2005/2006 - Registrar - McMaster University

60 FACULTY OF HEALTH SCIENCESThe, academic program, operates an an11 manths-a-year basisand students qualify far the MD d~greeat the end 'Of the thirdacademic year. Thecu~riculum has been· designed ta involvemedical st~dents in a braadrange: of human health problemsthroughaut their educatian and ta prepare them far effective warkingrelationships with patients, colleagues arid saciety.. 'Pastgraduate trainin,g programs currently,inclut;ie: Anesthesia,',Community Medicine,' Critical Care, Emergency Medicine, FamilyMedicine, Internal Medicine (and subspecialities), LabarataryMe,dicine (and subspecialities), Obstetrics and, Gynecalagy; ,Pediatrics (and subspecialities), Psychiatry, Radiolagy, and Sur'",gery(and subspecialities). . ')" '.", ,More details an these pastgraduate programs are availablefrom the Pastgraduate Medic8:1 EducatianOffice: .. ' " " '. The Narthwestern Ontario 'Medical Pragram (NOMP) has b.eendevelaped in caaperatian with the Northern Academic HealthScience Netwark (NAHSN) and physicians in tawns in Narth-'western Ontaria. Clinical, training appartunities exist in commu~nity haspitals throughaut Central West Ontaria. Excellent clinicalexperience in these settingsis part 'Of bath the undergraquateand pastgraduate medical pragrams. ' ' ..Graduate programs, leading ta the M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees' are'Offered in Biachemistry and in Medical Soiences.An M.H.Sc.(Health Care, Practice) ,program is, ,interp'rofessianal in nature,al'!d is 'far, experienced health prafessianals wha wish advancedpreparatian as clinjcians.The UndergraquateMedical Program {7880}The three-year pragram in Medicine uses· a problem-basedappraach ta learning that shauldapply thraughautthe physician'~career. The 'campaher;tts have, been argal}ized in sequential unitswith early exposure tq 'patients and case management.. UNDERGRADUATE MD PROGRAM GOALSThe Undergraduate MD Program at McMaster. University fas-·,, ters a coaperative, suppartive and respectful enviranment. Thecu'rriculum evolves cantinuausly, responsive.,ta' the changingneeds 'Of Ontaria saciety, nurturing the develapment at the f6l1aw~jng campetencies at. the time 'Of graduatian:1. Medical. expert - students will be able ta apply scientific prinCiplesfrom human bialagy, ,behaviaur and papulation health tathe salutian 'Of health problems; they will have the ability ta seekaut new", infarmatian and evaluate this infarmatian critically. ,2. Cammunicator/Callabaratar - students will demanstrate effectiveQammunicatian skills" seil~itiveta the -needs of patientsand cagnizantaf the rolesof ather members 'Of the healthcare team in deliveril1g patient care.3.Advacate/Resaurce Manager - graduating students will beknawledgeable abaut the, determinants 'Of health and beproactive advacates far'their individual patients and far healthypublic'policy within the: c9ntext 'Of the .health care system.4., Schalar/Learner - students will be self-directedlifelang ·Iearners,whase expasure at McMaster ta role made Is 'in researchand. clinical care will encaurage them ta apply innavative approachestasalvi'ng health care' problems.5. Self-reflective Practitianer- graduating students. will· be expectedta have develaped an awareness 'Of the influence 'Oftheir attitudes, value~ and assumptions, haw these affect theirpractice 'Of' medicine and the impact 'Of the practice 'Of medi:- 'cine an themselves as individuals; .THE NEW COMPASS CURRICULUM, 'In September 2005, the Undergraduate MDPragram at McMasterUniversity isinaugu'rating a campletely new curritulumcalled the,COMPASS curriculum. The new curriculum facuses on the mastery'Of fundamental cancepts in medicine. It cantinues the McMastertraditian 'Of problem-based learning 'bLit incarporates research find-'ings from cagnitive psycholagy. The curriculum is structured anthe'integratian 'Of critical cancepts and each step 'Of the curriculumis based an the growth. 