Curriculum Updates and FAQs
This issue of the McGovern Messenger is devoted to all the curricular changes that are happening as we adapt to education in the time of COVID-19. You will find frequently asked student questions, courtesy of your class representatives, as well as detailed slides from Dr. Mark Hormann outlining all the changes to the clinical curriculum.
Also, we want to recognize our graduating students in particular. They have missed many of the milestones that mark the final year of medical school–this certainly isn’t what any of us were expecting the spring of 2020 to look like. We aren’t able to celebrate with you in person, but we are so proud of you for this huge accomplishment! You are entering medicine in a time of great need, and we know your skills and compassion are more than up to the task.
MS1– provided by Dr. Len Cleary Additional Notes We will be using remotely proctored exams for the Renal and Pulmonary modules. Details will be forthcoming. The exams will be administered on the same dates currently scheduled in one45 (Pulmonary and Doctoring 2 on May 6; Renal and Doctoring 2 on May 14). PLEASE BE AWARE that it may be necessary to adjust those dates as we work through the logistics of this new testing environment. In addition, we will be postponing the progress test because there is no remote proctoring option. MS3 and MS4 (including rising third years) – provided by Dr. Mark Hormann
Additional FAQs can be found on the Canvas Medical Student Information page. MS2 Q. What will the TTC schedule look like on a daily basis in both May and June? A. May will be online self-paced activities. Students will have recorded lectures to watch and online cases to complete. June will have some mandatory sessions that everyone will be expected to attend, and some mandatory small group sessions that students can schedule when convenient for them (multiple times for each session) Q. In what ways will clerkship grading be affected by these schedule changes? A. Grading for the clerkships for the rising third years will be largely the same as the current academic year. We have tweaked the grading for the rising fourth years for this disrupted clerkship only, perhaps that is why there is a question? But for the current MS2s, the main difference will be the length of the clerkships. Q. How will the amount of weeks on in/outpatient or at different clinic locations change for each clerkship? A. Since the length of the clerkships is different in the shortened year, the length of time that a student spends at each clinical site will change as well. For example, students on pediatrics will spend three weeks on inpatient and three weeks on outpatient instead of four and four. Q. In what ways may this affect how students are evaluated? Evaluation form is the same. Q. How will students be protected from COVID-19 exposure during clerkships? A. There is no way to completely protect any physician, nurse or student from the risk of exposure to an infectious disease. However, the way these patients are being cared for currently minimizes the number of providers that go into the room on a routine basis to preserve limited supplies of PPE. Before the current third years were released from their clinical responsibilities, they were not seeing patients who were COVID + or patients with symptoms c/w the infection. Q. Advice on how students should study for the same amount of shelf exam content in a reduced amount of time (for the shortened clerkships). A. Data suggest that the length of the clerkship does not have a significant impact on NBME shelf exam score averages. Study as you would for any upcoming exam. Q. For students interested in specializing in an elective (which has now been cancelled), what is the best way to go about finding shadowing or opportunities for exposure to those fields during third year? A. Use the list of advisors provided on the OASA website for the specialty you are interested in and reach out to one of them, maybe the “Master Faculty Advisor” for the group. These faculty are all interested in helping medical students, so don’t feel weird about sending them an email and trying to set something up. Keep in mind your clerkships will take up most of your available time, so you might plan ahead for shadowing during a vacation week. MS3 Q. Will students be able to get letters of recommendation in a timely fashion? A. Two years ago the fourth year started at the end of June, and students still obtained LORs before ERAS went live for PDs. Should be no different now. Q. Will away rotations be possible? If so, what is the plan for allowing these to proceed? A. Away rotations will be contingent on each schools’ policy. No way to say if another medical school will be taking outside rotators at this point in time. Currently applications through VSLO are on hold, and we do not know when or if they will be opened up again this year. MS4 Q. Does McGovern plan to graduate students early? A. No, McGovern students will not graduate early. In terms of asking residents to report early, this would be done on a program by program basis, would consist only of students staying at McGovern, and would be completely voluntary.