Basic Science Review

Course No.:  JCON 602A
Duration:  3-9 weeks
Credits:  TBA
Term:  Any
Prereq:  None
Contact:  Dr. Edward Keenan, 4-8228

This course is considered independent study. The course director will meet with the student twice a quarter to assess the student's academic process and to assign a grade. The student can be required to participate in specific courses at Oregon Health Sciences University or attend courses/conferences through others universities. Since this course is Pass/Fail and is independent study, a student can register for it several times, but does not count toward graduation elective credits.

Transition to Clerkship Peer/Student Teaching

Course No.:  JCON 704A
Duration:  2 weeks
Credits:  3
Term:  Summer
Prereq:  All Core
Contact:  Vicki Fields, 4-8228

Students will serve as "preceptor" for new third year students by conducting hospital tours, ward walks, ICU, X-ray, admitting, etc. Students will demonstrate writing orders, writing prescriptions, review of charts, History and Physical, pharmacology review, work rounds, and information as to routines on wards. Limited to 20 students.

Topics in International Health

Course No.:  JCON 705A
Duration:  9 weeks
Credits:  2
Term:  Spring
Prereq:  None
Contact:  Dr. Jay Kravitz, 4-2550

This course explores clinical, population-based, and public health theory and issues from an international perspective. The goal of the course is to prepare medical and nursing students interested in health problems and diseases in developing countries to consider the challenge of clinical and/or public health electives or vocational opportunities in international settings. The student will appreciate the interrelationships of disease, overpopulation, society, politics, economics, and the environment and how the lives and health of people living in the developing world are impacted. Two hours per week for 9 weeks.

Peer Admissions Program

Course No.:  JCON 705D
Duration:  12 weeks
Credits:  2-6
Term:  Fall, Winter, Spring
Prereq:  MS4
Contact:  Janna Roth, 4-8228

Fourth year students participate in recruiting future students during the Admissions Process by attending applicant lunches. Credits do not count toward graduation elective requirements.

The Healer's Art

Course No.:  JCON 705G
Duration:  8 weeks
Credits:  1
Term:  Winter, offered in alternate years
Prereq:  MS1, MS2 or MS4
Contact:  Dr. Karen Adams, 4-4495

Topics include meaning and service, sharing loss, finding healing, strengthening our personal commitment and uncovering the spiritual dimensions of the practice of medicine for ourselves. Class format includes both presentation and small group discussion in a discovery model around the topics.

Providing Culturally Competent Health Care

Course No.:  JCON 705H
Duration:  11 weeks
Credits:  1
Term:  Fall, Winter, Spring
Prereq:  MS2 or above
Contact:  Dr. Rosa Colquitt, 4-7948

The purpose of this on-line interdisciplinary course is: 1) To provide a general overview of the concepts of culture which provide a foundation for understanding diversity and cultural competence; and 2) To offer a rationale for why cultural competence is essential to the delivery of high quality health care. Required assignments include journal readings, book excerpts, websites, videotapes and movies, and weekly faculty postings. Closing course activity is a group "cultural" outing.  Contact Dr. Rosa Colquitt for approval to sign up.

Careers in Medicine

Course No.:  JCON 705K
Duration:  4 weeks
Credits:  1
Term:  Winter
Prereq:  MS2
Contact:  Anita Taylor, 4-6618

The course objectives include 1) To learn about the specialties in medicine, 2) To understand the complexity of matching personal and professional factors to a medical specialty and 3) to identify mentors. Required assignments are the writing of a curriculum vitae and conducting an informational interview.

Legal Issues in Human Subjects Research

Course No.:  JCON 705P
Duration: 
Credits: 
Term:  Offered every other year
Prereq:
Contact:  Dr. Ken Gatter, 4-8273

Please contact Dr. Gatter for more information.

Careers in Medicine Specialty Talks

Course No.:  JCON 705P
Duration:  4 weeks
Credits:  1
Term:  Winter
Prereq:  MS1 or MS2
Contact:  Anita Taylor, 4-6618

The course objective is to introduce various specialties in medicine in the structured format of a panel discussion. Three to four physicians in each specialty will spend one hour every other week answering questions designed by the Specialty Interest Group leaders as well as questions from the students attending the session. Required assignments include website work and evaluations for each session.

Living With Life-Threatening Illness

Course No.:  JCON 705S
Duration:  1-3PM on Fridays, 9th floor UHS
Credits:  2
Term:  Winter
Prereq:  MS1
Contact:  Dr. Erik Fromme - 4-8534
               Dr. Susan Tolle - 4-4466

This interdisciplinary course introduces fundamental knowledge, attitudes, and skills for working with dying patients and their families.  Each student will be assigned to a patient with a life-threatening illness, and the focus of learning for the course will be the students' ongoing relationship with this patient and his or her family.  Seven structured learning experiences (panel discussions, large group case discussions, seminars, role plays, and lectures) will address topics such as responses to suffering, symptom control, grief and loss, spiritual concerns, and ethical dilemmas.  Weekly small-group discussions will allow students to receive supervision from an experienced clinician and to reflect on personal reactions to the patient, and will help them integrate didactic material with their clinical experience.  Course evaluation will be based on participation and the final paper.

