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Issues such as adult education, patient health literary, and education program evaluation are addressed in lectures and discussions
with outcomes that include education evaluation research projects,
curriculum development, and materials development including
some online resources. DIME track evaluation projects are also
often seen in Research!Louisville.
The Distinction in Business and Leadership (DIBL) Track is
directed by Brad Sutton, MD, MBA, and In Kim, MD, MBA, and
was started in 2013. Since healthcare is a complex and dynamic field
with many stakeholders and much uncertainty, health systems and
providers are realigning with a renewed focus on cost reduction and
improved outcomes. With formal business training at the medical
student level lacking, this track seeks to provide a fundamental
knowledge base that explores the intersection of business and medicine, and arms trainees with a vital skill set to succeed in our health
economy. The DIBL Track is a four-year, longitudinal curriculum
comprised of a 12-module online course Beyond the Exam Room™
developed by OPM™ (not for profit physician education group),
didactics, group-based learning, and a mentored capstone project
within the business of medicine context. This program is unique
as there is only one other medical school in the United States that
has a similar offering.
The final track, Distinction in Global Health (DIGH), under
the direction of Bethany Hodge, MD, MPH, was launched in 2013.
Students entering into medical school today have a global perspective of health and disease. As a result a growing number of medical
students seek opportunities to participate in global health projects
locally, regionally, and internationally. The DIGH Track focuses
on issues related to social determinants of health that highlight the
causes and effects of illness across cultures and geography. The goals
of the track are to facilitate extensive interdisciplinary participation
in the professional field of global health, to provide service-oriented
learning in areas of health disparities, and to train and mentor the
next generation of innovative physician leaders who care for the
world’s poor and work globally to combat health inequities. The
students will participate in didactic classroom lectures, analyze
and discuss required readings, and complete a mentored capstone
project focused on global health issues.
A Distinction in Global Health highlights the University’s dedication to community engagement and cultivates compassionate
doctors more capable of connecting with patients from diverse
cultural and economic backgrounds both internationally and locally. The rewards are helping improve health care delivery and the
knowledge gained.
The four Distinction Tracks are overseen by an Advisory Committee. The committee includes University of Louisville faculty and
staff, including the Distinction Track Directors; Greater Louisville
Medical Society representatives; community leaders; and a student
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representative. The role of the Advisory Committee is to provide
support for the distinction tracks by sharing student recruitment
and assessment strategies and identifying resources to support
learning. It also provides a forum where the Track Directors can
meet to compare notes and share ideas.
While the idea of distinction tracks is not unique to U of L, we
are approaching it as a long-term curricular enhancement and are
continuously exploring ways to strengthen the model. Participation
in a distinction track enriches medical school training without prolonging it. Students may only be enrolled in one distinction track.
Presently about 20 percent of our medical students are participating
in a track. Successful completion of distinction track requirements
are noted on the student’s official transcript and in the Medical
School Performance Evaluation (MSPE) letter for residency application. Students are acknowledged at the Senior Honors Banquet and
receive a Certificate at graduation. Outcomes are being assessed so
the University of Louisville School of Medicine’s approach can be
presented and replicated by other Schools of Medicine hoping to
implement similar programs.
Acknowledgements: The authors would like to acknowledge
the Distinction Track Directors: Jennifer Brueckner-Collins, PhD;
Bethany Hodge, MD, MPH; In Kim, MD, MBA; Charles Kodner,
MD; Pradip Patel, MD; Russell Prough, PhD; Dale Schuschke,
PhD; and Brad Sutton, MD, MBA. All Directors are faculty at the
University of Louisville School of Medicine.
Resources:
Kwatra, SG (2012). Encouraging medical students to explore career
tracks within medicine may help them avoid burnout. Academic
Medicine, Dec. 2012; 87(12); 1645.
Langhammer, CG, Neubauer JA, Rosenthal S, & Kinzy TG (2009).
Medical student research exposure via a series of modular research
programs. Journal of Investigative Medicine Jan. 2009, 57(1); 11-17.
Peluso, MJ, For