COM Goals and Objectives for the Educational Program Leading to the M.D. Degree

Goal 1: Patient care

1. Students must demonstrate skills in the core set of activities required for patient care including compiling and interpreting a patient history, performing a physical examination, understanding the appropriate use and interpretation of procedures and tests and understanding the cultural perspectives of the patient.
2. Students must acquire the skills to be highly resourceful and to understand complex and culturally sensitive relationships.
3. Students must develop the attitude necessary for the provision of patient care that is compassionate, appropriate and effective.

Goal 2: Medical knowledge

1. Students must acquire knowledge in basic and clinical sciences related to the study of medicine.
2. Students must know how to acquire and analyze the information necessary for the proper diagnosis and treatment of patients and the promotion of their health.
3. Students must locate, appraise and assimilate information from the scientific literature, and use information technology optimally for learning and participating in the education of patients, patients’ families and others.

Goal 3: Practice-based learning and improvement

1. Students must know how information is renewed and understand the ever-changing nature of medicine.
2. Students must develop lifelong learning and continuous self-assessment abilities.
3. Students must develop the fundamental skills of self-evaluation and lifelong learning, including specifically, the ability to identify strengths, deficiencies and limits in their knowledge, skills and attitudes.
4. Students must analyze performance and incorporate formative feedback into improvement activities.

Goal 4: Interpersonal and communication skills

1. Students must develop the interpersonal communication skills necessary for the effective exchange of information and collaboration with patients, patients’ families and other health professionals, including the ability to communicate effectively across a broad range of socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds.
2. Students must demonstrate the ability to listen to patients and understand their experiences in the context of the patients’ beliefs, values and personal circumstances.
3. Students must examine how their own reactions and emotions influence their attitudes and behavior toward their patients.
4. Students must function effectively as members or leaders of a health care team.

Goal 5: Professionalism

1. Students must demonstrate and maintain a commitment to professional responsibilities and adherence to ethical principles, including, but not limited to, compassion, honesty, integrity and respect for others; responsiveness to patients’ needs superseding self-interest; respect for patient privacy and autonomy; accountability to patients, society and the profession; and sensitivity, as well as responsiveness, to diverse individuals.
2. Students must act as role models committed to self-assessment and be willing to acknowledge errors.

Goal 6: Systems-based practice

1. Students must develop basic knowledge of health systems and the larger context of health care including the various health care delivery settings and systems, basic elements of cost analysis, risk-benefit analysis and population-based care.
2. Students must demonstrate an awareness of the various systematic approaches to reduce medical errors and how to implement system solutions.
3. Students must effectively access and utilize outside resources.
4. Students must demonstrate the skills that enable them to be effective members of an interprofessional healthcare team.