Emory University (School of Medicine)


Emory University (School of Medicine) FIRST AND SECOND YEARS

The first two years of basic science coursework are conducted on the Emory campus. The first two years also include problem-based learning and clinical instruction. Our students are well prepared to begin caring for patients when they transition into the more clinical two years of the program.
First year medical students also complete a �Week on the Wards� program, as an introductory exposure to the clinical setting at Emory.

YEAR ONE COURSES :

■ Human Morphology : This course is an introduction to the structure and function of the human body for first-year medical students. It integrates the major topics in human cell biology, histology, embryology, and gross anatomy. The emphases are on: (1) defining the principles of organization of cells, tissues and organs in systemic and regional anatomy, and (2) utilizing those principles to correlate structure with function. The course incorporates lecture, laboratory and small group
discussion formats. It includes complete dissection of the human body, microscopic examination of cells, tissues and organs, radiological anatomy, and demonstrations.

■ Medical Biochemistry : This is a comprehensive course required for all first year medical students. Medical Biochemistry is also a core course for the
predoctoral graduate program. The course covers all areas of biochemistry and includes clinical correlations integrated into each topic. The following topics will be presented: structures of biological compounds, pH and buffers, protein structure, hemoglobin and myoglobin, enzymes (kinetics and mechanisms), intermediary
metabolism and regulation, bioenergetics, lipid metabolism, membrane structure and function, cholesterol, steroid and lipoprotein metabolism, nutrition, heme and nucleotide metabolism, molecular genetics and
amino acid metabolism. The course incorporates traditional lectures, some small group tutorials/reviews and objective-based examinations.

■ Neurobiology : The basic anatomy and physiology of the central nervous system are integrated in this course. The major portion of the course is organized by systems, i.e., sensory (e.g., visual, auditory), motor,
limbic and autonomic. In the laboratory, gross and microscopic sections of the brain and spinal cord are studied.

■ Medical Physiology : This is a required course for all first year medical students and focuses on the mechanisms of normal function in the human body. Major areas covered include general, cardiovascular, respiratory, renal, gastrointestinal and endocrine physiology. Neurophysiology is introduced in this course and covered in more detail in a Neurobiology course offered by the Department of Anatomy. A combination of formats, including lectures, written exercises, discussions, and laboratory demonstrations, is used to present basic facts and concepts as well as promote active learning and problem-solving skills in the
application of these facts and concepts. Examples of environmental adaptations and pathophysiological conditions are used to reinforce and integrate material within and across systems.

■ Community Health : This unique, interdisciplinary, community-based course includes all first-year Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM) students
in addition to nursing and social work students from other institutions.
Faculty are multidisciplinary. The course minimizes lectures, relying primarily on a format of assigning students to small interdisciplinary groups that pursue health promotion activities in inner city communities
in Atlanta. In the fall semester, students analyze the health problems of their designated community, and develop and present policy recommendations to local and state elected officials and community activists. In the spring, students develop health promotion interventions to address the community needs previously identified.

■ Fundamentals of Medicine 1 : Fundamentals of Medicine 1 is a first year course sequence that combines the courses, Clinical Preceptorship, Human Values 1, Human Behavior, and Biostatistics/ Epidemiology into a year-long interdisciplinary sequence. This sequence introduces students to the health care system, primary care practice, core clinical skills, ethics,
aspects of normal human behavior, communication skills, and principles of biostatistics and epidemiology. This interdisciplinary course sequence integrates clinical areas to enhance the student�s development and retention of core knowledge and skills in these areas.

- Clinical Preceptorship : For most students, the
Preceptorship Program is a student�s first exposure
to patient care. This experience allows students to
view the practice of medicine and the healthcare
system through the eyes of both the physician and
the patient. The course helps students learn to
develop empathetic patient relationships. Students
experience the practice of primary care medicine in
several different urban and rural settings involving
Family Practice, Internal Medicine, Pediatrics and
Obstetrics/Gynecology. The recognition of community
problems is stressed as well as the support systems
available to approach these problems.

