For the first time in Wayne State’s history, phone calls will become a part of the medical school curriculum. In an effort to introduce future physicians to quality measurement and improvement methods, third-year students will conduct periodic patient telephone interviews one week after treating or visiting a patient. The purpose of the phone call is to assess the patient’s health status, answer questions about the care plan, and discuss patient satisfaction with the clinical encounter.
This novel practice is just one of many innovations to be adopted through a new program called Undergraduate Medical Education for the 21st Century (UME-21). The program is part of a major effort by the Health Resources and Services Administration to prepare new physicians to practice high-quality, population-based, cost-effective medicine.
Wayne State was one of eight schools chosen from 54 proposals to participate in this partnership. Maryjean Schenk, MD, assistant professor of family medicine, is principal investigator for UME-21 and co-director for the project which includes Dr. Kathy Ling-McGeorge in pediatrics and Dr. Robert Frank in general internal medicine. UME-21 will provide $375,000 over the next three years to help the Wayne State curriculum keep pace with rapid changes in healthcare delivery.
Medical students will get practical insights into the healthcare system when they complete the following elements of the curriculum: follow at least one patient through the billing system, conduct a community health assessment to identify risk factors, perform Medline literature searches, access community resources to meet patient needs, learn about the cost of basic medical tests and medications, develop a personal statement of ethics, and learn about clinical care guidelines. In addition, the curriculum was designed and will be implemented with managed care organizations and a major Detroit employer.
"The principle teaching strategy is to provide the Managing Care Curriculum (MCC) as an integrated, longitudinal curriculum across four years of the undergraduate program," said Dr. Schenk. "The established classes will reinforce MCC principles such as patient advocacy, evidence-based medicine, population-based medicine, ethics, health care systems finance, quality improvement and medical informatics."
According to Dr. Schenk, by Year IV, students should be able to describe the following: how disease epidemiology in a community differs from that experienced in an office or hospital practice; how healthcare financing problems affect the community as well as individual patients; and how other key factors influence the health of the community.
"Our evolving health care system requires more from physicians," said Dr. Schenk. "Patients don’t want a physician who simply administers tests and medications. They want someone to help them manage and evaluate their medical resources, discuss treatment options, assist with lifestyle modifications, and consider their entire well-being. The UME-21 program better prepares physicians to meet those patient needs."
Dr. Schenk leads medical students in discussions about new approaches to comprehensive care.