This course is designed for the fourth year and provides training in the care of medical problems of adults. Under supervision, students assume role of physician and take histories, perform physical exams, formulate differential diagnoses, write orders and perform routine procedures. The course includes frequent written and oral presentations of patients and stresses importance of working as a member of the health-care team. Students attend departmental meetings, seminars and lectures and take night shifts with their assigned team.
Students are encouraged to think critically, to develop differential diagnosis, diagnostic outlines, and management plans for the patients they follow. In the Ambulatory Experience component, students are taught how to manage patients outside of the hospital in in-patient environment.
This patient-focused, clinical experience can take place in a hospital clinic, doctor's office, a community clinic, an emergency department, etc. The experience should
provide an emphasis on health promotion and disease prevention, and reinforce and integrate the concepts learned in the introduction to clinical medicine and inpatient Clerkship.
