Clerkship in Neurology
The Neurology Clerkship offers a comprehensive 5-week experience encompassing two distinct components: a 4-week inpatient or hospital service period, followed by a 1-week focus on outpatient and ambulatory services. The initial day of the 4-week block serves as an orientation, introducing fundamental skills such as history-taking, examination techniques, and in-depth concept review.
This clerkship spans across five prominent educational sites, each contributing to a well-rounded exposure: UMass Memorial Medical Center, St. Vincent’s Hospital/Reliant Medical Center, Baystate Medical Center, Lahey Hospital and Medical Center, and Milford Regional Medical Center. The curriculum nurtures the competence to deliver general neurologic care, manage prevalent neurological conditions, and effectively address neurologic emergencies.
Learning strategies are multifaceted, combining direct clinical involvement as part of patient care teams with various educational activities. Students actively engage in student-led morning reports, case discussions, flipped classroom sessions on neurologic emergencies, and hands-on practice of neurologic physical examination skills. The educational scope extends to understanding the intricate interplay of social determinants of health through an optional one-day shadowing experience with a clinical social worker or nurse navigator. Complementing these experiences are online lectures and modules.
Key Clerkship Goals:
- Enhance proficiency in gathering patient history and conducting examinations
- Assess and manage prevalent neurological disorders
- Recognize and effectively handle neurological emergencies
- Develop expertise in neurological localization and syndromic classification
Student competency is meticulously evaluated through a range of methods, including Student Performance Evaluations (SPEs), the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) exam (or shelf exam), case discussions, and an Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) featuring standardized patients. Beyond the formal assessments, students benefit from multiple formative opportunities, including drafting histories and physicals, refining physical examination techniques, and engaging in practice OSCE sessions.
JUNE 21 2024 | cjb