Internal Medicine

Catalog description

Students are assigned to the Department of Medicine and work directly under the supervision of the medical house staff or work in an outpatient internal medicine setting. Emphasis is placed on the hospitalized, acute, non-surgical adult patient.In this core rotation, students medically evaluate hospitalized patients and follow their daily progress. By doing so, students learn how to correlate history and physical findings with the patient’s physiological and laboratory data and emotional state, in order to arrive at a differential diagnosis, formulate a treatment plan and appreciate how to provide continuity of care. Students develop skills and demonstrate competency in performing and interpreting a variety of medical procedures and tasks. Attendance at daily rounds, grand rounds, medical conferences and orientation to the medical intensive care unit is required. In certain settings, there are opportunities to work with the house-staff who are assigned to the medical clinic area, to monitor and follow up patient management problems, and to participate in the formulation of their management plans. If the student is an out-patient setting, they will participate in in-patient rounds with the MD/ DO/PA/NP. Students incrementally develop the ability to analyze and synthesize medical information, to reason independently, and to apply the concepts of medical decision-making and problem-solving to complex patient presentations. Students will be required to take a comprehensive exam upon completion of the rotation.