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    Nov 21, 2024  
2011-2012 Georgia Health Sciences University Catalog 
    
2011-2012 Georgia Health Sciences University Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Doctor of Medicine


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During the two pre-clinical years, students acquire the building blocks of basic science that underlie medical practice and the skills required for clinical decision-making and patient interaction. The modular content of the curriculum is taught in lectures, labs with integrated clinical conferences, and small-group activities. The first year of the curriculum is a yearlong module divided into six systems-based blocks that run in parallel with the Essentials of Clinical Medicine course. This module introduces students to Gross Anatomy, Biochemistry, Development, Genetics, Histology, Neuroscience, Physiology, and Psychiatry. The Essentials of Clinical Medicine course is a two-year sequence emphasizing the skills needed for patient care. The first year of the Essentials of Clinical Medicine course emphasizes family, cultural and population aspects of healthcare, communication skills, and information retrieval and analysis, health promotion/disease prevention, ethics, history taking with adults, and a community project. In year two, Essentials of Clinical Medicine addresses interviewing and physical examination, common medical problems, and interdisciplinary topics such as ethics, nutrition, and the impact of behavior on health while highlighting principles of patient care for each stage of life. Cellular and Systems Disease States is a yearlong module divided into five systems-based blocks that run in parallel with the Essentials of Clinical Medicine course. In this module, students are exposed to the topics of Medical Microbiology, Pathology, and Pharmacology in the context of clinical medicine.

Year three consists of required core clerkships in Family Medicine (6 weeks); Internal Medicine (8 weeks); Neurology (4 weeks); Obstetrics/Gynecology (6 weeks); Pediatrics (6 weeks); Psychiatry (4 weeks); and Surgery (8 weeks). In addition to having an opportunity to do a four-week elective in the third year, students participate in a 2 week intersession or mini-clerkship on the care of the chronically and terminally ill patient. Core clerkships take place at the Medical College of Georgia Hospitals and Clinics, the Children’s Medical Center, and various affiliated hospitals and community-based teaching sites throughout the state. Students may rotate to affiliated community hospitals for part of the core curriculum. During year four, students must complete four-week rotations in Emergency Medicine, Critical Care, Adult Ambulatory Medicine, and an acting internship in either Family Medicine, Neurology, Medicine, Pediatrics, Surgery or Obstetrics and Gynecology. The remainder of the fourth year is for elective study that can include both clinical and research courses. Student must complete a total of four, four-week electives to fulfill the requirements for graduation.

Curriculum & Credit Hours for Main Campus students


Phase 1: Organ and System Based Modules and ECM 1


Phase 2: Cellular and Systems Disease States and ECM2


Phase 3 - Year 3


Students must satisfactorily complete all of the requirements of Phase 2 before entering Phase 3. Students must pass USMLE Step I  to enter the third year curriculum.

Phase 3 - Year 4


Senior Year Requirements:

Senior students must successfully complete 4 months of selectives (one Acting Internship in Medicine, Family Medicine, Neurology, Pediatrics, OB/GYN, or Surgery, a clerkship in Emergency Medicine, a Critical Care rotation, and an Adult Ambulatory Selective), and 3 months of electives.

If a senor student did not complete a third year elective, then a fourth elective is required in the senior year to fulfill graduation requirements. At least one of the three senior electives done in the fourth year must be on campus. On-campus electives are defined as those taken at Medical College of Georgia Hospital, University Hospital (but not a private physician’s office), or Veterans Administration Hospital, Augusta. Electives taken at other locations in Augusta are classified as off-campus electives.

Because electives provide students the opportunity to broaden their training, students are advised to complete more than the minimum requirement of electives.

Please refer to the Elective Bulletin published by the School of Medicine. 

Curriculum & Credit Hours for Athens Campus Students


During the first two years of medical school, students study using a combination of small group, large group, and self-paced methods to learn several biologic and clinical sciences in a highly integrated fashion. They also develop and refine their clinical skills to prepare for the clerkships in the third and fourth years and for their careers in clinical practice. Students are required to pass USMLE Step 1 before progressing on to the third year clinical rotations.

Phase 1:


Phase 2:


Phase 3 - Year 3


During the second two years of medical school, students join care teams in the core clerkships (i.e. Family Medicine, Pediatrics, Internal Medicine, Surgery, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Neurology, Psychiatry), as well as in advanced clinical and elective rotations. Students are required to pass both portions of the USMLE Step II to be eligible to graduate.

Phase 3 - Year 4


Senior students must successfully complete four months of selectives (one Acting Internship in Medicine, Family Medicine, Neurology, Pediatrics, OB/GYN, or Surgery, a clerkship in Emergency medicine, a Critical Care rotation, and an Adult Ambulatory Selective), and three months of electives. If a senior student did not complete a third year elective, then a fourth elective is required in the senior year to fulfill graduation requirements.


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