Overview
The educational program within the Uniformed Services University (USU) School of Medicine is unique, for in addition to the traditional biomedical sciences that prepare students for careers in medicine, students are taught how to work in adverse physiological and psychological environments. USU students also receive comprehensive instruction in the art of military-medical leadership, and participate in an array of training experiences that are designed to cultivate strong leadership skills.
The curriculum is comprehensive and is both clinically and academically rigorous, as it is specifically designed to support the educational needs of uniformed services physicians. The pre-clerkship curriculum is presented via an organ-systems based approach, which incorporates focused instruction on military relevant physiology and operational medicine.
Although the initial emphasis is on the basic sciences, clinical medicine is integrated into all facets of the curriculum, with clinical skills training and patient care related activities beginning in the first week of medical school. This early integration of basic science and clinical medicine not only allows students to better appreciate the physical and biological factors affecting human health and illness, but also the complex social factors affecting individual patients.
Two key concepts underscore the entire USU curriculum: One is that medicine exists to serve society, and that military physicians must have unequivocally strong humanistic and leadership skills.
Pre-Clerkship Description
The USU curriculum strives to instill an appreciation for the importance of scientific inquiry and the necessity for self-directed and life-long learning, discovery, and continual self-improvement.
The sixteen month pre-clerkship period enables students to establish a strong foundation in the basic science associated with the mechanisms of human disease, the foundations of clinical diagnosis and contemporary approaches to prevention and treatment. During this time, students begin developing their professional identities as officers and physicians, so they can fulfill the promise of duty and expertise, to their future patients and military units. Students are mentored by experienced faculty, with particular emphasis placed on the cultivation of professional values and the mastery of key elements of basic and clinical science. At the same time, students study and acquire an understanding of the social and epidemiologic principles needed for effective patient care.
The pre-clerkship period begins with a seven week “Foundation in Medicine” module which introduces and reviews concepts fundamental to the basic sciences and clinical medicine. It provides students with the foundational skills needed to master advanced material, and establishes a solid foundation for the five organ-system based modules that follow this first module. These include a sequential focus on the skin and musculoskeletal system; the cardiopulmonary-renal system; neuroscience and behavior; the gastrointestinal, hepatobiliary, metabolism and nutrition systems; and one focusing on reproduction and endocrinology.
The final pre-clerkship module focuses on complex and multi-system diseases and prepares students to understand the intricacies of modern clinical medicine as they advance to the next phase of their education: the clerkship year. In this transitional module, students expand their problem solving skills in order to understand the interplay of multiple systems in serious illness. In addition, they learn how to recognize the roles of the host response, and the impact of social and environmental influences on disease outcomes. The diverse challenges addressed by the specialties of global and military medicine are also emphasized.
Clerkship Description
Following completion of a 3-4 day Transition to Clerkship program, students participate in a total of 48 weeks of required, clinical clerkships, which are accomplished via a series of three sixteen-week blocks.
Leave periods are scheduled throughout the year and occur after the completion of each sixteenth block. The first block is in the Spring, the second is in the Summer, and the third towards the end of December. An additional week of leave is available for use during the block reserved for a clinical selective.
Basic science “threads” are interwoven throughout the core clerkships and build on many of the fundamental anatomic, physiologic and pathologic concepts that were introduced in the pre-clerkship modules. Clinical “threads” focus on topics of medical professionalism, ethics, patient safety, quality improvement, the skills necessary to practice life-long learning, and evidence-based medicine.
