Educational Program Objectives Policy

Policy

It is the policy of the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix that the educational program objectives and measurable outcomes are linked to the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM), and the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) co-sponsored initiative which created a common set of foundational competencies for use in undergraduate medical education programs in the United States., and that they are used to guide the program planning and subsequent review of content, forming the foundation of the educational curriculum. Each block, course, and clerkship is aligned to the corresponding objectives. The assessment of student performance targeting the competencies and their respective outcomes serve as the basis for ongoing feedback to the students, faculty and administrators overseeing teaching and learning.

Patient Care and Procedural Skills (PCPS)

Demonstrates compassionate, effective, holistic, evidence-informed, equitable, and patient-centered care.

1.  Integrates patient and caregiver context, needs, values, preferences, and experiences into patient care.
2. Collects relevant patient histories from multiple data sources, as necessary.
3. Performs relevant physical examinations using appropriate techniques and tools. 
4. Identifies patients in need of urgent or emergent care, seeks assistance, and recommends initial evaluation and management.
5. Creates and prioritizes differential diagnoses.
6. Proposes hypothesis-driven diagnostic testing and interprets results.
7. Formulates therapeutic management plans for commonly encountered clinical conditions.
8. Uses patient-centered language to describe common diagnostic and therapeutic interventions and plans.
9. Demonstrates basic procedural techniques.
10. Incorporates health promotion and disease prevention into patient care plans.
11. Identifies individual and structural factors that impact health and wellness.

Medical Knowledge (MK)

Applies and integrates foundational knowledge to improve health care for patients and populations.

1.  Demonstrates knowledge of basic, clinical, pathophysiologic, social, and health systems sciences, as well as humanities, needed for clinical practice.
2. Applies foundational knowledge for clinical problem-solving, diagnostic reasoning, and decision making to clinical scenarios.
3. Discerns the accuracy of information and relevance to clinical problems.
4. Demonstrates knowledge of research design, interpretation, and application to clinical questions.
5. Accesses knowledge relevant to clinical problems using appropriate resources, including emerging technologies.

Practice-Based Learning and Improvement (PBL&I)

Integrates feedback, evidence, and reflection to adapt behavior, foster improvement, and cultivate lifelong learning.

1. Actively seeks and incorporates feedback and assessment data to improve performance.
2. Identifies opportunities for growth in one’s own performance through informed self-assessment and reflective practice.
3. Develops, implements, and reassesses learning and improvement goals.
4. Locates, critically appraises, and synthesizes information to support evidence-informed, patient centered clinical decisions.
5. Demonstrates inquiry and ability to grow and seek new knowledge.

Interpersonal and Communication Skills (ICS)

Effectively communicates and interacts with patients, caregivers, and the health care team to contribute to high-quality, patient-centered care.

1.  Collaborates with patients, caregivers, and team members to enhance the therapeutic relationship.
2. Collaborates with health care and administrative team members to enhance team and organizational function.
3. Demonstrates active listening.
4. Communicates clearly, accurately, and compassionately in verbal, nonverbal, written, and electronic formats.
5. Demonstrates skills in educating patients, caregivers, peers, and team members.
6. Formulates and shares feedback constructively with others.

Professionalism (PRO)

Demonstrates integrity, respect, and ethical reasoning, and promotes inclusion of differences in all interactions to improve health care for patients, communities, and populations.

Objective #1 Compassion and Respect
Exemplify the professional values of medicine, including compassion, integrity, social responsibility, respect for all persons

1. Demonstrates integrity, respect, and compassion in all interactions with patients, caregivers, families, and team members.

Objective #2 Accountability
Demonstrate the responsible behaviors expected of physicians, including accountability, patient confidentiality, punctuality, prioritizing the needs of others

2. Demonstrates accountability for mistakes and acts to address them.
3. Completes duties and tasks in a thorough, reliable, and timely manner
4. Safeguards patient privacy, confidentiality, and autonomy.
5. Adapts actions and communication according to the situation.

Objective #3 Ethical Conduct
Demonstrate/embody ethical standards, principles, and moral reasoning in all professional interactions with patients, families, colleagues, and society

6. Respects the physical and emotional limits of professional relationships and uses ethical principles and reasoning to guide behavior.
7. Identifies personal biases and strategies to mitigate their effects.

Objective #4 Wellbeing and Growth
Apply the skills and incorporate the attitudes needed to maintain and promote professional growth

8.  Identifies personal limits of knowledge and skills and seeks help appropriately.
9. Demonstrates humility and a willingness to learn from others with different backgrounds and experiences.
10. Demonstrates responsiveness to the needs of patients that supersedes self-interest while balancing the need for self-care.

Systems-Based Practice (SBP)

Applies knowledge of the larger context of health, including its social and structural determinants, and of systems and resources within and outside of healthcare, to optimize high-quality care for patients, communities, and populations.

1.  Applies knowledge of social and structural drivers of health.
2. Recognizes mechanisms to reduce disparities and advance health equity in patient care and health care systems.
3. Adapts performance to various health care teams, delivery settings, and systems.
4. Collaborates in transitions and coordination of patient care.
5. Evaluates the risks and benefits of using current and emerging technologies in patient care.
6. Identifies patient safety concerns, systems issues, and opportunities for quality improvement.
7. Describes health policy and the financial context of health care.
8. Applies knowledge of local population and community health needs, disparities, and resources.