INTL-4001 - Intensive Course in Tropical & Travel Medicine

INTL-4001 - Intensive Course in Tropical & Travel Medicine

Elective Title: Intensive Course in Tropical & Travel Medicine
Course Number: INTL-4001
Elective Type: career Duration/Weeks: 4 Max Enrollment: 25
Prerequisites: Successful completion of Year 2
Additional Requirements: Successful completion of Internal Medicine or Pediatric clerkship. Elective INTL-4018 has to be taken prior to taking this elective. C-Form is required, send forms to Bradley Brock (ba2brock@utmb.edu).
Responsible Faculty Director: Miguel Cabada Periods Offered: 9 excluding holiday period 8 
Coordinator: Bradley Brock Other Faculty: Students should contact Dr. Matthew Dacso, mmdacso@utmb.edu, for more information.
Location to Report on First Day:
Marvin Graves Bldg., room 4.208

Goals
Provide students and other trainees with an in-depth didactic training in tropical medicine and travel health with a goal of preparing them for international work. This course is part of a new global health track designed to satisfy the criteria for the American Society for Tropical Medicine Certificate of Knowledge in Tropical Medicine and Travel Health.

Objectives
At the end of the course the students should be:
1. Prepared to diagnose and treat diseases endemic in developing countries, including a thorough knowledge of the differential diagnoses of parasitic and tropical infectious diseases
2. Familiar with the epidemiology and prevention of illnesses in international travelers
3. Prepared to provide pre-travel counseling on prevention of illnesses in travelers to developing countries
4. Aware of public health problems in developing countries
5. Familiar with diagnostic techniques for parasitic diseases.

Description of course activities
This intensive course will be taught at the level of post-graduate training courses in tropical and travel medicine. The course will be centered on case-based discussions to familiarize the learners with tropical medicine. These will be supplemented by in depths lectures on parasitology, tropical diseases (including diarrheal diseases, TB, AIDS), malnutrition, epidemiology and public health in developing countries, and travel medicine. Laboratory sessions will familiarize the students with how to make diagnoses in areas with limited access to sophisticated laboratories.
Students may be required to work on a holiday.
Periodic quizzes and tests will be used to make sure students are grasping the material.

This course satisfies the Global Health Concentration.

Type of students who would benefit from the course
The course is designed for those who anticipate working in less developed countries or with immigrants from those countries.

    Weekly Schedule
          Estimated Course Activities (Start-Time/Finish-Time):
Day of Week   AM   PM
Monday 8 - 12 1 - 6
Tuesday 8 - 12 1 - 6
Wednesday 8 - 12 1 - 6
Thursday 8 - 12 1 - 6
Friday 8 - 12 1 - 6
Saturday 8-12 4th Sat. only
Sunday

 Average number of patients seen per week: 0
 Call Schedule: None

Research / Other Course Activities
(estimated schedule)
Activity Hours per Week
Faculty Contact-Time
Self-Directed Study
Data-Collection/Analysis
Other


Method of Student Evaluation
1.  Clinical Observation
  A. Where are students observed on this elective?
    Inpatient Service   Ambulatory   Surgery   Standardized patients
Patients simulators   Other
  B. Frequency - How often are students observed clinically?
    daily
  C. Format - What method(s) are used to document the student's clinical performance?
    Daily oral feedback   End of period oral feedback   Written feedback
Other

2.  Oral Presentation
  A. Audience - To whom does the student present?
    faculty
  B. Frequency / Duration of Presentation(s)?
    daily
  C. Format - What guidelines are set for the student's presentation?
    student selected
  D. Assessment - Who assesses the student's presentation performance?
    Self-assessment   Peer assessment   Faculty assessment
  E. Method of content selection
    Current cases  Student-selected topic   Assigned topic