- Human Values 1: The first year of this 2-year course
introduces students to current ethical dilemmas and
human values issues that are explored from clinical,
public health, psychosocial, economic and cultural
perspectives.

- Biostatistics/Epidemiology : This course covers
methods including epidemic investigations, study
design, Bayes, Theorem, and hypothesis testing.
Instructional methods include lecture, discussion,
problem solving, and computerbased tutorials. The
course includes computer-based tutorials.

- Human Behavior : This course covers the human life
cycle from birth to death, with a focus on normality
and adaptive behavior. It includes historical
evaluation of psychiatric nomenclature and the
efforts to define with increasing precision deviation
from normality.

YEAR TWO COURSES :

■ Pathophysiology : This is a two-semester course designed not only to cover the pathophysiological mechanisms of disease, but also to develop the
students� clinical reasoning abilities. It is intended to be a year-long board review and, as such, integrates the basic sciences with clinical topics. The course is taught in case-based format where student participation and initiative are crucial to success. Student evaluation is
based on performance on board-type multiple choice examinations and class participation.

■ Microbiology/Immunology : Lectures, case presentations, clinical correlations, laboratory exercises and group discussions are utilized to present the basic
concepts of immunology, virology, pathogenic bacteriology, mycology and parasitology. The agents of infectious diseases, the nature of the infections they cause, host responses and the natural and clinical
defenses against infectious diseases are studied. The goal of this course is to provide the student sufficient conceptual and practical knowledge of Medical Microbiology and Immunology to enter clinical training and future practice.

■ Pathology : This course is a required course for medical students. It introduces the student to the study of disease and serves as a bridge between the basic and clinical sciences. The first part of the course deals with general processes in pathology that are common to many diseases including cell and tissue reactions to injury, neoplasia, and non organ-specific disorders such as genetic diseases, immune diseases, environmental disorders, infections, and nutritional diseases. The
remainder of the course involves discussions of organ-specific disease states (systemic pathology). Specifically, the course covers causes, pathogenetic mechanisms, morphologic and functional effects of
diseases, and relates these to the patient in terms of prevention, diagnosis, natural history, course and prognosis. The course also incorporates principles relating effective use of the clinical laboratory in the diagnosis of selected diseases. An important aspect of the course is the introduction to the language of medicine and correct use of medical terminology. Teaching methods include lectures, simulated
clinical case discussions, laboratory sessions utilizing fixed gross specimens, glass slides, color prints and transparencies. The case simulations allow the student to correlate clinical information with the morphology. These case vignettes also allow the student to begin to
organize clinical data from various sources in order to solve clinical problems and strengthen skills in clinical reasoning.

■ Pharmacology and Toxicology : Medical Pharmacology and Toxicology is a course for second year medical students and graduate students. The course lectures include: introduction to the principles of pharmacokinetics (how the body acts on the drug) and pharmacodynamics (how the drug acts on the body) and a survey of major classes of therapeutic agents with emphasis on their mechanism(s) of action and therapeutic use(s), adverse effects and drug interactions. The Department also incorporates lectures, small group-sessions (patient-oriented problem solving; peerassisted learning), case studies, clinical correlation conferences and objective-based examinations into the course.

■ Nutrition : Course is designed to increase student understanding of the basic nutritional principles needed for general patient care. Course content includes: nutritional assessment and support; diet and disease
trends; nutritional disorders.

■ Fundamentals of Medicine II : This year long course sequence combines the courses Introduction to Patient Care (Physical Diagnosis), Human Values 2, and
Psychopathology into a year long interdisciplinary experience. The course sequence uses lecture, small group, demonstration, peer practice, standardized patient experience, discussion groups, and clinical
experience with adult and pediatric patients to build skills in patient evaluation and the physician-patient relationship. This course sequence builds on the clinical skills introduced in the first year course Fundamentals of Medicine 1 to prepare the students for the clinical
clerkships. Physical diagnosis, interviewing skills, the physicianpatient relationship, ethical and cultural issues, psychiatric evaluation and diagnosis, and common clinical syndromes are addressed. The course also includes introduction to evaluation of the literature and
evidence-based medicine as well as computer-based testing. The course is interdisciplinary, with faculty from Medical Education, Psychiatry, Medicine, Pediatrics, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Surgery, and Family Medicine.

