American Medical Student Association Project-in-a-Box

Sponsored by PRCH, MSFC, and AMSA

In 2007, PRCH launched the Undergraduate Medical Education Initiative (UMED) to address the scarcity of reproductive health topics in the curricula of U.S. medical schools, such as abortion, sexual history taking, intimate partner violence, and contraception. UMED aims to reform medical school curricula by working within the systems that govern curriculum content—such as licensing and oversight bodies, testing and accreditation institutions—and within individual medical schools.

Call for applications:  To achieve our goal within individual medical schools, PRCH is seeking applications from committed American Medical Student Association members who want to become involved in our work through this project-in-a-box. With technical assistance and mentoring from PRCH staff and physicians, students will increase their knowledge of the undergraduate medical education systems; develop their skills in conducting surveys, interviewing, and analyzing data; and gain the ability to mobilize fellow students and lead them through the reform process.

The project-in-a-box will contain tools to help the selected students through this process, including a glossary of key terms and organizations’ acronyms, and a guide to navigating curricula development and change. Because of the work involved in this initiative, the student is required to make a two-semester commitment.

In Brief: This project will enable committed students to assess their schools’ curricula, and plan and implement the reform process. Because of the work involved, the student is required to make a two-semester commitment.

First Semester

Step 1:
Curricula Assessment PRCH will work with the student to identify gaps in the institution’s reproductive health curriculum and develop a school-specific tool to assess the curriculum. In most cases, this assessment will be done by reviewing syllabi and course descriptions.

Step 2:
Survey and Interview The student will survey students, faculty, and alumni to evaluate the extent to which sexual and reproductive health content is included in the institution’s curricula. PRCH will work with the student to design an appropriate survey tool and provide small incentives to increase survey response rates. To enrich the data with a qualitative perspective, the student will conduct three to five interviews with selected faculty, students, and alumni.

Step 3:
Analyzing the Data After the data has been collected, PRCH staff will work closely with the student to analyze the information and compose a report summarizing the findings. This document will provide an overview of the process, detail the results, and offer next steps.

Second Semester

Step 4:
Present Data Results PRCH, MSFC, and AMSA will work with the student to present the first semester findings to the medical school community in an open forum or workshop. The students will discuss the results of the assessment, surveys, and interviews, and solicit feedback from the audience. At this event, PRCH staff will provide a presentation detailing the bodies governing curriculum change in undergraduate medical education and suggest areas most appropriate for student advocacy. Additionally, a student task force will be convened to build upon the findings from t he initial research and strategize for next steps. Ideally, a supporting faculty member would participate in this process.

Step 5:
Student Task Force The student task force will lay out a plan of action with three to four solid steps. PRCH will assist in the development and implementation of these strategies and help defer any costs incurred.

Step 6:
Evaluate After the project has been completed, PRCH and MSFC will work with the student to conduct a process-and-outcome evaluation.

Click here to apply.
Application deadline: August 29, 2008

If you have any questions, please email Penny Vick or call her at 646-649-9930.