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The resources of an important educational grant provided by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, as well as designated local college and medical center funds, provided support for the renewal of the undergraduate medical education program at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine. The fully revised medical curriculum, adapted to changing professional and societal needs and completely in place by the 1994-95 academic year, was influenced by the recommendations of the General Professional Education of the Physician (GPEP) Report, issued by the Association of American Medical Colleges in 1984. This paper details each of the student-centered curricular changes in the context of the GPEP recommendation that it particularly addresses.

Changes in medical education and the practice of medicine have resulted from the push for both education and health care reforms. Undergraduates planning application to medical school should broaden their preparation to include communications, computers, economics, and multicultural educational experiences. To prepare graduates for medical practice in the new millennium, the University of Kentucky College of Medicine has implemented a new curriculum focusing on integration of basic and clinical sciences, primary care in ambulatory sites, health promotion and disease prevention, and attention to the ethical, social, psychologic, and financial impact of disease upon the patient, family, and society.