Inpatient US Clinical Experience in Internal Medicine in Houston

Information about this clinical experience:

This is an inpatient experience during which you will be under the supervision of a board-certified internal medicine physician. The attending holds a hospital appointment within the Houston Methodist Healthcare System. (Please note that there is an additional $300 charge for the Houston Methodist paperwork. This will be refunded to you after completing the paperwork.) As a hospitalist, this physician has extensive experience in leadership and teamwork and is excited to share with students how collaborative care in the inpatient setting can lead to better outcomes for acutely ill patients.

In this clinical experience, after a period of observation during which time you will become comfortable in your new environment, your preceptor will assign you several patients to follow. Your responsibilities will be to take their histories, gather all relevant information, and present these cases to the preceptor during attending rounds. At that time, you will discuss your thoughts with the preceptor and work together to formulate the day's plan of care. After the plan of care is established, you will help the team execute the plan during the remainder of the day.

During your experience, you will learn the following U.S. medical practices under the preceptor’s supervision:

• Taking patient histories.

• Presenting patients.

• Writing notes (please note that these will be simulated notes for the doctor's review and will not be part of the medical chart)

• Have opportunities to research the literature to answer clinical questions at the point of care.

• Being involved in patient education.

• Working with other healthcare professionals to understand their roles and responsibilities.

Please note that because of Houston Methodist policies, some of the activities noted above will be more observational.