Rotation

BCC 7174 Primary Care Geriatrics is a four week required 4th year clerkship designed to provide the medical student with an in-depth and qualitative exposure to high quality primary medical care for older adults in available settings throughout the community.

This is a web-enhanced course with a self-directed learning module for each of ten (10) required competencies. The online modules provide standardization of the academic curriculum across our six regional campuses, thus insuring comparability.

The online curriculum augments the student's clinical experiences under the guidance, direction and supervision of selected geriatric practitioners. The student on this rotation has the opportunity to participate in the care of older patients in ambulatory, acute inpatient, adult daycare, nursing facility, rehabilitation center and assisted living facility sites.

This required 4th year clerkship strives to be the capstone geriatric experience meeting the individual needs of each student in achieving basic performance proficiencies consistent with the AAMC Consensus Competencies for medical students. A very important component of this experience is the requirement that each student follow at least 2 patients across transitions in their sites of care, and the expectation that students will carry a panel of 4 - 6 patients as continuously as possible throughout the month.

Our curriculum focuses on the functional approach to complex patients with multiple co-morbidities, patients that often 'fall through the cracks' in routine medical care. Completion of comprehensive therapeutic reviews for transitioning and continuity patients is a regular part of this experience. Students are expected to maintain "shadow charts" (HIPAA compliant student generated records of patient care, orders discharge summaries, etc.) for their continuity patients.

The participating clinical facilities are located within reasonable driving distance of the regional campuses, or when distant, housing accommodations are provided for the student. During the clerkship, the student has the opportunity to interact with geriatricians, psychiatrists, internists, family physicians, and others involved in the care of their older patients.