Clinical Connections and Competencies Course

PREREQUISITES AND PLACEMENT IN THE CURRICULUM:

Completion of M2 Year; Year Three

PURPOSE:

The purpose of the Clinical Connections and Competencies (CCC) course is to assist third year medical students in preparing for their clerkships by providing training and resources that will help them excel. This course builds upon the foundation established in the Transition to Clerkship (TTC) course by reinforcing clinical competency as well as social and cognitive skills. It combines lectures, small group exercises, and hands-on clinical practice to achieve these goals.

INSTRUCTIONAL FEATURES:

The College Committee on Instruction and Appraisal assembled a technical Procedural Competency List that includes procedures in which the graduating student should be able to demonstrate competency as well as those that the student should have observed.

The course also reinforces the Graduation Competencies established by the College of Medicine, that parallel the ACGME general competencies for residents. These competencies include areas relating to communication skills and professionalism, and therefore a second objective is to provide instruction and practice in these areas.

ASSESSMENT:

CCC assessment is based upon the direct observation of skills, attitudes, and problem solving abilities, thus students must be present at all sessions. Assessment of procedural skills is conducted throughout the course and prior to the Graduation Competency Examination at the end of the M3 year. Students will have ample time to practice all twelve procedural skills during CCC sessions. Grades for the course are either satisfactory or unsatisfactory.

To receive a Satisfactory grade in the CCC course, students must:

  1. Successfully perform all skills on the “Procedural Competencies for Graduating Medical Students” list.
    Any student not meeting a 100% pass level for each skill will be required to attend a scheduled remediation session that will take place prior to the Graduation Competency Exam.
  2. Adhere to the following professionalism guidelines:
    1. Attend all sessions.
    2. Be on time for all sessions.
    3. Complete all assignments on time.
    4. Be professional at all times.
    5. Complete all evaluations.

Course evaluations will be available for each session on the evaluation page of the CCC Blackboard site and must be completed after each session.

Failure to meet the above expectations can result in a final grade of Unsatisfactory for the course. In addition, students not complying with these guidelines will have a “Professionalism Evaluation/Deficient Behavior Form”completed for him/her, which will be submitted to the Office of Student Affairs and entered into the student’s file.

POLICY ON MISSED SESSIONS:

The CCC course is a graduation requirement, and like other graduations requirements must be satisfactorily completed in its entirety. If a student has a viable excuse for missing any portion of the course, he/she should contact the CCC course staff directly.

The CCC course consists of five dates spread across the M3 year. If a student misses one of the five dates, he/she will be required to make up the the missed curriculum the following year. (CCC cannot require a hospital site to release a student to make up a date during the M4 year, so an M4 student will need to take one of the days that would normally be allowed for interviewing, etc., and receive permission from the site director to miss a day of their rotation.)

Missing any CCC date should be reserved for emergencies or immovable events such as illness, attending a funeral, a College of Medicine sponsored research presentation, participation in an out of town wedding per the Absence Policy. Students should not schedule vacations that conflict with any CCC dates. Documentation will be required for all absences.

ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION:

Program Number:

Location: UIC

Program Co-Directors: Rik Stringham, MD – rstring@uic.edu
Annette Zacharia, MD – azachar1@uic.edu
Michelle Barnes, MD – mbarnes@uic.edu

Program Coordinator: Larry Moran – moranl@uic.edu

Telephone: 312-996-9030

Duration: 2 Weeks

Night Call: No

Weekends: No

Students Accepted: All

Housestaff Used as Faculty: Yes

Lectures/Conferences/Faculty Contact:

Laboratory/Independent Study:

Outpatient:

Inpatient:

Total Hours/Week:

Key Words: clinical skills, communication skills, professionalism, preparation for clerkships, problem solving abilities, clinical competency

Reporting times will be published on Blackboard as the become available. Students will be notified via e-mail by the Course Coordinator.

7/18/22