- Human Values in Medicine II : In the second year,
social and psychosocial issues are addressed and
students become sensitive to the medically
underserved, and begin to understand the rigorous
demands of the human medical practice.

- Psychopathology : Students are introduced to
techniques of psychiatric and psychological
assessment, to the most common psychiatric
disorders and emergencies, crisis intervention, and
to psychopharmacology. A survey of the relationship
of psychiatry and the applied behavioral sciences of
other disciplines and specialties is provided. Medical
students should become sensitized to a variety of
social and cultural problems infringing on patients and
physicians in receiving and delivering healthcare
services, such as sexual dysfunctions, substance
abuse, sexism, racism, and poverty.

THIRD AND FOURTH YEARS

The third- and fourth-year students spend approximately half of their clinical instruction time at Grady Hospital , with the remainder spent at Emory University Hospital , Atlanta Veterans Affairs Medical Center , Children�s Healthcare of Atlanta (CHOA) at Egleston, Hughes Spalding Children�s Hospital, Wesley Woods Geriatric Hospital and Center, Emory Crawford Long Hospital , and other facilities throughout north Georgia . The vast number of outpatient and inpatient visits to this broad range of facilities, coupled with more than 1,400 dedicated faculty, makes Emory a rich environment for learning clinical medicine.

CLERKSHIPS :

■ Internal Medicine : Students spend a two-month rotation on the medical inpatient services of Grady Memorial Hospital. The students collect the database, formulate the problem list, devise the initial plans and follow each patient in a problem-oriented fashion. To a large extent the students have primary responsibility for their patients, working under the close supervision of house staff and faculty. Working as an integral member of one service team consisting of an attending faculty member, senior resident, two interns and another student, each student makes rounds with the house staff, presents patients to the attending faculty and takes call every fifth night with the house staff members of the team. Each student completely works up two or three new patients per week during the two-month rotation. Student goals are to learn how to collect data, identify and define individual components and clarify their relationship to each other, apply pathophysiologic principles to the clinical setting, organize problems for solution and follow them systematically through to their resolution.

■ Pediatrics : Oriented to Primary Care Pediatrics in medically underserved settings, this required clerkship features a three-week ambulatory placement in a community private practice, Kaiser Office, or a
neighborhood health center. The inpatient section of the course includes a two-week rotation at Hughes Spalding Children�s Hospital and a oneweek service at the term nursery of Grady Memorial Hospital. Finally,
there are two community/subspecialty weeks where students spend time in either subspecialty offices or clinics. There are also three half-days weekly for case discussions, clinical simulations, and other classroom
activities. The clerkship is largely based on a national curriculum developed by the Council on Medical Student Education in Pediatrics and the Ambulatory Pediatrics Association.

■ Gynecology/Obstetrics : Obstetrics and Gynecology spans the entire age range of the female patient and is extensively health-oriented with emphasis on prevention of illness and on surgical and obstetrical techniques.
Students participate actively in the prenatal, intrapartum, and postpartum care of normal and abnormal obstetrical patients. They are actively involved with the diagnosis and treatment of minor and major gynecological problems in the outpatient department and on the
hospital wards. Students are also exposed to the different obstetrical and gynecological subspecialties, including maternal fetal medicine, oncology, reproductive gynecology and infertility.

