Educational Mission, cont...
Our educational program has benefited in recent years from major investments in state-of-the-art educational technology and medical simulation and will continue to benefit from additional enhancements to be housed in the Albert Sherman Center, a new research and education building on campus slated for completion in late 2012. The Sherman Center’s state-of-the-art educational resources will include the Center for Experiential Learning and Simulation (CELS), a 24,000-square-foot comprehensive, full-service simulation center, as well as our 10,000-square-foot facility dedicated to supporting the five houses of our Learning Communities. After four years of planning, the T.H. Chan School of Medicine has undergone a comprehensive process of reshaping the curriculum to align with our six competencies for medical education: physician as professional, scientist, communicator, clinical problem solver, patient and community advocate, and person. Our new Learner-centered Integrated Curriculum (LInC) is now in place, with the first year of our new curriculum inaugurated with the entering class of 2010. Our newly redesigned LInC education program features comprehensive integration of the clinical and basic sciences; enhanced flexibility in the clinical clerkships allowing dedicated time for elective experiences in year three; educational methods that offer hands-on, team-based small group learning; technology enhanced educational methods that support independent, self-directed learning; personalized, continuity-based mentorship with dedicated faculty through the learning community model; and an opportunity for all students to engage in scholarship and scientific inquiry through a capstone project experience. To support our new curriculum, the school’s educational facilities have been renovated and expanded to create the “ideal learning environment” that will best prepare today’s students as tomorrow’s physicians. Among these enhancements are our recently renovated anatomy labs with computer technology at each dissection table; our upgraded classrooms and amphitheaters with campus-wide wireless connectivity; our newly built integrated Teaching and Learning Center (iTLC) that serves as our cutting-edge “technology-infused” classroom for interactive small group learning, high resolution AV systems and computer-based testing; our on-campus “clinical skills center” with dedicated space for students to practice and learn techniques in clinical skills and physical diagnosis from expert faculty mentors; and our five student group study rooms, each dedicated to one of our Learning Communities. Complementing these recent enhancements, our students continue to benefit from our nationally recognized standardized patient program that serves all four years of our curriculum; our UMass Chan Simulation Center that provides comprehensive simulation resources including high-fidelity manikins, task trainers and computer-based “virtual” simulation dedicated to UMass Chan learners; and, finally, our expanding network of community-based faculty across the commonwealth whose practices provide our students with an immersion experience in doctoring and the opportunity to develop their relationships with patients from the first days of medical school.
At UMass Chan, our curriculum is nationally recognized for the outstanding clinical training of our students, preparing them for diverse career choices beyond medical school, whether in primary care or the medical specialties. In parallel with this exceptional clinical preparation, our fast-paced growth, leadership and worldwide recognition in health sciences research offers extraordinary research opportunities for our students.
The educational mission of the T.H. Chan School of Medicine is further enhanced by 46 accredited residency and fellowship programs; cooperative degree programs with area colleges and universities; diverse community-based education programs across Massachusetts; outstanding achievements in clinical and translational research in the health sciences; and the ForHealth Consulting division, dedicated to serving the state’s broad community of health care and service agencies. As the commonwealth’s only public medical school, UMass Chan places an emphasis on partnerships with the community, creating opportunities for students to learn in and contribute to serving Massachusetts communities and the care of its vulnerable and underserved populations.
The T.H. Chan School of Medicine’s educational program has been enriched through national grant awards that promote quality, innovation and national distinction in medical education. Over the past 10 years, these awards have included:
- Integrated Geriatrics Education: A Model Curriculum across the Medical Education Continuum, Donald W. Reynolds Foundation Aging and Quality of Life Program (2009-2012), addresses the special health care needs of the elderly through targeted, comprehensive curricula.
- NIDA Centers of Excellence for Physician Information, National Institute on Drug Abuse (2007-2011), providing targeted curriculum in prescription drug abuse education.
- Marrow for Tomorrow, Association of American Medical Colleges Caring for Community grant (2005-2007), a student-led initiative to increase the representation of underserved minority populations in the marrow donor pool through outreach and education.
- American Medical Association’s, Innovative Strategies for Transforming the Education of Physicians (ISTEP) (2005-present), a national consortium of medical schools dedicated to furthering rigorous research in medical education.
- Stemmler Medical Education Grant, National Board of Medical Examiners (2003-2005), investigating the use of standardized patients in assessing medical students’ behaviors and skills in the domain of professionalism.
- Educational Development for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, (2003-2007), integrating educational objectives and curricula in complementary and alternative medicine into the mainstream of the Medical School curriculum.
- A Comprehensive Approach to Sexual Health in Undergraduate Medical School Curricula, Pfizer, Inc. (2001-2003), promoting the development of curricular innovations in sexual health.
- Enhancing Gerontology and Geriatric Medicine Education in Undergraduate Medical Education, AAMC/John A. Hartford Foundation (2001-2003), dedicated to enhancing our students’ preparedness and commitment to care for the needs of the elderly.
- Macy Initiatives in Health Communication, Josiah Macy, Jr. Foundation (1998-2006), a multi-staged project designed to catapult communication skills into the mainstream of medical education.
- Undergraduate Medical Education for the 21st Century Associate Partnership (1998-2001), promoting teaching and understanding about our changing health care systems, medical care delivery models and health policies.