From High School to Medical School: the Importance of Community in Education

Medical Student Perceptions of the Learning Environment: Learning Communities Are Associated With a More Positive Learning Environment in a Multi-Institutional Medical School Study

“…This continuous relationship may benefit students by providing more personalized experiences during their time in medical school compared with schools without such an LC format. 7,8,13 LC mentors are often the first point of contact for student issues and can help guide students to appropriate resources. 3,8 Finally, by providing a space for structured reflection with mentors and classmates, LCs often represent a school's attempt to address the hidden curriculum, provide humanistic role models, and positively influence the overall LE.…”

“…7,8,13 LC mentors are often the first point of contact for student issues and can help guide students to appropriate resources. 3,8 Finally, by providing a space for structured reflection with mentors and classmates, LCs often represent a school's attempt to address the hidden curriculum, provide humanistic role models, and positively influence the overall LE. 3,13,14 "Upper-level students provide informal guidance to lower-level students" is the sole MSLES item that did not differ significantly between schools with and without LCs by the end of the second year.…”

“…Many LCs purposefully attempt to create vertical communication among the classes, 3,10 which is perhaps most feasible when second-year students mentor first-year students. Although some institutions have LCs that meet regularly during clinical training, 3,8,43 other schools may find it challenging to meaningfully integrate LCs into the clinical years. The mixed-effects regression model found differences in perceptions of the LE as expressed in MSLES scores: Asians, males, students living with partners at home, and those who had greater time between college graduation and medical school rated the LE more negatively than other students.…”

“…Several institutions have conducted pre-and post-LC implementation analyses that associated LCs with positive outcomes including students' increased comfort in clinical skills, 7 Clinical Performance Examination scores, 8 and performance on clinical rotations, 9 as well as connections between students, involvement in leadership and service activities, student access to faculty, and positive perceptions of the learning environment (LE). 10 The American Medical Association (AMA)-sponsored Learning Environment Study (LES) 11 includes two institutions that have published descriptions of their LCs: University of Arizona College of Medicine-Tucson 12 and Stanford University School of Medicine.…”

Back to the Future: What Learning Communities Offer to Medical Education

“… 28 Promising early studies suggest that the erosion of empathy in the clinical years may be avoided through the use of a LC-based intervention, using a small group reflection, discussing the challenges that students face during their third year. 29 Depression, anxiety, and stress scores using standard instruments were lessened at St. Louis University, where they developed a wellness program, of which LCs were a part. 23 …”