■ Psychiatry : Seven-week rotation during the third year. Emphasis is on the clinical application of principles of psychiatry and aberrant behavior learned in the first two years. Students are assigned rotations at
Ridgeview Institute, a psychiatric service facility, Fulton County Mental Health Centers (FCMHC), an outpatient community mental health facility, and Atlanta Regional Hospital, a public psychiatric facility. Ridgeview, FCMHC, and Atlanta Regional Hospital offer a broad spectrum of psychiatric disorders in both inpatient and outpatient
settings. Clinical responsibilities include performing admission histories and psychiatric examinations, formulating psychodynamic aspects of the case, psychiatric differential diagnosis and actively participating in the psychotherapeutic and psychopharmacologic treatment and management of patients. Students attend and participate in rounds and ward teaching conferences as well. Students will also
participate in group therapy to gain further insight into the psychiatric problems of patients and their families. A clinical case teaching conference is held with an attending physician on a weekly basis. This conference is to demonstrate interview techniques, discuss differential diagnosis, and to allow for in-depth discussion of psychodynamics of selected patients. A lecture series addresses clinical aspects of the diagnosis and treatment of the major psychiatric disorders. Some selected topics are interviewing skills, nosology, emergency psychiatry, behavioral medicine, psychopharmacology, suicide substance abuse and
forensic issues.

■ Surgery : Third Year Clerkship in Surgery is a required eight-week rotation offered for all students who successfully complete all Basic Science requirements. The rotation is under the guidance of Morehouse
School of Medicine, Department of Surgery�s clinical faculty at Grady Memorial Hospital. Emphasis is on the use of basic science principles, while developing clinical diagnosis and management skills. Students are expected to participate fully in the diagnosis, treatment, and
management of patients on the surgical teams, including in-house call. Didactic lectures, conferences and rounds are mandatory. Participation in the operating room is under the supervision of residents and faculty attending. Mini rotation in pediatric surgery, urology, and otorhinolarynogology give students subspecialty experience. Students participate in a suture workshop during the first week of the Clerkship.
The didactic lectures/ workshops will cover General Surgery and its subspecialties. MCQ computer administered exams are given as a part of the student evaluation.

■ Family Medicine : The Family Medicine/Maternal and Child Health clerkship is a required eight-week clerkship. It is designed to meet the educational objectives in Family Medicine, Pediatrics, and Obstetrics & Gynecology. The student will have the opportunity to evaluate acute
and chronic medical problems that frequently occur in the community. Even though the emphasis is on the development of effective clinical skills in the ambulatory patient care setting, experiences in the direct care of patients on family medicine hospital services, including labor and delivery, are also provided. Students are assigned a prenatal patient and expected to participate in delivery. Sites may include the Morehouse Family Practice Center; offices of practicing family physicians; community health centers; Southwest Hospital and Medical Center, where students serve as sub-interns. Providing healthcare for senior citizens, adolescents, and obstetrical patients is strongly emphasized.

■ Radiology : Integrated into the Grady-based clerkships in medicine, surgery and Ob/Gyn, this is a general introduction to radiology including small group sessions on indications for diagnostic imaging, including plain
film, CT, MRI and sonography.

■ Ambulatory Medicine : This is a one-month required clerkship. The course aims to provide the student with a positive experience in primary care of adults, with role modeling by faculty staff, as well as a firm grounding in the body of general internal medicine knowledge. Emphasis is placed upon data collection and integration and differential diagnosis skills. Staff physicians supervise the students in the clinical setting and MSM faculty teach the didactic sessions. There are no lectures; the course is taught in problem-based format.

■ Rural Primary Care : This ambulatory training experience focuses on common primary healthcare problems in non-urban settings. The goal of this course is to introduce students to the comprehensive primary care of rural populations and the analysis of rural health problems.
Additionally, students are required to complete a Special Study Project that focuses on a unique rural health problem, or the rural aspects of a larger problem.

■ Elective rotations

MEDICAL SCHOOL PHOTOS

Emory University (School of Medicine)   Emory University (School of Medicine)

MEDICAL SCHOOL INFORMATION


School name: Emory University (School of Medicine)
Address: 1440 Clifton Road N.E.
Zip & city: GA 30322 Atlanta
Phone: 404-727-5640
Web: http://www.med.emory.edu


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