
increase in USMLE Step 1 scores since the PAC program was implemented. Our goal is to convey that nearpeer
teaching is a powerful study tool to utilize in the medical curriculum.
UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA COLLEGE OF MEDICINE [Poster # 42]
Program/Project Title: Simulated Chaos: Adding Interactive Education to UCF COM’s Annual Global
Health Conference
Presenter(s): Erin Kane, Daniel Carlyle, Jennifer Bazemore & Omar Shakeel
Email: ekane@knights.ucf.edu
Purpose
The second annual Global Health Conference sponsored by MedPACt (Medical Students Providing Across
Continents) focused on disaster preparedness and emergency medicine, highlighted by a half day of
interactive simulations. Participants engaged in six different simulations designed with specific learning
objectives in mind to further the participant's knowledge of various maladies and situational decision-making
skills. Following each set of learning objectives, individual simulations were designed to include a short
briefing by student and physician instructors, a 15-20 minute simulated experience, and a debrief including
instructor feedback and participant Q&A. Simulations included a mass casualty scenario with rapid triage,
life-saving intervention with limited supplies (featuring interactive mannequins), grief counseling, burn
treatment, and patient stabilization and evacuation both with and without standard medical supplies. Three of
the scenarios followed a longitudinal story of one patient from the mass casualty scene through life-saving
treatment and culminating with counseling.
Players
Participation included UCF faculty, community physicians, local EMS crews, and students from universities
and medical schools across Florida. The simulations were designed and implemented by medical students.
Two Directors of Simulations designed and implemented the scenarios, including creation of learning
objectives, community contact, and participant training. Participation from the student body included Student
Instructors who were paired with physicians to lead simulations, voice actors to give life to the SimMann 3G
computerized mannequins, and moulaged triage and burn victims who brought varying degrees of life and
theatrical presence to their simulations. UCF COM faculty and community physicians led and participated in
five of the simulations, providing representation from several fields and areas of disaster response
experience. The Clinical Simulations Department provided training, supervision, and use of the computerized
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mannequins. Professional make-up artists brought movie magic to the triage scenario. Two community
members accustomed to working with our Clinical Skills Department volunteered their services as
standardized patients for grief counseling, bringing their theatrical skills and tears. Orange County Fire
Rescue provided a six person educational team to help students walk in the shoes of rescue personnel.
When not sounding the sirens to start the mass casualty scenario, the ALS team gave tours of the
ambulance during breaks. Last, but not least, the American Red Cross donated one of their refrigerated
trucks to help keep cold water and snacks readily available due to the hot Florida sun.
Program Impact
Ultimately, the coordination of the Central Florida medical community with student leadership provided a
unique, interactive learning experience for students from five Florida universities, including students from
medical, nursing, undergraduate, and graduate schools. The simulation format was developed to be
sustainable for future annual conferences and long-lasting community relationships.
UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA COLLEGE OF MEDICINE [Poster # 43]
Program/Project Title: UCF College of Medicine Global Health Conference "Emergency and Disaster
Medicine"
Presenter(s): Daniel Carlyle
Email: dcarlyle@knights.ucf.edu
The University Of Central Florida College Of Medicine's MedPACt (Medical Students Providing Across
Continents) organization is dedicated to providing education and mentoring for students to become actively
engaged within communities of need both locally and abroad, and to promote awareness and participation in
improving the health-related needs of people throughout the world. Our school holds a unique two day
conference each year that encourages collaboration between medical students across the state in order to
learn and share new initiatives in global health. This year, the conference theme was "Emergency and
Disaster Medicine" held on January 12th-13th, 2013. The conference featured Dr. Erik Noji, emergency
medicine attending and full time faculty at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, who coordinated
Domestic and International response at the CDC and Director of WHO's Collaborating Center for Disaster
Preparedness. Additionally, the conference featured speakers Anne Cummings, International Branch Chief in
the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Preparedness and Emergency Operations, and
Dr. Luis Vasquez who is champion of the Yantalo Foundation, a medical humanitarian aid to the people of
Peru. The conference also featured spectacular simulations placing students in real emergency situations
including triage, counseling, burns, rapid extractions, and more. Small group workshops allowed students to
interact and discuss about their experience during the conference with groups and speakers such as Medical
Reserve Corps, American Red Cross, Solving Mass Toxicity in Bangladesh, Emergency Communication
Networks, and Wilderness Medicine Workshop. Medical schools across Florida attended annually. Overall
the conference increased awareness of the major players and roles of the medical profession in Emergency
and Disaster Medicine.
UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 44]
Program/Project Title: Step 1 Pubquiz
Presenter(s): Regina Kwon
Email: regina.kwon@ucdenver.edu
The summertime Step 1 Pubquiz was begun at the University of Colorado School of Medicine as a relaxing,
collegial way to review the material learned in the first year of classes. This event was designed with multiple
objectives:
(a) to offer students a non-threatening way to start preparing for USMLE Step 1;
(b) to encourage socializing for students who, without classes, might isolate themselves; and
(c) to promote retention of first-year material using testing rather than rereading questions and self-score
their results.
The Step 1 Pubquiz was a well-received, low-cost method of supporting student learning. We believe that
this program can easily be replicated at other schools. To facilitate this, we have created a customizable
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toolkit that includes all materials needed plus a brief guide for setting up a Step 1 Pubquiz, and this toolkit will
be provided to any interested attendees.
UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA COLLEGE OF MEDICINE [Poster # 45]
Program/Project Title: Journal Club in Preclinical Years: Five Easy Steps to Success
Presenter(s): Samuel Lipten & John Lindsey
Email: samlipten@ufl.edu
While journal clubs are common among graduate students and medical residents, they are rare among preclinical
medical students. We started an informal journal club, with discussion of both a clinical case and an
original research article led by a rotating presenter. Our objectives were threefold: to improve clinical acumen
in a low-stress environment, to learn practical biostatistics, and to provide a forum for curiosity and wonder in
the first two years of medical school. In our poster we will describe the history and importance of journal
clubs in medical education, the lessons we've learned through starting our own journal club, and five key
pieces of advice for medical students wishing to found clubs at their own institution.
UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA COLLEGE OF MEDICINE [Poster # 46]
Program/Project Title: Peer Academic Enrichment Program
Presenter(s): Tene Sablo & Ella Uwaibi
Email: tsablo@ufl.edu
Starting medical school can be a difficult transition for students. They can struggle with academic
performance, developing effective study methods, adjusting to the rigorous pace, and dealing with the
psychological pressures of medical school. In order to help alleviate some of these difficulties, several
medical schools have developed pre-matriculation programs. Historically, pre-matriculation programs have
been residential summer programs that targeted students under-represented in medicine, non-traditional
students, and non-science majors.
A needs assessment for the University of Florida College of Medicine (UF COM) was conducted by
implementing focus groups comprised of students from the UF COM Class of 2016. Students were asked
questions about their experiences and opinions regarding their transition into their first year of medical
school. An analysis of the transcriptions of the focus groups suggested several common themes, including:
difficulties establishing studying techniques; struggles with finding a study group, and the need for academic
mentorship from upperclassmen. Results of the analysis also indicated that UF COM students would
recommend a longitudinal program over a traditional pre-matriculation program.
Therefore, in August 2013 we developed an optional on-campus Peer Academic Enrichment Program
(PAEP), which was made available to all incoming first year UF COM students. The Peer Academic
Enrichment Program is comprised of two components: (1) peer-led academic support workshops to teach
incoming students the study skills needed to foster success in the medical school curriculum; (2) a peer
mentorship component to provide incoming students with social/emotional support, encouragement, and
guidance.
On August 12, 2013 an academic skills workshop was offered to students in the UF COM Class of 2017.
Approximately 40 students attended. The first hour entailed a study skills lecture given by fourth year
students. During the second hour, the first year students had the opportunity to attend a small group session
based on their learning style. We have designed future academic support workshops that will be held at
several key academic transition points during the first year curriculum.
The peer mentorship component was designed to function as a support group for students. Approximately
70 second, third, and forth year students volunteered to participate in this program. These students were
asked to respond to biography questions, complete a learning style assessment, and also identify what
specialty areas they were interested in. The student mentors were then divided in to 16 teams. This
information was provided to the first year students in the class of 2017 so that they could choose the team
that they felt would best suit their needs. These teams will meet a minimum of four times during the school
year to discuss topics such as: (1) adjustment to medical school; (2) difficulty with coursework; (3) balancing
school with your personal life; (4) stress reduction.
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The participants evaluated the first session by rating several descriptive statements on a scale of 1-5 (1-
Strongly Disagree, 5-Strongly Agree). The means for all evaluation categories were greater than 4.4, which
indicated that the UF COM Peer Academic Enrichment Program was helpful in assisting students with their
transition to medical school.
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS COLLEGE OF MEDICINE [Poster # 47]
Program/Project Title: Initiative to Increase Medical Student Awareness of LGBT Health Disparities
Presenter(s): Marcus Gustafsson
Email: gustafssonbm@gmail.com
The AAMC Group on Diversity and Inclusion has made a call for inclusion of LGBT medical education in
undergraduate and graduate medical education. The goal is to address health disparities and discrimination
in the LGBT patient population. Faculty and students at UIC-COM have made a commitment to answer this
call through curricular revision and student driven initiatives. A great majority of medical students feel
unprepared to work with LGBT patients and are unfamiliar with LGBT issues.
Curriculum integration examples:
• Core clinical preparation course includes a session dedicated to LGBT education and an interactive
panel where students hear from LGBT patients about their health care experience.
• The Patient Centered Medicine program available to interested students includes a track focused on
HIV/AIDS.
Student initiatives examples:
• The student council at UIC-COM approved and added the Diversity in Healthcare track to the Leadership
Certificate program with a focus on health disparities in minority populations, including LGBT.
• Student organizations collaborated to hold a series of events themed "The LGBT patient."
• "Big sib" mentor program pairs incoming LGBT students with current LGBT student.
The effort includes further integration in clinical years and residency programs and more changes are
planned due to positive student on current initiatives.
UNIVERSITY OF IOWA ROY J. AND LUCILLE A. CARVER COLLEGE OF MEDICINE [Poster # 48]
Program/Project Title: Carver Rural Iowa Scholars Program (CRISP)
Presenter(s): Timothy Bahr, Anne Thompson & Tyler Bertroche
Email: joseph-bertroche@uiowa.edu
In order to address the growing shortage of rural physicians, the Carver College of Medicine created the
Carver Rural Iowa Scholars Program (CRISP) in 2012. This is a comprehensive program that provides
individualized learning opportunities and financial incentives ($80-100,000 in loan repayment) for medical
students to pursue careers in rural medicine. Graduates of the program are expected to practice in an
eligible community (population 20 miles from a city with a population >50,000) for
a minimum of five years after they complete a residency in pediatrics, family medicine, internal medicine,
general surgery, or psychiatry. Acceptance to the program is competitive and is currently limited to Iowa
residents. Applicants from Iowa accepted to the Carver College of Medicine for fall matriculation may apply
to the program in March. Each year, four applicants are selected.
Students begin the program in the summer prior to matriculation by shadowing a rural physician for at least 1
week. In the M1 year, students are required to shadow a rural physician and begin monthly interactions with
a physician mentor. Following the M1 year, students participate in a Medical Education in Community
Orientation program for 4-12 weeks. This program provides a stipend for students to observe and work with
physicians in rural settings. Students also participate in a 3-day field experience in rural medicine that covers
relevant public health concerns. In the pre-clinical curriculum, CRISP students are placed in small groups
with faculty interested in rural medicine as part of the Foundations of Clinical Practice courses. Students in
the program also complete a Rural Health and Agricultural Medicine course in their M2 year. A seminar
series offered by the Rural Medicine Interest Group offers additional enrichment four times each year.
CRISP students begin a community-based research project in their M2 year and present a Rural Capstone
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project before graduation. In the clinical years, CRISP participants are required to complete continuity of
care experiences at a rural site, participate in a telemedicine elective, and attend a state or national
conference in rural medicine.
