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Laird-Gion JN, Garabedian LF, Conrad R, Shaffer AC, Witkowski ML, Mateo CM, Jones DS, Hundert E, Kasper J. "The Water in Which We Swim:" A Unique, Post-Clerkship Multidisciplinary Course. J Med Educ Curric Dev 2024; 11:23821205241232184. [PMID: 38390256 PMCID: PMC10883117 DOI: 10.1177/23821205241232184] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2023] [Accepted: 01/17/2024] [Indexed: 02/24/2024]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To improve patient outcomes and promote health equity, medical students must be taught not only biomedicine, but also the social sciences to understand the larger contexts in which patients live and health care operates. Yet, most undergraduate medical education does not explicitly cover these topics in a required, longitudinal curriculum. METHODS In January 2015 at Harvard Medical School, we created a two-part sequence (pre- and post-clerkship) of required, 4-week multidisciplinary courses-"Essentials of the Profession I and II"-to fill this gap. "Essentials of the Profession II (EOP2)" is an advanced social sciences course anchored in patient narratives and the lived experiences of students and includes clinical epidemiology and population health, healthcare delivery and leadership, health policy, medical ethics and professionalism, and social medicine that engages students to conduct structural analyses to be effective healers, advocates, and leaders. RESULTS Per student course evaluations, the overall course rating was 1.7 (SD 0.9, 1 = excellent and 5 = poor); its overall rating has improved over time; and it has scored well even when run virtually. It was rated highly in application of critical thinking, integration of the disciplines, and relevance for clinical work. Qualitative analyses of student responses revealed the following key course strengths: breadth of topics, teaching faculty and guest speakers, and small group discussions. The weaknesses included workload, lack of diversity of opinions, repetition, and time spent in lectures. CONCLUSIONS We argue that EOP2 is "essential" for post-clerkship medical education. It offers an opportunity to re-ignite and enhance humanism and activism; remind students why they chose the medical profession; equip them with frameworks and toolkits to help them to overcome challenges; and devise solutions to improve health care and patient outcomes that are applicable to their future training and ongoing practice of medicine.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica N Laird-Gion
- Department of Pediatrics, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Laura F Garabedian
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Population Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Rachel Conrad
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Adam C Shaffer
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Mary L Witkowski
- Institute for Strategy and Competitiveness, Harvard Business School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Camila M Mateo
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of General Pediatrics, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - David S Jones
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
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Laird-Gion JN, Garabedian LF, Conrad R, Shaffer AC, Witkowski ML, Mateo CM, Jones DS, Hundert E, Kasper J. Snuff burnout and reignite passion in medical students. Med Educ 2023; 57:465-466. [PMID: 36859822 DOI: 10.1111/medu.15037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
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