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Background: Residency programs offer international health electives (IHEs), providing multiple educational benefits. This study aimed to identify how IHEs fulfill the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) core competencies. Methods: We conducted a thematic analysis of post-rotation reflective reports from residents who participated in IHEs through the Mayo International Health Program. We coded reports using a codebook created from the ACGME competencies. Using a constant comparative method, we identified significant themes within each competency. Results: Residents from 40 specialties participated in 377 IHEs in 56 countries from 2001 to 2014. Multiple themes were identified within each of the six ACGME core competencies: Patient Care and Procedural Skills (4), Medical Knowledge (5), Practice-Based Learning and Improvement (3), Interpersonal and Communication Skills (5), Professionalism (4), and Systems-Based Practice and Improvement (3). Themes included improving physical exam and procedural skills, providing care in resource-limited setting, gaining knowledge of tropical and non-tropical diseases, identifying socioeconomic determinants of health, engaging in the education of others, and increasing communication across cultures and multidisciplinary teams. Conclusions: Through IHEs, residents advanced their knowledge, skills, and attitudes in each of the six ACGME competencies. These data can be used for development of IHE competencies and milestones for resident assessment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The expanding use of bedside ultrasonography in the practice of emergency medicine and other specialties is accompanied by the need to train medical students in its applications and interpretation of its results. In this article, the authors describe their successful design, launch, and management of the ultrasound elective at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. Because the course has been so well received, the authors are now exploring ways of presenting its content and skills-building opportunities in more venues, including the Introduction to Clinical Medicine course. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Background and aim: Although medical students have increasingly more opportunities to participate in international electives, their experiences are usually unstructured and the literature referring to their learning outcomes, educational environment, and assessment is scanty. This study was undertaken to clarify qualitatively what students learn from their international electives. Methods: We carried out semi-structured individual interviews with 15 Japanese students studying clinical medicine in British medical schools and six British students studying in Japanese medical schools. The thematic synthesis method was used in analysing the transcribed data and triangulation by multiple researchers was used to achieve higher reliability. Results: The main learning outcomes identified were skills in history taking and physical examination with clinical reasoning and in management of diseases rarely seen in the students' own countries; awareness of clinical ethics and merits and demerits of different systems of healthcare and medical education; sensitivity to issues in doctor-patient relationships and work ethics; enhancement of cultural competence; and personal development. Conclusions: Most learning outcomes of international electives are culture- or system-dependent. Students achieved outcomes related closely to medical professionalism, mainly through reflection. International electives may give students opportunities to learn both professionalism and cultural competence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Medical school curricula frequently contain gaps in the areas of abortion and sexual health. A group of first- and second-year medical students at the authors’ institution organized a collaborative, multidisciplinary elective course to address such omissions in the preclinical curriculum. This paper describes the process of creating and implementing the elective. Medical students identified curricular gaps in the areas of abortion, sexual assault, lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender health, and HIV counseling. Clinical faculty and community-based professionals were invited to address these topics in a weekly lecture series organized by students. The course also included a half-day experience shadowing at a local abortion clinic. Collaboration with several student groups helped broaden student interest in and increase financial support for the elective. Some 37% of all first- and second-year students enrolled in the elective and received institutional credit for the course. Written and verbal evaluations confirmed student satisfaction with the lectures and the clinical experience. Dynamic and well-prepared speakers who presented interesting medical content received the highest ratings from students. Student leaders identified several challenges in implementing the elective. Ultimately the elective proved to be a successful collaboration among students, faculty, and healthcare providers, and resulted in permanent changes in the standard medical school curriculum. Challenges for student-initiated electives include difficulty in finding administrative support, securing funding and ensuring sustainability. This paper aims to make this process accessible and applicable to other students and faculty interested in addressing curricular gaps at their respective medical schools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SUMMARY Reform of the medical curriculum is occurring around the world. Two recurring themes are an emphasis on introducing a broader perspective on health and the need to impart knowledge and skills in new information technology. Groups of medical students from Canada, Sri Lanka, Norway, United Kingdom and Hungary took part in a 10-week 'electronic elective course' on the cultural and economic aspects of drugs and the pharmaceutical industry. The course involved a survey of local pharmacies to identify the most commonly prescribed drugs and theft prices, study of selected readings on the cultural and economic aspects of pharmaceuticals, and discussion among participants of the issues raised. Communication was mainly by email discussion between participants. The drugs used and theft prices varied substantially, especially between, but also within, the participating countries. The logistical and technical aspects of the course generally worked well. Student evaluation was generally positive, with participants particularly enjoying getting to know future colleagues in other countries, We believe that new communication technologies offer exciting opportunities to broaden medical education and foster international professional understanding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent years have seen a steady decline in the number of new physician-investigation (Association of American Medical Colleges, 2000). To encourage medical students to select research careers, the Queen's University Faculty of Health Sciences curriculum includes a mandatory Critical Enquiry elective in the 2nd year. An anonymous written survey was administered to medical students before and after the elective to determine their perceptions of the value of the elective and its impact on their decision to pursue a career in medical research. There was a significant increase in the number of students expressing an interest in pursuing a research career following the elective (35-42%, p = 0.029). Students recognized other benefits including the development of critical appraisal, information literacy, and critical thinking skills; and the opportunity to select an area of and form contacts for postgraduate training. Even students who choose not to pursue careers in medical research perceive benefits to a mandatory undergraduate research elective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Assesses the service elective approach in the clinical teaching of medical students at the University of California-Irvine by administering written questionnaires. Mean rating given to the elective; Indications of how narrative comments showed that students believed the elective; Effectiveness of the objective structured teaching examination (OSTE) for generalist resident physicians.