The Clerkship year requires completion of six different clinical clerkships and a 4-week selective. Clinical rotations may be taken in any order, however the 10 weeks devoted to Inpatient and Outpatient Medicine must be taken consecutively. The same applies to the 10 weeks devoted to General Surgery and the Surgical Subspecialties. The following chart provides an example of what a clerkship year schedule might look like:
| Block 1 |
Inpatient Medicine/Outpatient Medicine/Psychiatry
Spring Leave (Vacation)
|
| Block 2 |
Family Medicine/Pediatrics/Selective Rotation
Summer Leave (Vacation)
|
| Block 3 |
General Surgery/Surgical Specialties/Gynecologic Surgery & Obstetrics
Winter Leave (Vacation)
|
Post - Clerkship Description
The post-clerkship period is designed to prepare students for graduate medical education (internship and residency training), and to foster advanced clinical decision-making skills, as students continue to transition from being able to accurately Report and Interpret medical information and ultimately Manage and Educate patients in accordance with the “RIME” model of medical education.
The first six weeks of the post-clerkship period are used to help students prepare for successful completion of Step 1 of the USMLE examination. Students then participate in a six-week period of advanced curricular instruction called “Bench to Bedside and Beyond (B3).” B3 is an opportunity for students to further integrate basic science and clinical concepts in an advanced context, and is aided by specialized training in Advanced Life Support (ALS) and Advanced Trauma Life Support (ATLS). Emphasizing case-based examples, B3 incorporates topics such as patient safety, team-based care delivery (patient-centered medical home), professionalism, and evidence-based clinical decision making.
After B3, post-clerkship students have an extended period of time reserved for advanced clinical rotations and electives. This provides students with extra time to engage in several “audition” rotations with prospective residency sites, while further enhancing students’ clinical skills and opportunities. Specific offerings include both ambulatory and inpatient-based rotations, research electives, operational medicine electives, community- based medical electives, and traditional sub-internships. During this period, students will also complete the second part of their USMLE examinations, Step 2, Clinical Knowledge (Step 2 CK).
Included in the post-clerkship period is an opportunity to complete a Capstone Project. Capstone Projects are longitudinal projects involving scientific inquiry in an area of the student’s choosing. Capstone opportunities range from traditional basic science to integrative, operational, translational, or clinically oriented projects. Students completing Capstone projects are expected to devote up to three months of the post-clerkship period to this scientific pursuit.
Degree Requirements
Required Courses:
| PRC 1001 | Foundation in Medicine Module | 7 |
| PRC 2001 | Musculoskeletal and Integument Module | 8 |
| PRC 2002 | Cardiopulmonary-Renal Module | 9 |
| PRC 2003 | Neuroscience and Behavior Module | 8 |
| PRC 2004 | Gastrointestinal, Hepatobiliary, Hematologic, Metabolism and Nutrition Module | 8 |
| PRC 2005 | Reproduction and Endocrinology Module | 8 |
| PRC 2006 | Multi-System and Complex Diseases Module | 9 |
| MIL 2001 | Military Medicine 100 | 10 |
| GSO 3200 | Gynecologic Surgery & Obstetrics Clerkship | 5 |
| FAM 3200 | Family Medicine Clerkship | 5 |
| MED 3200 | Medicine Clerkship | 10 |
| PED 3200 | Pediatrics Clerkship | 5 |
| PSY 3200 | Psychiatry Clerkship | 5 |
| SUR 3200 | Surgery & Surgical Subspecialties Clerkship | 10 |
| ANE 4205 | Anesthesia and Perioperative Care for Military Physicians | 4 |
| BBB 4000 | Bench to Bedside and Beyond | 6 |
| MIL 4001 | Military Medicine 200 | 8 |
| MEM 4002 | Emergency Medicine Clerkship | 4 |
| NEU 4100 | Adult Neurology Clerkship | 4 |
| Or | |
| NEU 4110 | Child Neurology Clerkship | 4 |
| And | |
| Sub-Internships (Minimum of 2) | 8 |
Clerkship Requirements: Four 5-week rotations (PED, GYN-SURG-OB, PSY, FAM); two 10-week rotations (MED and SUR); and one 4-week selective rotation (not listed above) = 7 blocks
Post-Clerkship Requirements: Four courses and two sub-internships are required. The remainder of the 12 blocks are available for elective opportunities.
