Outpatient US Clinical Experience in Internal Medicine in Detroit

Information about this clinical experience:

This is an outpatient experience during which you will be under the supervision of a board-certified internist. The preceptor has had extensive experience educating students in the U.S. and serves as a Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine at Wayne State University School of Medicine. This attending is also actively involved in teaching internal medicine residents training in the Ascension Health System.

The attending is known to be a kind, caring, patient, and respectful physician. You will see that the patients are very much at ease in the practice because the environment is warm and friendly, and the staff is compassionate and supportive.

On a typical day, the clinic sees 20-25 patients with a mix of new patient evaluations and follow-ups of established patients. Rotators will be encouraged to synthesize patient information from the history, exam, and test results to form diagnoses. To help develop clinical decision-making skills, the attending will often ask “So, what do you think is going on with this patient?” and “What do you want to do next?” You will also be asked to offer your thoughts on treatment and management. All of this will be done in a non-threatening manner so that you can maximize your learning and grow as a clinician.

Because the preceptor is approachable, students can feel comfortable discussing any areas they would like to specifically work on. For example, if the student wishes to refine their exam skills or improve their note writing, the attending will offer targeted feedback in these areas. Students interested in improving their communication skills can request to give topic presentations.

Please note that there are several other practitioners in the office, including a nurse practitioner, and rotators will have the opportunity to work with them as well.

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

• Taking patient histories.

• Performing physical exams under the physician's supervision.

• Presenting patients.

• Writing notes (can submit to preceptor handwritten notes for feedback but not for official chart)

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

• May have opportunities to teach other team members.

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