Medical Student Rotations
The Family Medicine student rotations in Knoxville are set in a constellation of physician learners and teachers with 24 residents, five fellows, and 20 academic faculty. The family medicine student program, which is the largest one at the UT Graduate School of Medicine, uses a web-based curriculum and is located adjacent to the “state of the art” Preston Medical Library. Since family physicians address the diverse health needs of both adults and teen children, the student's learning experience with their clinical preceptor provides an optimal opportunity to consolidate and integrate information from the biological, clinical and behavioral sciences learned in the M1 and M2 years into a variety of patient encounters. Therefore, the majority of the student's time will be spent exploring the professional life of their community family physician preceptor, including supervised patient care. In a spontaneous letter from one our past M3s the real-life learning experience M3s enjoy with our community faculty is evident. Here is a portion of that letter:
"I'm writing you this letter to give you my input on the family practice rotation in Knoxville. First of all, I'd like to thank you on a wonderful rotation. I had a vague idea about what family practice involved, but now I feel like I have good grasp. My most enjoyable moments were with my preceptor, Dr. _______. I can't stress enough how wonderful a preceptor he was. He was both a really nice person and a great teacher. I think the best thing I got out of following him was how he related to patients. He also was always willing and available to answer questions and to go over any curiosities I had during family practice. I also had a well-rounded experience with him, doing both inpatient and outpatient care."
M3 students work with a community faculty family physician, attend discussion groups and presentations on family medicine topics, co-manage patients with family medicine residents on the inpatient team, and see patients in a variety of community sites. Workshops and presentations by the full-time faculty assist students in learning to interpret ECGs and chest x-rays, managing common complaints and diseases of adults and children, and deciding on appropriate cancer screening strategies among others. Examples of topics include: Office Orthopedics, Approach to the Patient with Mood Disorders, and Use of Antibiotics in Common Infections. One week of family medicine inpatient care at UT Medical Center includes call nights with a supervising family medicine resident. Students are also given the opportunity to work/ride with the LifeStar helicopter transport team during this week. An evidence-based, small group presentation regarding a clinical question from their outpatient work introduces students to evidence-based medicine life-long learning skills, and assists them in developing presentations.
M4 students provide direct patient care for a diverse population under the direct supervision of family medicine residents, academic faculty and community preceptors. The M4's clinical interests are heavily factored into the curriculum of their JI or elective. Students can be involved in various procedures, including colposcopy, minor surgery, limited colonoscopy, vasectomies and others. Admitting and managing family medicine patients during the inpatient week will include some call nights with upper level residents. M4s will work closely with FP residents, caring for a variety of patients. At least one week is usually spent with a community family preceptor in Knoxville or nearby rural sites. Patient care days in the University Family Physician office, Brakebill Nursing Home, and UTMC LifeStar Helicopter Service round out the learning experience. Rotations are usually one or two months in duration and available year round.
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