AMA Adds 20 Schools to Consortium to Improve Medical School Curriculum

The AMA has selected 20 medical schools to join its Accelerating Change in Medical Education Consortium.

The consortium was launched in 2013 to help bridge the gaps that exist between how medical students are trained and how health care is delivered. As part of this effort, the AMA will provide grants allowing schools to share best practices and develop innovative curricula for implementation in medical schools across the country.

The 20 schools are A.T. Still University-School of Osteopathic Medicine, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Emory University School of Medicine, Florida International University (FIU) Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Morehouse School of Medicine, Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Sophie Davis School of Biomedical Education/City College of New York, Thomas Jefferson University Sidney Kimmel Medical College, University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine, University of Connecticut School of Medicine, University of Nebraska Medical Center/College of Medicine, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine, University of Utah School of Medicine, and University of Washington School of Medicine.

The schools will build upon the projects that were created by 11 schools awarded grants by the AMA in 2013. The complete list of 31 schools, along with short descriptions of each school’s project, is posted at www.changemeded.org.

“Our goal throughout this initiative has been to spread the robust work being done by our consortium to accelerate systemic change throughout medical education,” said AMA CEO James L. Madara, M.D., in a statement. “By tripling the number of schools participating in this effort, we know that we will be able to more quickly disseminate the consortium schools’ innovative curriculum models to even more schools—leading to the type of seismic shift that the medical education system needs so that future physicians can better care for their patients.”

The 20 schools will each receive $75,000 over the next three years. According to the AMA, the schools were selected through a competitive grant process among the 170 eligible U.S. medical schools. A national advisory committee made the selection after seeking proposals that would significantly redesign medical education. Some of the selected projects include programs that incorporate medical students into care-coordination teams in an accountable care organization aimed at improving care for patients with multiple chronic conditions. Other projects focus on developing advanced simulation and telemedicine technologies to foster skills specific to the needs of rural or remote communities.

“Together, the 31 schools will collectively work to quickly identify and widely share the best models for educational change to ensure future physicians are prepared for a lifetime of learning, to lead a team of professionals in delivering care, and to explore innovative ways to care for patients, populations, and communities in the evolving health care system,” said Susan E. Skochelak, M.D., M.P.H., the AMA group vice president for medical education, in a statement. “By working together, we believe that during the next several years this effort will produce physicians who are not just skilled clinicians, but system-based thinkers, change agents, technology champions, and interprofessional team players.”

The AMA’s efforts have sparked interest across the medical education community. Also last month, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) announced an initiative, “Pursuing Excellence in Clinical Learning Environments,” to facilitate improvements in the nation’s graduate medical education system. The AMA will partner with the ACGME and 20 other health care and education organizations to share expertise and important feedback to improve the medical education system as a whole.

Announcing the initiative, ACGME CEO Thomas J. Nasca, M.D., said in a statement, “This initiative will build on the outstanding work the AMA has done in undergraduate medical education, as well as the work of our other partners, to ensure that physicians completing residency and fellowship training are equipped to fulfill the future health care needs of the American public.” ■