Ethics & Professionalism in Action

Course No.:  JCON 705T
Duration:  4 weeks
Credits:  4
Term:  Fall elective block
Prereq:  MS3
Contact:  Dr. Geoff Gordon - 4-4436
               Ella Booth - 4-8089

In this elective, student will practice applying principles of ethics and professionalism to contemporary clinical, research, and policy issues. Students will work in small groups using background readings, case-based discussions, special projects, and personal reflection. Experiences will include participating in meetings of the Institutional Review Board and Ethics Consultation Service, as well as a regional conference on end-of-life care in Eugene in December. Emphasis will be placed on use of communication and cross-cultural skills in managing ethical problems, and students will have opportunities to practice these skills with observation and coaching. Over a dozen faculty from different disciplines on and off the campus will teach in this elective. This course will count towards your 12 elective credits for graduation. It is not considered a clinical elective.

PCM Evaluation Intern

Course No.:  JCON 705U
Duration:  1 year
Credits:  2-3 non-clinical credits
Term:  Year round
Prereq:  MS4 in good standing, selected by committee, must be present for all 3 terms for credit
Contact:  Dr. William Toffler, 4-5322

This course provides a unique learning opportunity for students who are interested in academic medicine and who support the concept of PCM. Student responsibilities are summarized as follows: review the PCM test each term to ensure it adequately reflects the term's current content with a 10-15% incorporation of broad clinical principles from previous terms; develop suggestions as needed and meet with a faculty advisor(s) to make final revisions to the test; participate in a grading session each term to help with grading; review the validity of the questions after student took the exam; and develop further suggestions and/or questions for the question bank. It must be emphasized that this is an academic learning experience and that students are not substituting for faculty involvement.  Contact Jennifer McNeil to sign up.

Clinical Field Experience in International Medicine

Course No.:  JCON 709B
Duration:  4 weeks
Credits:  6
Term:  TBA
Prereq:  MS4 and all core
Contact:  Dr. Jay Kravitz, MD, MPH, 4-2560 or 4-2559

To provide students with the opportunity to work in primary care and public health in developing nations, with the objective of examining the interrelationships of health and medical care, and social, political, economic, environmental and cultural issues. This elective will help students prepare to work and live in countries throughout the world. Opportunities in Asia, Africa, and Latin America are variable, depending on the availability of placement sites and student interest. Students interested in placement in countries where a language other than English is the major means of communication must demonstrate proficiency in the lingua franc of that country to be considered. Academic credit may be available for overseas electives. Preference for placement is given to MS4 students, who have completed JCON 705A. For potential funding assistance, please contact Vicki Fields in the Dean's Office or the Tartar Foundation at OHSU.

Clinical Field Experience in Community Medicine and Psychiatry

Course No.:  JCON 709E
Duration:  3-10 weeks
Credits:  1
Term:  Any
Prereq:  MS1 or MS2
Contact:  Samira Godil, 503-830-0510

The goals of this one credit clinical elective are to expose medical students to cultural and medical issues that arise when working with underserved populations, to assure quality health services to those lacking adequate resources to access care, and to help students gain experience with basic clinical skills. Students will receive training in a required orientation session in clinical skills as well as cultural awareness of the ethnic populations served by the SW Clinic. After training, students will sign up to help staff of the clinic during its regular hours of operation on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. Supervised by resident MDs from the OHSU Department of Family Medicine and medical faculty, student responsibilities will include patient intake, taking vital signs and medical histories, and assisting with clinical tests and procedures as needed. Minimum requirements for this Pass/No Pass offering are attendance at the required training/orientation session and a minimum of two evening clinics.  After their first term, students may continue to volunteer at the clinic by auditing the course (only one total credit may be earned); however, those who have not yet taken the elective for credit will be given first priority in scheduling.

Pediatric Neurosurgery

Course No.:  JCON 709H
Duration:  4 weeks
Credits:  6
Term:  Any
Prereq:  SURG 720, JCON 720
Contact:  Dr. Nathan Selden, 4-6207

This course is a primarily a preceptorship with a pediatric neurosurgeon. The student will participate in all activities of the Division of Pediatric Neurosurgery, including rounds, scrubbing on operative procedures, evaluating patients in the clinic and emergency room, etc. Patients include children with hydrocephalus, spinal dysraphism, brain and spinal cord tumors, head and spinal cord trauma, non-accidental trauma, craniofacial deformities, cerebral palsy, etc. The division is committed to student education and decision making regarding careers in surgery, academic pursuits, etc. Opportunity to write a case report can be included.