3.  Written Assignment (H&P's, notes, papers, abstracts, etc.)
  A. Frequency of written assignment(s)?
    N/A
  B. Format - What guidelines are set for the student's written work?
    N/A
  C. Length of written assignment(s)?
    Abstract   Annotated bibliography   1 - 2 page paper   3+ page paper
  D. Are recent references required?   No    If yes, how are they selected?
    N/A
  E. Method of content selection - e.g. student-selected, relate to cases, etc.?
    N/A
  F. Audience - Who assesses the student's written performance?
    Peer Assessment     Faculty Assessment     Other

4.  Examination
  Format
    Oral   Written multiple choice   Written essay / short answer   OSCE
Other

5.  Extra Course Activities
  What expectations do you have for the student to demonstrate participation in the elective (e.g. small group activities, seminars, thoughtful questions, providing resources, journal club, resident lecture attendance)?
    Students will be required to attend lectures and case conferences every afternoon. Active participation in case discussion is important. Groups of students will be assigned laboratory unknowns to evaluate.

6.  Additional Costs
  Please list any additional costs and/or purchases (books, materials, movies to watch, etc.) that are required for this course. Include an estimated total cost. If there are no additional costs, please enter "None".
    None

7.  Other Modes of Evaluation
  Please explain below.
    The course will include a midterm and final examinations that are at the level of a medical subspecialty board examination. They will be required to evaluate laboratory unknowns and turn in their answers. Involvement in case discussions will also be assessed.
Students will be evaluated based on their lectures, how well they can diagnose things and how well they do on quizzes/tests and progress during the elective.

8.  If this course is an Acting Internship, please complete the following:
  A. Objectives for the AI should relate directly to the Entrustable Professional Activities (EPAs). Each AI should describe how the four key Year-4 EPAs that our school has identified as being Year-4 skills are assessed. The Year-4 objectives are:
1. Entering and discussing orders/prescriptions.
2. Give or receive patient handover to transition care responsibility.
3. Recognizing a patient requiring urgent or emergent care and initiating management.
4. Obtaining informed consent for tests and procedures.
Specify how the student will be given formative feedback on their clinical skills.
   
 
B.
Year-4 students should demonstrate mastery of EPAs they developed in the clerkship year, including recommending and interpreting common diagnostic and screening tests, and performing general procedures of a physician. They should be able to demonstrate masterfully and independently skills they mastered in Years 2-3, including efficiently performing comprehensive admission-notes and succinct daily progress notes and perform accurate, concise, and hypothesis-driven clinical presentations, form clinical questions and retrieve evidence to advance patient care. They should be able to demonstrate basic understanding of and beginning mastery of collaborate as a member of the interprofessional team and identify system failures and contribute to a culture of safety improvement.

List advanced clinical skills that a student will be assured an opportunity to practice.
   
 
C.
How specifically will this AI build on developing skills from the clerkship year to prepare students for internship?
   
 
D.
What opportunities will typically be available to all students who take this AI (procedures, required presentations, etc.)? What opportunities may be available based on patient load/presentation or student initiative (ie. Writing a case report)?
   
 
E.
An AI should have expectation of a minimum of 32 hours per week of clinical responsibilities. Duty hours should be capped at ACGME limits for an intern, thus up to 24 hours followed by 4 hours of activities related to patient safety, education, and handoff. Students cannot work more than 80 hours per week averaged over 4 weeks. They can only have 1 day off in a 7-day work week with 8 hours off between shifts.

Clinical responsibilities will vary depending on specialty, but how is the student functioning with work commensurate to a PGY1 with an appropriate level of training?
   
 
F.
How is the student demonstrating drawing clinical conclusions and/or developing a management plan and documentation as an intern would do?
   
 
G.
How and by whom will midpoint feedback be provided to the student? How will you remediate deficiencies identified at midpoint?
   
 
H.
Acting Internship students often seek letters of recommendation following their experience. How many different Faculty will work directly with the student and have knowledge of the student's abilities to detail in a written evaluation? Describe the degree of supervision and interaction with faculty vs. residents or other providers and how feedback will be obtained if more direct work is with residents or other providers.