UofL Update on Accreditation
Toni Ganzel, MD, MBA
T
he University of Louisville School
of Medicine has a long, rich history
of training future physicians for our
Commonwealth. We are very proud of this
heritage and duty-bound to maintaining our
reputation for producing highly skilled, compassionate physicians.
Many colleagues and members of the public
have contacted me with questions about the recent decision on the
part of the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME), our
accrediting body, to continue our status as a fully accredited medical
school with all rights and privileges, but to place us in probationary
status. So, I am very pleased to have this opportunity to provide
details about why we were placed on probation and what we are
doing to address the LCME concerns.
First, let me summarize the primary issues that led to the LCME
decision. The LCME action was largely based on two major areas of
concern: 1) the adequacy of our preclinical instructional building
related to the class size, and 2) the pace of change in our preclinical
curriculum. In addition, some changes at both the nuts and bolts and
policy levels need to be made in terms of curriculum oversight, and
some language in our educational agreements must be addressed.
Regarding the preclinical instructional building, when the LCME
conducted its accreditation visit in 2005, we were cited on issues with
the gross anatomy lab and the number of seats in the lecture halls
relative to class size. These issues were resolved by adding dissection tables and upgraded technology in the gross lab and by adding
seats, upgraded technology, and a wireless network in our lecture
halls. Then, when we implemented a laptop requirement, we added
electrical outlets. Despite these improvements, when the LCME
team conducted its April 2013 visit, they concluded the facility
was inadequate, specifically the lecture
halls, small group
classroom space and
student study space.
Conceptual plans
Some spaces have already
been updated to include
upgraded technology and
study spaces.
for a new $60M instructional building were also created five years
ago, but the economic situation and state budget challenges prevented moving forward with funding approval. Because those challenges
are still present, in 2013 we developed plans and secured funding
for a $7.5 million major renovation of the existing instructional
building, which will include two large interactive lecture halls, new
small group learning labs and classrooms, a new student lounge and
private study areas, and a robust technology infrastructure to better
support innovative academic technologies. These renovations will
be completed in August, in time for the arrival of the class of 2018.
In addition, we recently completed a
renovation in the
Kornhauser Library that dramatically expanded and
enhanced student
study spaces.
The second major
LCME concern focused on the pace of
change in our preclinical curriculum.
Our clinical curriculum has always
been a strength of
the school, but at
the time of the site
visit in 2005, the
preclinical curriculum was still quite
traditional, departmentally controlled,
discipline-based
and largely lecture- Conceptual plans for future renovations.
driven. One of the
LCME Education standards requires “integrated institutional responsibility in a medical education program for the overall design,
management, and evaluation of a coherent and coordinated curriculum.” In 2005, the school was cited on this standard for lack of
central control of the curriculum. We addressed one issue by changing the school’s bylaws to increase empowerment of the Educational
Policy Committee. Changes were also made in the curriculum to
increase clinical integration in the first and second year, and reduce
the number of lecture hours and increase the amount of active
learning, which brought us back into compliance. Then, in 2012 we
launched a revised, temporally integrated second year curriculum,
which linked courses across the year through team based learning
June 2014
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