UNIVERSITY OF IOWA ROY J. AND LUCILLE A. CARVER COLLEGE OF MEDICINE [Poster # 49]
Program/Project Title: Electronic Medical Records – Advanced Training for Medical Students
Presenter(s): Tyler Bertroche
Email: joseph-bertroche@uiowa.edu
Over the past several years, there has been a large push to train medical students in the use of electronic
medical records (EMR). The Carver College of Medicine recognized this need, and recently started a
program to better prepare our students for the use of EMR. The goal of this project is to: (1) ensure students
become proficient in the use of EMR, (2) allow students to contribute to the documentation of patient care
during their clinical years, and (3) facilitate an easy transition for students to use electronic records in
residency programs.
Beginning in the fall of 2013, medical students are introduced to the use of EMR during their first-year
courses. Case-based learning sessions have provided an ideal, small-group environment to teach the use of
EMR. In the past, these sessions relied solely on paper copies of our simulated cases. These cases now
exist as simulated patients using the actual electronic record program used by University of Iowa Hospitals
and Clinics. Students learn to access a patient’s prior and current medical history, interpret lab values, order
tests, and view radiographs. These learning sessions span the pre-clinical years and allow students to
become more proficient at using the electronic record. Third and fourth year students receive additional
training for the use of EMR. Students are allowed and expected to access patient information, document
clinic and consult notes, and help manage patient care using electronic records during their clinical rotations.
The EMR program has been designed to forward all student-written notes to the faculty for review and
feedback. In this way, students learn how to write comprehensive clinical notes under the guidance of staff
physicians.
Through these programs, the Carver College of Medicine has allowed students to learn how to use EMR in
both simulated and real-life settings. Students have responded positively to these changes, and the
opportunity to improve their skills in documenting patient care. The University will continue to monitor student
progress in developing EMR proficiency and solicit feedback from students and faculty.
UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY COLLEGE OF MEDICINE [Poster # 50]
Program/Project Title: Community Health Fair- Making Compassion our Tradition
Presenter(s): Kristina Pescosolido
Email: raevti.bole@uky.edu
The poster describes a brief history of the University of Kentucky College of Medicine's community health
fair. The fair has undergone over a decade of student lead transformation. A comparison between the
demographics from this year's fair and those from socio-economically targeted Lexington zip codes was
made in order to assess our effectiveness at reaching out to those medically under-served in our community.
Interviews from health fair participants gave insight into their immediate health concerns. The goal of this
poster is to highlight the Fair's most utilized services including the student run clinic, women's health
screenings, nutrition counseling, and dental screening, among many others. Equipped with this information
we hope that future classes will expand upon and continually improve the effectiveness of the fair.
UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI LEONARD M. MILLER SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 51]
Program/Project Title: DOCS Community Outreach Conference and Retreat
Presenter(s): Danielle Neuman, Nicole Stanford & Rimsky Denis
Email: drneuman@med.miami.edu
The Department of Community Service (DOCS) is a student run, non-profit organization of the University of
Miami Miller School of Medicine. DOCS develops, coordinates, and aids in the implementation of student-run
community health initiatives including nine health fairs, two weekly free clinics, and one community outreach
conference.
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The DOCS Community Outreach Conference and Florida Keys Retreat is an opportunity for student leaders
from different medical schools across the country to share their models of student-run community service
organizations, discuss some of the biggest challenges student-run organizations face, and get hands-on
experience at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine’s biggest health fair of the year in the Florida
Keys.
Through the DOCS Community Outreach Conference and Retreat, attendees have the opportunity to
discuss common challenges that medical student organizations across the nation face in planning and
implementing community health projects. This is accomplished through power-point presentations given by
each participating school, problem-solving breakout sessions, and interactive discussions. The large group
wrap-up allows all of the retreat attendees to gather at the end of the day to discuss the problems brought up
in each problem solving session and to collectively brainstorm solutions for these challenges. The attendees
also learn how they can implement the DOCS model to help strengthen their own medical schools’
community service efforts.
The Retreat also provides hands-on experience as attendees are paired-up with a DOCS student leader
while they volunteer at the DOCS Florida Keys Health Fairs. Retreat attendees are assigned to health fair
sites in Key West or Big Pine Key, where they volunteer at two different health stations. This experience will
demonstrate the ability of a comprehensive community screening health fair to deliver valuable care and
education to underserved communities and provide attendees with the opportunity to see the DOCS model
of community service in action while working closely with patients and faculty.
Thus far, forty-six students, representing twenty-one medical schools across the country and Canada, have
attended the DOCS Community Outreach Conference and Retreat. After the weekend, we hope that our
attendees find themselves empowered to implement the key concepts they learned at the conference in
order to make impactful changes at their respective schools and communities.
UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA MEDICAL SCHOOL, TWIN CITIES [Poster # 52]
Program/Project Title: Phillips Neighborhood Clinic: Providing Health Care Access to the Underinsured
Presenter(s): Joseph Valentin
Email: valen243@umn.edu
The Phillips Neighborhood Clinic (PNC) is a free clinic located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. There are two
objectives in the clinic’s mission: to provide health care access for the underinsured population in the
Minneapolis area and to offer University of Minnesota health professional students the skills and experience
to serve patients who are in need of medical access. PNC operates on Mondays and Wednesdays during
the evenings, it is ran by a team of volunteer students and professionals from the schools of Medicine,
Physical Therapy, Pharmacy, Nursing and Public Health. Together all of these volunteers, with the
supervision of licensed clinicians, are able to provide clinical services such as: blood pressure monitoring,
mental health, women’ health, pediatrics, physical exams, laboratory testing and many others. The clinic
opened its doors in 2003, operating one night per week. However, in 2009 PNC started providing service two
nights per week serving around 1000 patients per year. This clinic is especially important for the Hispanic
community living in Minneapolis since for many of them English is not their native language, therefore PNC
provides Spanish interpreters to many of these immigrants so they can feel that language is not a barrier for
health care access. Phillips Neighborhood Clinic has had a tremendous impact on the underinsured
Minneapolis community, especially the Latino population, for the past 10 years. It is my goal to highlight
PNC’s impact for its patients, how its model has succeeded and can be used in other parts of the country to
serve those in need of accessible and appropriate free health care services.
UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 53]
Program/Project Title: Community Health Advocacy Project
Presenter(s): Wilfreda J. Lindsey
Email: wlindsey@umc.edu
INTRODUCTION. Mississippi leads the nation in many chronic diseases. The limited number of primary care
providers coupled with low health literacy in many regions in the state exacerbates this issue. The
community health advocacy (CHA) project was begun to reduce health disparities in the state of Mississippi
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y empowering the community and by partnering with academic medical centers and faith-based
communities. The goal of community health advocacy is to train individuals who will increase health
awareness and literacy leading to the improved health status of individuals within the community. Students
were given basic clinical training such as taking blood pressure, blood glucose levels, and calculating body
mass index. Students were also given skills in areas such as addressing health literacy, learning to read
prescriptions, planning healthy and balanced meal portions, and helping individuals gain access to health
care. The ultimate goal of the CHA program is to enable the students to be able to train others to serve as
community health advocates throughout the state so that lay community health advocates can work with
health care professionals on health literacy. These trained lay community advocates will be able to perform
health screenings for obesity, diabetes, hypertension, and blood fat abnormalities and will be able to refer
those patients requiring healthcare to accessible facilities. One hundred and thirty-five medical students have
been trained and over ten community sessions have been scheduled.
METHODS. Students attended two lectures detailing the aspects of the community health advocacy program
before receiving hands on training. Clinical skills were practiced on other medical students. Students took
each other’s’ blood pressure, blood glucose, and body mass index. Students also received nutrition training
and received community health advocate certificates after demonstrating mastery of the assigned tasks.
RESULTS. At the completion of the course, medical students were trained community health advocates with
an increased knowledge of the state's chief disease processes as well as the disease's epidemiology.
CONCLUSION. Medical students attended detailed lectures and received hands-on training to become
Community Health Advocates. Upon successful completion of the Community Health Advocacy program,
students were equipped to measure blood pressure, blood glucose levels, and body mass index, as well as
give nutritional counsel. Students are now in the process of getting trained to lead community sessions that
will improve health literacy and address health disparities throughout Mississippi.
UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 54]
Program/Project Title: Dynamics of a Multidisciplinary Student Run Free Clinic
Presenter(s): Clark Walker
Email: cwalker2@umc.edu
The Jackson Free Clinic is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation operated by 18 medical students of the
University of Mississippi Medical Center School of Medicine, along with volunteer physicians from the local
community. The student-run Jackson Free Clinic was created to increase access to health care and assist in
restoring health to an underserved population. A little over one year ago the 18 medical students who made
up the board of directors of the JFC had a vision to expand not only the physical structure of the free clinic,
but also the services provided. After launching a capital campaign to renovate and expand the clinic and
raising over $300,000, the board of directors set their sights on further meeting the needs of their patient
population by incorporating the Schools of Dentistry, Nursing, Pharmacy, and School of Health Related
Professions (PT/OT) into the board of directors and as a part of the services provided at the Jackson Free
Clinic. As of today, the Jackson Free Clinic has student representatives from the Schools of Dentistry,
Nursing, Pharmacy, and Health Related Professions who are a part of the board of directors and volunteer
weekly. Patients of the JFC now have access to a multitude of medical services all provided free of charge
by students and local community physicians who volunteer each week. The original vision of the 18 medical
student board members to broaden the scope of healthcare services provided at the JFC has been
implemented and will continue to grow as the current board pursues the incorporation of even more
healthcare disciplines into the Jackson Free Clinic to further serve their patients.
UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI MEDICAL CENTER [Poster # 55]
Program/Project Title: Incorporating Business Medicine Preparedness in the Medical Curriculum
Presenter(s): Megan Storm
Email: Mstorm@umc.edu
Incorporating Business Medicine Preparedness into the Medical Curriculum
Storm, MV; Husband, LD.
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Problem:
Most medical school curriculums only provide basic science and clinical education, without formal exposure
to practical business elements relevant to medicine (e.g., billing, reimbursement payment models, or practice
management and expenses). 1 Not understanding medical business allows inappropriate financial planning
and decreased efficiency, which ultimately increases patient care costs. 2
Objective:
The University of Mississippi Medical Center’s (UMMC) Department of Family Medicine’s business in
medicine workshop provides every UMMC medical student exposure to the interplay between insurance,
coding, and patient care costs as well as the basics of practice management.
Program Description:
Starting in 2002, UMMC’s Department of Family Medicine implemented a business in medicine workshop as
part of the clerkship orientation. The workshop involves lectures, problem-based learning, and scenariobased
learning.
The business in medicine workshop starts with an introduction to International Classifications of Diseases-
9th Revision (ICD-9) and Current Procedural Terminology coding systems and their use in patient
documentation and reimbursement. Students then learn the basic billing process by discussing allowable
charges, non-allowable amount, and contractual adjustments. A hypothetical patient bill with different
insurance companies (i.e. Medicaid, Medicare, BCBS, United HC, Cigna, Uninsured) is used to enrich
discussion and demonstrate how insurance impacts business and patients. Students learn why CPT code
reimbursement varies between companies. An overview of insurance negotiations helps students understand
how to tailor these negotiations to their future practices, when to charge more or less for procedures, and
how cash discounts can legally help the uninsured. These discussions are reinforced through Excel
examples calculating sample payouts from different companies. Discussion on payment models including fee
for service, diagnosis related groups, value based payment modifier, and the Accountable Care Act help
students learn incentives, costs, advantages and disadvantages for different models. They receive an
overview of payer classes and how percentages of charge payer mix predict expected income, serve as a
model for budgeting expenses, as well as how to recognize problems if not receiving expected amounts.
Excel examples are applied to convey the importance of payer mix analysis. Students receive an overview of
expected expenses of running a practice and what percent of income should be spent on human resources,
facilities, insurance and marketing. Students learn how efficiency and work flow in a clinic can reduce overall
costs, the importance of quality staff members, which staff members qualify for hourly wage vs. exempt
employees, how to manage overtime pay, and how nurse practitioners are utilized in practice.