* BBB4000 (listed above) is a required activity, not an advanced elective or optional rotation.
Pre-Clerkship Courses
Required Courses
| PRC 1001 | Foundation in Medicine Module | 7 |
| PRC 2001 | Musculoskeletal and Integument Module | 8 |
| PRC 2002 | Cardiopulmonary-Renal Module | 9 |
| PRC 2003 | Neuroscience and Behavior Module | 8 |
| PRC 2004 | Gastrointestinal, Hepatobiliary, Hematologic, Metabolism and Nutrition Module | 8 |
| PRC 2005 | Reproduction and Endocrinology Module | 8 |
| PRC 2006 | Multi-System and Complex Diseases Module | 9 |
| MIL 2001 | Military Medicine 100 | 10 |
Clerkship Courses
Required Courses
Selective Course Offering
Post-Clerkship Courses
Required Courses
| ANE 4205 | Anesthesia and Perioperative Care for Military Physicians | 4 |
| BBB 4000 | Bench to Bedside and Beyond | 6 |
| MEM 4002 | Emergency Medicine Clerkship | 4 |
| MIL 4001 | Military Medicine 200 | 8 |
| NEU 4100 | Adult Neurology Clerkship | 4 |
| Or | |
| NEU 4110 | Child Neurology Clerkship | 4 |
BBB4000 is a required activity, not an advanced elective or optional rotation.
Sub-Internship Course Offering
Two required Sub-Internships:
| FAM 4130 | Family Medicine Sub-Internship | 4 |
| GSO 4006 | Reproductive Endocrinology & Infertility Sub-Internship | 4 |
| GSO 4008 | Minimally Invasive Surgery (MIS) or GYN Surgery Sub-Internship | 4 |
| GSO 4009 | Labor and Delivery Days and Night Float Sub-Internship | 4 |
| GSO 4014 | Gynecologic Surgery & Obstetrics Subspecialty Combo Sub-Internship | 4 |
| GSO 4310 | Gynecologic Surgery & Obstetrics Sub-Internship | 4 |
| GSO 4370 | Gynecologic Oncology Sub-Internship | 4 |
| MED 4420 | Cardiology Coronary Care Unit (CCU) Sub-Internship | 4 |
| MED 4440 | General Medicine Sub-Internship | 4 |
| MED 4460 | Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU) Sub-Internship | 4 |
| MED 4500 | Hematology/Oncology Sub-Internship | 4 |
| NEU 4121 | Neurology Sub-Internship | 4 |
| PED 4631 | Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) Sub-Internship | 4 |
| PED 4632 | Pediatric Ward Sub-Internship | 4 |
| PED 4700 | Pediatric Inpatient Sub-Internship | 4 |
| PSY 4350 | Psychiatry Sub-Internship | 4 |
| SUR 4410 | General Surgery Sub-Internship | 4 |
| SUR 4430 | Cardiothoracic Surgery Sub-Internship | 4 |
| SUR 4450 | Burn Intensive Care Unit (BICU) Sub-Internship | 4 |
| SUR 4470 | Vascular Surgery Sub-Internship | 4 |
| SUR 4520 | Pediatric Surgery Sub-Internship | 4 |
| SUR 4581 | Otolaryngology Sub-Internship | 4 |
| SUR 4650 | Orthopedic Surgery Sub-Internship | 4 |
| SUR 4630 | Urology Sub-Internship | 4 |
| SUR 4670 | Plastic Surgery Sub-Internship | 4 |
| SUR 4700 | Trauma Surgery Sub-Internship | 4 |
| SUR 4710 | Surgical Intensive Care Unit (SICU) Sub-Internship | 4 |
| SUR 4720 | Surgical Intensive Care Unit (SICU) Sub-Internship | 4 |
| SUR 4760 | Neurosurgery Sub-Internship | 4 |
Advanced Clinical Course Offering