** Poster Award Nominee

CURRENT EVENTS:  A WINDOW ON MEDICINE, ETHICS AND HEALTH POLICY

Linda D. Sander*, Susan A. DeRiemer and Carolyn T. Szetela, Meharry Medical College, Nashville, TN, USA 37208 U.S.A.

Purpose

The recent explosion in health reporting on the Internet, by cable news outlets and in newspapers is providing unique opportunities to bring to students the “real world” relevance of basic science knowledge to clinical practice, the moral complexities of applying such knowledge and the health policy issues often complicating such application.  We have developed a systematic approach for utilizing such reporting as a springboard for clinical correlation presentations.

Methods

Presentations typically begin with a current news story followed by a short science ”refresher” reviewing  relevant basic science curricula.  Videos, movie and TV excerpts, personal testimonies, interviews, panels and written case studies are then used as bases for discussion of the ethical and health policy issues.  Clickers and/or team learning concepts are used to enhance audience participation.

Results

Since 2005 we have incorporated multiple “Medicine and Society” presentations into our new integrated basic science curriculum.  Examples of presentations will be provided.  Presentations are very well attended, typically generate considerable discussion among students and are evaluated well at the end of the courses.  A major advantage to faculty involved in the development of such presentations is that the overall topics and designs can often be repeated from year to year with only minor changes relating to a late-breaking news story.

Conclusion

Utilization of current events in the presentation of clinical correlations enlivens discussion and promotes an appreciation of the impact of ethical and health policy issues on “real world” medical care and professionalism.