After learning the elements of the business-side of medicine students are introduced to the basics of medical
billing. A certified medical coder discusses the purpose of medical coding, the importance of documentation,
and how the coding process functions. Students receive a sample doctor’s note and instructions on how to
extract information from the note to determine the appropriate level of service for the visit. Afterwards,
students create their own note based on a hypothetical patient visit. Students code the note individually, then
as a group to see how leaving out details could change the level of service. The coding exercises culminate
when students are given another note and asked to quickly assess the level of service based on their current
knowledge.
Once coding is complete, students apply their knowledge to a hypothetical patient. Small groups are formed,
and each is provided with an imaginary $3500, list of procedure and laboratory costs, patient age, and chief
complaint. Groups develop a differential diagnosis, a plan, and decide which tests to order ranging from
history, physical exam, x-rays, CT scans, various blood work and laboratory tests. Students are encouraged
to think about which tests are most appropriate given the patient information and your differential diagnoses.
Conclusion:
Through various learning methods and activities, students are exposed to basic business elements they
need in the medical field. Students have a broader understanding of aspects of medical billing,
reimbursement, payment models and healthcare policy, payer mix analysis, expenses and budgeting,
organizing a practice, the importance of documentation, and overall costs of patient care.
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References:
1.(2013) Medical School Graduation Questionnaire 2013 All Schools Summary Report. AAMC. Retrieved
September 16, 2013 from
https://www.aamc.org/download/350998/data/2013gqallschoolssummaryreport.pdf. July 2013.
2.Kim, J. (2012, May/June) Teaching Medical Students about Management, Business, and Leadership. PEJ
May/June 2012. Retrieved September 16, 2013 from http://www.physicianleaders.org/
UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 56]
Program/Project Title: Population Health Course at University of Mississippi
Presenter(s): Turner Brown
Email: jtbrown@umc.edu
Physicians with a population health perspective are able not only to diagnose and treat illness but also to act
on opportunities to prevent disease and promote health in their patients and to protect the health of the
public. “Population Health, Disease Prevention and Health Promotion” is a one-semester course designed to
achieve this by informing first year students of the unique challenges facing Mississippi and equip them to
better serve the state as “population health-minded” clinicians. The course has three components:
1. Self-guided learning – Students work through twelve self-study modules. Each module addresses
diseases, conditions or health risk behaviors of public health importance in Mississippi and the U.S. Students
must access online journal articles and reports, state health department websites, and online data sources to
answer questions and complete each module.
2. Integrative Case – Small mixed groups of medical and pharmacy students are allocated a topic of public
health importance and are required to meet with faculty, do background research, and prepare a poster for
presentation. The aim of this component is to use a clinical case to illustrate the interrelatedness of
preclinical, clinical and public health knowledge and practice – in particular, the relevance of public health
and epidemiology to clinical practice. This activity links students with mentors from different areas
(preclinical, clinical, and public health). Additionally, the case gives students experience in presentation skills
and inter-professional communication.
3. Community Health Advocacy (CHA) Training – CHA training is a practical component that teaches
students how to conduct basic health screening tests for obesity, diabetes, hypertension and blood lipid
abnormalities, and refer those patients requiring health care to accessible health facilities. Students learn to
check blood pressure, perform blood glucose tests, measure BMI, and how to give general nutrition advice.
Following course completion, students are certified to participate in one (or more) of the various health fairs
in the local area and teach health advocacy courses in the community.
Traditionally, medical school teaches students how to diagnose and treat illness in individual patients. This
course adds a population health perspective and “plants the seed” of disease prevention and health
promotion. By introducing students to public health programs, resources and data, students are better
equipped to interact with public health agencies and become involved with programs and interventions that
address the important public health issues in the state. Additionally, CHA training provides students a
patient-centered, practical experience prior to clinical rotations. Finally, interaction with physician mentors
and practice with group presentation encourages professionalism and communication.
UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 57]
Program/Project Title: Students Leading Students: A Model for Increasing Student Professionalism
Presenter(s): Summer Bailey (with help from Dr. Peggy Davis)
Email: ssbailey@umc.edu
In 2005, the University of Mississippi Medical Center established a Professionalism subcommittee, as a part
of the School of Medicine Curriculum Committee, with the charge of organizing and promoting
professionalism throughout the medical school curriculum. In 2008, a medical student was appointed to the
committee. The value of this student’s insight was quickly recognized. The following year another medical
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student who expressed interest in professionalism and leadership was invited to join. This student’s work
resulted in establishment of the Student Professionalism Project (SPP) for M1 students with a goal to help
ease the M1 transition into the demanding environment of professional school. Fueled by positive student
response, especially regarding peer leadership, the decision was made to add more student members to the
Professionalism subcommittee. All student members have a role in teaching and participation in some
capacity. We believe that increasing student participation in professionalism activities has brought new
energy and vigor to the cause of professionalism. The Student Professionalism Project, in which student
leaders model and teach professional behavior, is now an established part of the M1 curriculum. Student
interest in participating in other professionalism activities, such as the institution’s Quality Enhancement
Program which also has an emphasis on professionalism is also on the upswing.
In conclusion, the Student Professionalism Project has evolved from the work of an individual student to an
established student group with responsibility for part of the M1 curriculum. Encouraging student leaders to
teach and exemplify professional behavior among peers has brought about a positive momentum, evidenced
by increased interest in participation among freshmen medical students. This perpetuation of student
professionalism will continue to foster the objectives and goals of the Professionalism Project over the years
to come.
UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 58]
Program/Project Title: The Health Partnership Program: Affecting Healthy Change Using Motivational
Interviewing
Presenter(s): Hal Flowers & Elliott Welford
Email: rhflowers@umc.edu, ewelford@umc.edu
As the obesity epidemic grows in our country, primary care clinics will continue to be at the forefront of
prevention and treatment of obesity and its associated chronic diseases. Experimentally validated methods
to help patients create healthy change in their lives, such as Motivational Interviewing (MI), will be most
useful in helping patients in these settings. In this context, students of the University of Mississippi Medical
Center (UMMC) have established the Health Partnership Program, which has two components: a nine-hour
Motivational Interviewing course for students, and a 10-session partnership program that pairs student and
patient. MI is a patient-centered counseling approach that is particularly useful for medical students, whose
clinic knowledge may be limited by lack of experience but whose empathy and desire to affect change is
fresh and abundant. The patients that our students pair with are from the Jackson Free Clinic, run by
students from UMMC. This partnership component of the program consists of ten counseling sessions, both
over the phone and in the clinic, at regular intervals over six months, and it seeks to empower patients to be
the agents of healthy changes in their lives. Empirical measures of the program’s efficacy will be weight and
waist circumference, with the prediction that decreases in all measures will be seen after the six-month
program. This presentation will focus on the program’s implementation, successes, obstacles, and future.
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH DAKOTA SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AND HEALTH SCIENCE [Poster # 59]
Program/Project Title: LCME Independent Student Analysis
Presenter(s): Craig Meiers, Anna Cymbaluk, Andrew Mills, Michael Jordan & Kenneth Ruit
Email: craig.meiers@my.und.edu
An Independent Student Analysis for our upcoming LCME accreditation visit displaying how the students
organized themselves as well as the required steps and successful implementation of the student survey,
data analysis, and ISA report development. This is important information for students who are about to enter
into this process.
UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA HEALTH SCIENCES CENTER COLLEGE OF MEDICINE [Poster # 60]
Program/Project Title: Changing to a systems-based curriculum: A four year retrospective
Presenter(s): Ryan Makipour, Phillip Bonney & Bahar Malakouti
Email: ryan-makipour@ouhsc.edu
In 2009 the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center College of Medicine (OUCOM) changed its
curriculum to systems-based curriculum. This year, OUCOM will be graduating its first class to complete their
medical education under the new systems-based curriculum. Changes to the curriculum included: 1) the
32

eplacement of semester long courses with the introduction of 4- to 10-week systems courses, 2) switching
to a pass/fail/honors grading system for preclinical courses, 3) the addition of National Board of Medical
Examiners (NBME) finals for each systems-based course, and 4) the addition of a 10-week capstone course
with a Cumulative Basic Sciences Exam (CBSE) final exam to conclude preclinical courses. After the initial
curriculum change, adjustments included increasing the number of NBME finals for systems based courses,
resulting in the class of 2016 taking a NBME final for every systems-based course. Increases in average
USMLE Step 1 scores and pass rates (when compared to the six-year average of the traditional curriculum)
were seen after the implementation of the new curriculum. The USMLE Step 1 data for Classes of 2014 and
2015 exhibit the implementation of the systems based curriculum, as compared to the six-year average for
the Classes of 2007-2013. Among first time test takers, the Classes of 2014 and 2015 saw a 5% and 7%,
increase in average USMLE Step 1 score compared to the six-year OUCOM score, respectively. Pass rate
jumped from 91% (traditional curriculum) to 96% and 98% (systems-based curriculum). The data illustrates
the greatest increase the year after initial implementation of the new curriculum; furthermore, progress was
made in the subsequent year due to adjustments to the curriculum.
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA HEALTH MORSANI COLLEGE OF MEDICINE [Poster # 61]
Program/Project Title: SuperUtilizer Project
Presenter(s): Alexandra Printz
Email: aprintz@health.usf.edu
Working with administration, several students created a `Superutilizer Project' added to the 3rd year
Longitudinal Primary Care Clerkship curriculum. The objective of this project was for students to identify a
`superutilizer' at their family practice. Patients were identified based on the Camden Coalition criteria, which
include multiple chronic conditions and more than 3 ER visits or inpatient admissions in the past 6 months.
Students then perform a home visit, working with nurses and social workers to assess the patient's needs
and limitations in accessing care. If the patient is interested, the team enrolls them in the Camden Coalition
project and begins to provide them with the resources they need to improve their health and lower their
healthcare utilization.
For students who are interested in being more involved, an option was created to have students spend 50%
of their Longitudinal Family Practice experience with the `Superutilizer Project'. This allows those students to
work more closely with the project's interdisciplinary team, and serve as a `health coach' for patients. In this
role students perform weekly home visits, accompany patients to appointments, and help them navigate their
health.
By the end of the year we will have brought the `Hot Spotter' model to over a dozen providers in the
community, and had students work one on one with over 20 patients living with chronic disease. Meanwhile,
student leaders work to collect data to measure the impact of the project on the healthcare utilization of our
`superutilizers'.
Our poster will include on overview of the concept of 'Hot Spotters', and a step-by-step of how we
implemented the program.
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA HEALTH MORSANI COLLEGE OF MEDICINE [Poster # 62]
Program/Project Title: USF Health Veterans Success Network
Presenter(s): Tom Fowler, Josiah Hill & Anthony Desantis
Email: tfowler2@health.usf.edu
The Tillman Military Scholars at USF Morsani College of Medicine (MCOM) saw a need to 1) increase
education about veterans’ health issues among health professions students 2) increase educational avenues
for veterans desiring a career in healthcare and 3) create a veteran-focused professional development
community. Working off of the AAMC's collaboration with the Joining Forces Initiative, we are creating a
program that will strategically ease the transition of veterans into a healthcare career. Called the USF Health
Veterans Success Network, the program has formalized partnerships with the Department of Veterans
Affairs, the Pat Tillman Foundation, and the Got Your 6 Foundation. We plan to launch the initiative in
November on Veterans Day weekend.
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Through education, interpersonal engagement, and mentorship, the USF Health Veterans Success Network
will enhance the academic journey of healthcare professions students and faculty, helping us provide
enhanced care to the community of veterans which we have the honor to serve.
UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL CENTER SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL SCHOOL
[Poster # 63]
Program/Project Title: Innovating Healthcare Solutions (IHS) @ UT Southwestern
Presenter(s): Anu Atluru
Email: a.atluru@gmail.com
Academic and extracurricular opportunities in healthcare innovation at UTSW have expanded rapidly,
supporting the strong interest from students and the need for physician-innovators in the evolving U.S.
healthcare system. The Innovating Healthcare Solutions program (IHS) is a year-long, experiential program,
medical and graduate students at UTSW acquire the skills and mindset required to accurately assess
problems and develop feasible solutions in a team based environment. Using these skills and the aid of
course facilitators and faculty advisors, students tackle real world healthcare challenges locally and abroad
by designing products (Product Track) or implementing community-based initiatives (Initiative Track). The
program has formal partnerships with the Office of Global Health, Community Action & Research, Office of
Quality Improvement, and the Dallas BioCenter, as well as UT Arlington Engineering and UT Dallas
Business, allowing the creation of truly multi-disciplinary project teams. By formalizing and broadening
access to institutional and industry support, the impact of experiential education and the likelihood of success
for teams is enhanced. A new elective, Clinical Needs-Finding, was piloted this summer and serves two
roles. First, medical students learn to effectively identify, understand, and evaluate unmet clinical needs
during an immersive clinical experience (volunteering at the ER, medical service trips, clinical rotations),
allowing them to, at the very least, develop an innovative mindset that stays with them throughout their
residencies and practice as physicians. The unmet needs generated through the elective also provide a
continuous pipeline of challenges to be tackled by the students themselves and/or teams in the IHS course.
Currently, IHS projects are often continued as capstone projects for the existing M.D. distinction programs in
Global Health and Community Action & Research. By 2016, we aim to grow the suite of healthcare
innovation courses offered at UTSW and to enable establishment of a separate, one of a kind M.D.
distinction program in Clinical Innovation.
UNIVERSITY OF UTAH SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 64]
Program/Project Title: Interprofessional Education in Health Sciences at the University of Utah
Presenter(s): Matt Lamont & Erin Anstadt
Email: m.lamont@hsc.utah.edu
At the University of Utah, a program has been implemented among health sciences to promote
interprofessional learning and teamwork. Interprofessional Education (IPE), is a required course that offers
collaborative experiences during each of the four years of medical school. During these experiences, we
work with students from nursing, PA, pharmacy, PT, and OT. We gain better insight into their roles, and
learn how to better serve patients as a team. Recently, a new clinic has been established by University of
Utah Healthcare, which offers care to underserved members of our community. This clinic is partially staffed
by students from the varied health sciences. This offers a chance for students to apply the skills acquired in
IPE. The goal for IPE is to educate future health professionals in order to improve quality of care by utilizing
the collective skills of the entire health care team.
UNIVERSITY OF UTAH SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 65]
Program/Project Title: Quantitative Analysis of Ophthalmological Surgical Education During Medical
School and Residency
Presenter(s): Maximilian Padilla, Sam Francis, Dustin Nash, Adam Bracken, Matt Lamont & Erin Anstadt
Email: maximilianrpadilla413@gmail.com
Exposure to the operating room during 3rd and 4th year of medical school can be widely variable between
surgical subspecialities. The first goal of this project was to quantify the amount of time that students spend
in the operating room during Ophthalmology rotations, and other surgical subspecialty rotations.
34

There is also a great deal of variability in the length of medical school and residencies in other countries.
The amount of time that students spend in the Operating room, as well as the amount of surgical cases that
are performed during a residency can be very different. We compared the length and scope of medical
school and residency training in Ophthalmology in the United States compared to nine other countries. To
do this we focused on training in Ophthalmology and compare the length and depth of clinical and surgical
education in the United States to that of prospective Ophthalmologists in the many different parts of the
world.
UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT COLLEGE OF MEDICINE [Poster # 66]
Program/Project Title: Rural Candidates Applications to Medical School
Presenter(s): Peter Wingfield & Priyanka Chilakamarri
Email: peter.wingfield@med.uvm.edu
The AAMC has drawn attention to the significant problem of finding physicians who want to practice in rural
areas of the US. Research has previously shown that students who come from rural areas are more likely to
return and practice in rural areas after becoming physicians than are students from urban areas. The state of
Vermont has a large rural population. The University of Vermont medical college offers approximately 25-
30% of its medical college places to "In-State" applicants. This project looks at whether the student body at
UVM medical college has a higher proportion of "rural" applicants than the national average, and also at
whether these students have a higher likelihood of acceptance into the program.
VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 67]
Program/Project Title: Medical Education in the Digital Age: A need for social media instruction
Presenter(s): Vanessa Kennedy & Shannon Koh
Email: vanessa.e.kennedy@vanderbilt.edu
Background:
In the last several years, social media platforms, featuring user-created content and communication, have
experienced dramatic expansion. Recently, the American College of Physicians released a position paper
describing the role of social media in the public perception of physician behavior, and provided
recommendations on how social media may be used professionally. However, there is limited understanding
on how social media reflects on the professionalism of medical students, and no official policy on what
constitutes professional conduct for a medical student in the digital environment.
Methods:
We distributed surveys regarding social media, medical education, and professionalism to both residency
program directors and medical students and Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. 56 residency program
directors responded, and 184 medical responded (20.7% MS1, 26.2% MS2, 23.4% MS3, 25% MS4, 4.9%
other).
Results:
Medical students are active participants in social media. 95.1% (175/184) of medical students report having a
social media profile, and 85.3% (157/184) are active on social media at least once per day. At Vanderbilt,
16.1% (9/56) of residency program directors reported looking up applicants on social media. Of these, 44.4%
(4/9) reported that their decision was influenced by the applicant’s social media activity. 50% (2/4) reported a
negative influence, while 50% (2/4) reported a positive influence. Overall, 82.1% (46/56) of program directors
feel that social media is a reflection of professionalism, compared to only 50.5% (93/184) of medical
students. Interestingly, the degree to which students consider social media presence a reflection of
professionalism appears to decrease with training. 58.1% (50/86) of pre-clinical (MS1, MS2) students
reported that social media presence reflects professionalism, compared to 42.7% (38/89) of clinical (MS3,
MS4) students. Most medical students appear to manage their social media professionalism profiles by
restricting content; 70.1% (129/194) reported that they will delete or alter their profiles when applying to
residency programs. Overall, 68.5% (126/184) of medical students and 83.9% (47/56) of program directors
believe that medical students should be instructed on how to use social media professionally.
