Foundations in Clinical Medicine
2022-2023 academic year
MEDC 30299 | 50 units
Course Type: Elective - Non-clinical

Director:
    Drs. Scott Stern, Allison Dalton   
Primary Instructor:
    Stern, Scott 0 sstern@medicine.bsd.uchicago.edu  
    Dalton, Allison 0 adalton@dacc.uchicago.edu  
Contact:
Campus:
    UCMC
Location on first day:
    TBA
Included in Lottery:
    No
Included in MedReg:
    No
Course can be dropped:
    No
Visiting Students:
    No
Last reviewed:
    2/20/2023

Overview

The Foundations in Clinical Medicine (FICM) elective course is a five day immersive experience designed to prepare second year students for the transition into the third year. The course uses lecture, case discussion, and problem-based learning discussion to expose students to common pathology and various specialty topics in preparation for the clerkship experience.

The purpose of this elective is to help prepare you for your third year clinical rotations. The course will use interactive case studies such as you saw in CPPT. (But wait, there is more!). We are also developing new tools and materials including a new condensed lecture series, and new cases featuring some of the most common presenting complaints you will see on the wards. And new software that makes the cases much more interactive. We will use in class and recorded lectures and computer based simulations of various types, to teach clinical thinking, the interpretation of laboratory data, CXRs, ECGs. We will have sessions on how to present on the floors to your attendings and how to be successful on the floors!

The course will be held June 5 - June 9. Students are expected to arrive on time for each session and to remain in class throughout the day. Other than an hour for lunch, there are no scheduled breaks. Students should expect nightly homework assignments. Attendance is required unless arranged in advance with one of the instructors.

Objectives

The FICM course has six components:

1. Clinical Thinking: In case discussions, you will learn to reason through a clinical case, incorporating the history, physical examination and laboratory testing into the differential diagnosis and management plan.

2. Data: In small group sessions, you will learn to understand and interpret common tests such as electrocardiography and chest radiography.

3. Didactics: Faculty members, residents and medical students will speak to you about important topics and resources for the third-year of medical school and beyond.

4. Management: In didactics and small group sessions, you will learn how to manage common medical emergencies including hypotension, hypoxia and advanced cardiac life support.

5. Presentations: Faculty members from surgery, pediatrics, gynecology and internal medicine will discuss techniques on how to succeed on specialty rotations.

6. Simulation: Working in small groups with case simulation, you will explore the art and science of history taking, physical examination, differential diagnoses and management of common clinical scenarios.

Evaluation

Students must also bring a laptop computer to class daily.

Up to 65 students may enroll in the course. To facilitate course planning and to ensure that those students who are genuinely interested in taking the course may do so, we ask that students not drop the FICM course once committed to enroll.

Schedules Offered

This course is offered on a Monthly Basis during the following months:
    June

This course is not offered on a Bi-weekly (two week) Basis, or no schedule has been set at this time


SunMonTuesWedThuFriSat
AM - - - - - - -
PM - - - - - - -

Schedule Notes

The course will be held June 5 - June 9. Students are expected to arrive on time for each session and to remain in class throughout the day. Other than an hour for lunch, there are no scheduled breaks. Students should expect nightly homework assignments. Attendance is required unless arranged in advance with one of the instructors.

One textbook is required for participants in the FICM course [Symptom to Diagnosis An Evidence Based Guide, Fourth Edition (Stern, Cifu, Altkorn), 2020 This can be viewed on line when you are within the University system by going to AccessMedicine. Access medicine is the website for McGraw Hill for which the University has a license. The URL is http://accessmedicine.mhmedical.com/Book.aspx?bookid=1088 and then type Symptom to Diagnosis in the search box and scroll down. You can of course also just purchase it.

Students must also bring a laptop computer to class daily.

Course Eligibility and Prerequisites

Max enrollment

65

Eligibility

    Second Year


Prerequisites

    Pritzker Students Only