'Of impartant cancepts' learned previausly.Tutarial prablems wiU be selected to illustrate these canceptsin a.:clinical setting and when students are explaring tutarial problemswhich will remain the facus 'Of learning, they will be directed tawardsasking questians of what and why and haw as much aswhat is the diagnasis. The curriculum. is specifically designed,with designated curricular time far deliberate practice applying the. cancepts that have' ~een learned., The pre.;clerkshjp cu'rriculum is divided inta five Medical Foun:-' .datians as shawn in the curriculum 'Outline. A novel feature 'Of thenew curriculum is a horizantal Profes~iQnal Campetencies curriculum. which runs throughaut the three, years 'Of the program.As in the,Faundatians tutorial-based curriculum, students willwark ,in small groupsthroughaut the Professional Competen- .ciescurriculum l whichinterdigitates and remains, cannected tathe Faundatians curriculum thraughaut the pre-clerkship and aninto the clerkship., The care campetencies 'Of the ProfessianalCompetenCies curriculum are effective communicatian" Iifelang _learning, self-awareness and persanal growth, moral reasoningandethical judgment, p'rofessianalism and rale recagnitian,saci.al and cammunity context 'Of health care, using scienceJoguipe practice, basic clinical· skill 9 and clinical 'reasaning. ThePrafessional Campetencies curriculum is also problem7basedand will include inter-prafessianal educatian and competencybasedassessment using partfalios and learning plans. , Same, of the content areas addressed in this campanent of the curriculumare medical ethics, health economics, communicatians, etc.. LEARNING METHODS, Ta achieve the qbjeCtives of the Undergraduate Medical Program,students are introduced to patients within the first faundation 'Of the'curriculum. In this way, students understand the relevance 'Of wh~ltthey are learning, maintain a high degree 'Of mativatian and begin to, un_derstand. the impartance 'Of respansible professianal attitudes.. The students are presented with a. series 'Of tutorial problems,requiring far; their solutian the understanding of underlying. bia-,-logical, papulatian and behavioural principles, the appropriatecallectian of data and the critical. appraisal 'Of evidence; Thefaculty function as learning resoLirces 'Or guides/Learning by a-,process of inquiry. is stressed.' , "Th~ central 'facus of the' program is the tutorial: The dass isdivided into smallgroups~ each with a tutar; 'Inthe tutariai ses-,sian students develap a series 'Of learning objectives fro.111 eachhealth-care problem and negotiate haw they will appraach theirlearning tasks. They then acquire the knowledge and skills tameet the 'Objectives of the faundatianin- which they are working.. They also learn ta wark as a team, . helping 'and lec;trning frompeers.· . The study' habits and sense 'Of responsibility ta self and,. , others pravides abasisfar'lifelang working and learhing~habits.Attendance is mandatory. In the Professional Campetencies cur.;riculuill, students work in groups of 10, with two faci,litatars, 'Onean MD, the ather a nan-MD.' . .Students admitted ta the Undergraduate Medical Program have. the respansibility and privilege 'Of taking an active rale in the plan­.. ning andevaluatian 'Of the educatian program. Through representati,onanmast palicy-making and implementing committees,, students can influence decisians in such areas as educatian,philosaphy, faculty recruitment and curriculum' design. It is ex- .peeted that all students will participate in the continuing reap- .praisal and improvement 'Of the program .. Such participatian is a ., hallmark ·af ·the Pragram. 'STUDENT EVALUATION METHODSThe evaluatian format. has been designed ta camplement learningin the Underg'raduate Medical Program. Evaluation methads .have been develaped ta measure haw well the student achievesthe stated educational. 'Objectives in the various faundatians. 'Ofthe program. Cantinual evaluatian 'Of the student 'Occurs withinthetutarial setting with input from their peers, faculty preceptarsand the tutar. . .One 'Objective evaluatian exercise is tequired in eachfaundatian ..At the campletianof the faundation, the tutar is respanSible far the, final summary statement. 'Of stud~nt .Ieaniing progress. The tutarprepares a written summary of the student's perfarmance in thetutarials and all assaciated.activities.during that,faundatian~ A capy .'Of the evaluatian summary is given tathe student and tathe studentadvisor while the original is kept in the student's evaluation file.In additian to tl)e tutarial-based evaluatian', the accumulatian 'Ofmedical knawledge is assessed at regular intervals by means 'Ofthe Persanal Progress Index .. This'is in a multiple-choice farmat.Results are given to the students far self-evaluation and, in summaryform, ta the student advisar. The Persanal Pragress Index isin additian to, and does nat replace, tutarial- and perfarmance--based evaluatian. The Pragram manitars student progress, and'respands to students shawing persistently law progress .