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Conclusion:
As social media is becoming an increasingly common avenue of communication and personal expression,
medical educators must recognize that it does and will continue to reflect on an applicant’s professionalism.
This does not, however, imply that medical students should avoid social media altogether—as shown in the
above data, a student’s social media presence has the potential to reflect positively on their professionalism.
Instead, instruction should be given to medical students on how to shape a professional social media
presence, much in the way instruction would be given on how to prepare a professional CV. Currently, there
are no established guidelines regarding social media presence and medical education. As part of educating
medical students on digital professionalism, a unified consensus should be reached regarding what is and is
not appropriate for medical trainees to communicate through social media.
WAKE FOREST SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 68]
Program/Project Title: Emergency Medicine in the Third Year Curriculum
Presenter(s): Daniel Oldroyd & Charlie Pitts
Email: doldroyd@wakehealth.edu
An Emergency Medicine curriculum in the third year of medical school serves to benefit the student, staff,
faculty, and institution as a whole. In the Emergency Department, students are given the unique opportunity
to approach patients with general complaints and broad differential diagnoses in an acute care setting.
While inpatient medicine grants daily opportunities to manage patients’ problems, the primary care setting of
the emergency department allows students to triage patients, make new diagnoses, and to manage these
new diagnoses. In the ED, students gain unique exposure to procedures, treatment algorithms,
interdisciplinary teams, cost conscious decision making, and some health policies. Students' presence
encourages an education-oriented atmosphere, and provides faculty and staff additional leadership and
teaching opportunities. Currently, about 33% of US allopathic medical schools have a required third year
rotation in Emergency Medicine. Given the advantages mentioned above, we believe this rotation to be
greatly beneficial to our students and institution. For our poster, we plan to outline the recommendations as
given in current literature on the subject, and compare those recommendations to the current curriculum that
is in place at the Wake Forest School of Medicine. By doing so, we hope to share the potential benefits of
implementing such a curriculum at other institutions, as well as some logistical information in regard to the
implementation of our EM curriculum.
WAYNE STATE UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 69]
Program/Project Title: A Promising Pipeline to Medical Education: The Detroit Premedical Scholars
Program
Presenter(s): Osamuedemen Iyoha, Robert Guglielmo & Tahsin Khundkar
Email: oiyoha@med.wayne.edu
Increasing the number of underrepresented minorities in medical education is of critical importance, as this
directly and positively impacts the quality of patient care, health outcomes, and health disparities. Through its
many pipeline programs, the Office of Diversity and Inclusion (ODI) at Wayne State University School of
Medicine is helping to increase the number of students who represent the diversity of our global community.
The Detroit Premedical Scholars Program (DPSP) is a 6 week long summer enrichment program for rising
high school seniors within the Detroit Public School system. This program, whose purpose is to introduce
interested students from the inner city to the various clinical aspects of medicine as well as helping them to
navigate the pathway towards a career in medicine. Student participants receive a summer stipend to assist
with their food and transportation needs throughout the program. Post-program follow up is done to track
student progress and provide additional resources as needed.
We believe that this program is a noteworthy initiative for other institutions to implement because it
addresses a major concern in medical education and is reproducible. While the hardest part of implementing
this initiative is finding funding, the ODI have successfully secured funding through support from various
community foundations including the Detroit Public Schools Foundation and the Sinai Grace Foundation.
Plans are currently underway to duplicate this model in other counties of Southeastern Michigan in the
future. A pipeline program such as this one not only provides productive resources for the youth of a
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community, it also makes the pathway to medicine more accessible to underrepresented minorities who
otherwise would not pursue a career a medicine.
WAYNE STATE UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 70]
Program/Project Title: Health and Wellness Curriculum
Presenter(s): Tahsin Khundkar, Robert Guglielmo, Osamuedemen Iyoha
Email: tkhundka@med.wayne.edu
The Health and Wellness Program with the motto “feel well, do well,” aims that each student optimizes
healthy coping strategies, finds good balance and achieves academic success throughout medical school.
The wellness program is divided into five sections: Physical, Psychological, Academic, Social and
Community. Student representatives, elected by the general student senate, participate on the planning
committee for the wellness program and assist in the coordination of social events, workshops, speakers and
other relevant activities. Furthermore, this committee has planned a Wellness Week for January, where there
will be multiple events everyday ranging from yoga classes to lectures on mindfulness and ending with a
“wellness fair” as a finale. In addition, the wellness program presents on important wellness topics and
facilitates fitness classes throughout the year. For student convenience, the Campus Counseling and
Psychological services are hosted on the medical campus as part of the “Let’s Talk” program and students
are encouraged to just drop in.
There is a school-wide push to participate in these wellness activities and there is a considerable positive
shift in culture. Students are encouraged to become a “Health and Wellness Ambassador” by attending 15
seminars over 4 years. This accomplishment is to be recognized at the annual Medical Student Recognition
Program. The School of Medicine Co-Curricular Program also gives credit for some of these activities.
In the last AAMC national meeting, OSR representatives gathered what other schools are doing to ensure
and promote student wellness. Since then, our office of student affairs has set in place a robust Health and
Wellness curriculum and we are excited to share our progress with other schools at this year’s AAMC
national meeting.
YALE UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE [Poster # 71]
Program/Project Title: Community-targeted Health Reform and ACA Implementation Education
Presenter(s): Lorenzo R. Sewanan, Matthew L. Meizlish, Priscilla Wang & Ankit Kansal
Email: lorenzo.sewanan@yale.edu
On October 1, millions of people can have access to health insurance through the implemented ACA health
insurance exchange marketplace, but only if they know about it. Over the past year, we’ve developed a
campaign “Students for a Better Healthcare System” at Yale to bring short, accessible, understandable
presentations to the New Haven community about how the health care system works, the changes with
health reform, and the practical impact on their access to insurance. We hope to expand our efforts and find
partner schools who can carry out this vital work in their communities.
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