The New Formal Competency-Based Curriculum and Informal Curriculum at Indiana University School of Medicine: Overview and Five-Year Analysis

Abstract

There is growing recognition in the medical community that being a good doctor requires more than strong scientific knowledge and excellent clinical skills. Many key qualities are essential to providing comprehensive care, including the abilities to communicate effectively with patients and colleagues, act in a professional manner, cultivate an awareness of one's own values and prejudices, and provide care with an understanding of the cultural and spiritual dimensions of patients' lives. To ensure that Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM) graduates demonstrate this range of abilities, IUSM has undertaken a substantial transformation of both its formal curriculum and learning environment (informal curriculum). The authors provide an overview of IUSM's two-part initiative to develop and implement a competency-based formal curriculum that requires students to demonstrate proficiency in nine core competencies and to create simultaneously an informal curriculum that models and supports the moral, professional, and humane values expressed in the formal curriculum. The authors describe the institutional and curricular transformations that have enabled and furthered the new IUSM curricular goals: changes in education administration; education implementation, assessment, and curricular design; admissions procedures; performance tracking; and the development of an electronic infrastructure to facilitate the expanded curriculum. The authors address the cost of reform and the results of two progress reviews. Specific case examples illustrate the interweaving of the formal competency curriculum through the students' four years of training, as well as techniques that are being used to positively influence the IUSM informal curriculum.

Methods to assess students’ acquisition, application and integration of basic science knowledge in an innovative competency-based curriculum

“…The impetus to use assessment tools differently to assess medical knowledge is growing, however, as more medical schools adopt competency-based curricula. When students are expected to meet explicit competencies, schools have the responsibility to provide students with formative feedback about gaps in knowledge and areas for improvement to help students track progress (Ben-David 1999;Smith et al 2003;Goldstein et al 2005;Fishleder et al 2007;Litzelman & Cottingham 2007).…”

Professionalism of future medical professionals in Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin, Malaysia

“…Daily challenges to professionalism are commonly encountered by novices and practicing doctors, many specialists are disappointed with their preparation in this area and were incapable to deliver a satisfactory answer to these challenges (Barry et al, 2000). There is mounting unanimity among medical professors to encourage professionalism in medical students especially to develop the core humanistic characteristics (Litzelman and Cottingham, 2007). The recent trend in schooling and appraising professionalism for medical students and residents has put substantial demands on medical schools.…”

Enhancing the Informal Curriculum of a Medical School: A Case Study in Organizational Culture Change

“…While we would not attribute this overall doubling in applications solely to the RCCI, our Admissions Committee and Executive Associate Dean for Education prominently cited the RCCI and the competency curriculum as the 2 key contributors to this remarkable growth. 23,24 …”