Surgery/Anatomy & Cell Biology

Course No.:  JCON 709J
Duration:  4-12 weeks
Credits:  4-12
Term:  Fall
Prereq:  MS4
Contact:  Dr. Gary Ciment, 4-7362

Senior students are presented with an unique opportunity to integrate gross anatomy, radiology, embryology, and surgery. The student will be responsible for: teaching freshmen students in the dissecting laboratories; setting up and tagging structures for practical examinations; attending lectures, assisting the staff in teaching; prosecting and demonstrating a cadaver to freshman students. Section I: back, upper limb, thorax. Section II: abdomen, pelvis, lower limb. Section III: head, neck.

Primary Care for Underserved

Course No.:  JCON 709K
Duration:  4-6 weeks
Credits:  1
Term:  Any
Prereq:  MS1 or MS4
Contact:  Dr. Rebecca Landau, 503-249-3281

This clinical experience is open to first year student between years one and two and all year for fourth year students. The Oregon SEARCH program is sponsored by the Oregon Primary Care Association and provides students with a 4 or 6 week clinical experience in Oregon. Students are required to submit an application which is located in the Dean's Office. If accepted, you will be matched to a site in Oregon for your experience. Opportunities are available throughout the state and include Community/Migrant Health Centers, Tribal Health Clinics and Rural Health Clinics. Students can receive credits or a stipend. If you accept a stipend for this experience, then you will only be registered for 1 credit to provide for malpractice insurance.

Clinical Review

Course No.:  JCON 709N
Duration:  12 weeks
Credits:  1-9
Term:  Any
Prereq:  MS3 or above
Contact:  Dr. Edward Keenan, 4-8228

Credits do not count toward elective requirement for graduation.

Preceptorship

Course No.:  JCON 709P
Duration:  12 weeks
Credits:  2
Term:  Winter and Spring
Prereq:  PCM 1
Contact:  Dr. Scott Fields, 4-5322

PCM Preceptorship only. Must have satisfactorily completed PCM 1 and the preceptorship.

Camp Starlight:  Comprehensive Treatment for HIV-Positive Children

Course No.:  JCON 709R
Duration:  1 week
Credits:
Term:  Summer
Prereq:  None
Contact:  Angie Raffaele-Burns, 503-223-5907 or araffaele-burns@cascadeaids.org

Camp Starlight is a week-long, overnight, camping experience for sixty children ages seven to seventeen who either have the HIV virus or live with an HIV positive first degree relative. The purpose of the camp is to provide this population with a supportive environment in which they can have the freedom to enjoy the same summer camp experience available to healthy children. Medical students participating in the elective will live with the campers for a week and function as counselors. They will be responsible for all aspects of caring for the campers including taking the children for their medications up to five times a day. Biopsychosocial issues which will reasonably be expected to arise include issues of disclosure, discrimination, grieving and loss, living with chronic illness, HIV medications and side effects. The elective will be limited to eight students. Students in all four years are encouraged to participate. Students are required to pass a camp volunteer screening by the non-profit organization running the camp, WIAR (Women's Intercommunity AIDS Resource). The course is usually offered the last week of August. Camp is located on the Oregon Coast in Lincoln City.

Preceptorship

Course No.:  JCON 709S
Duration:  3 weeks
Credits:  1
Term:  Summer
Prereq:  MS1
Contact:  Dr. Edward Keenan, 4-8228

Students are responsible for selecting a site and obtaining a preceptor.

PCM Peer Teaching

Course No.:  JCON 709T
Duration:  12 weeks
Credits:  3-6
Term:  Fall, Winter, Spring
Prereq:  MS4
Contact:  Jennifer McNeil, 4-5425

Fourth year students participate as small group leaders in PCM.

The Healing Racism Institute

Course No.:  JCON 709U
Duration:  8 weeks
Credits:  1
Term:  Fall, Winter
Prereq:  MS1 or above
Contact:  Dr. Rosa Colquitt, 4-7948

The course objectives include 1) To learn the historical development and origins of some stereotypes and oppressive terms used in reference to members of ethnic minority groups, 2) To define institutional racism and learn to recognize racism in institutional forms, and 3) To learn how to act to heal racism through education and influencing institutional actions.  Contact Dr. Rosa Colquitt to sign up.

American Indian Health

Course No.:  JCON 709W
Duration:  4 weeks
Credits:  6
Term:  Any
Prereq:  MS4
Contact:  Dr. Dale Walker, 4-3703

This elective is individually designed to familiarize the medical student with American Indian communities and the functioning of health care programs within those settings. A focus on Psychiatry, Family Medicine and/or Public Health and Preventive Medicine may be developed as part of this rotation. Several urban and reservation sites in the Pacific Northwest will serve as the location for this elective.

International Medicine Externship

Course No.:  JCON 709Z
Duration:  4-6 weeks
Credits:  6-9
Term:  Any
Prereq:  All core
Contact:  Vicki Fields, 4-8228

Students work in primary care and public health settings in developing nations. The location of the elective must be approved by the Associate Dean of Student Affairs. Students are required to submit in writing, to the Associate Dean, documentation indicating objectives, hours to be worked, supervision etc. All expenses associated with this elective are the responsibility of the student. This course is not repeatable for credit.  No malpractice insurance is provided by OHSU for international rotations.