Electives | Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center

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There are many opportunities for School of Medicine Phase 1 students to further their education by participating in exciting electives here at the Ļć½¶Ö±²„ School of Medicine.

Coordinator:

Coordinator for School of Medicine Phase 1 Electives: Maureen Eregie

Below are the descriptions of our Phase 1 electives. These electives are only available to students who are currently enrolled with the School of Medicine. Click on the + button on each section to expand and learn more about an elective.

 

Inactive Electives

The following electives are currently inactive for the 2024-2025 academic year. If you are interested in any of these electives, please contact Maureen Eregie for information on the reactivation process.

Description: The Medical Ethics and Humanities Society will sponsor students who do not want to commit to a four year certificate to take classes in Medical Humanities and Bioethics on a class by class basis during MS1 and MS2 years.
This course will help medical students learn how Clinical Bioethics and Doctors In Film can help them develop both critical thinking and empathy to better understand their patientsā€™ illness experiences, the medical team-patient relationships, physician self-care, and various other aspects of healthcare. 

Description:The Integrative, Complementary, and Alternative Medicine (ICAM) elective will educate first and second year medical students about the importance of and methodology to incorporating Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) into their medical practice.

At the end of the elective, students should demonstrate the knowledge regarding the need for ICAM education to address the increasing use of CAM by patients and the various benefits and risks of using different CAM modalities. We also expect certain self-care CAM approaches to be applied to healthy student living and promote student wellness.

 

Description: The doctor has been portrayed as a heroic figure from the earliest days of film. Join us as we examine a selection of the ways the culture and history of medicine have been portrayed over the past seventy-seven years. We will be giving particular attention to the image of the doctor as a reflection of the changing notion of a ā€œheroā€ in medicine and American society.
Students will be introduced to the historical and cultural background of the film period and participate in a discussion of the changing image of the hero against this background of the films. The course will be presented by faculty with assistance from students.

Description:  "AI in Medicine" is a lecture-based course for first- and second-year medical students, designed to equip them with the knowledge and skills required to effectively integrate artificial intelligence into medical practice. Through expert-led lectures, students will gain a comprehensive understanding of AI in medicine, including its current state, potential, and limitations. The course will explore how AI can be leveraged to enhance patient outcomes, reduce healthcare costs, and support clinical decision-making, while also considering the ethical considerations. Students will develop critical thinking skills to evaluate the impact of AI systems on patient care. By the end of the course, students will be well-equipped to

Description: This course, Intro to Neurology, exposes the student to basic principles of diagnosis and management of common neurologic conditions. Students learn skills in conducting neurologic exams, identifying signs and symptoms of neurologic disorders, and integrating signs and symptoms into syndromes. Students learn about basic neurologic disorders and neurologic complications of systemic conditions.

Description: At the beginning of Intro to Clinical Research, each MS2 student will be assigned to a nurse coordinator and will be increasingly involved in working with that coordinator on the studies they are running. An opportunity will be given for the students to choose between various ongoing studies, but this must be done early since they must have passed the CITI training program and have IRBIRBproval to participate in individual studies. Each student should be involved both with studies involving human subjects and those involving chart reviews. It would be anticipated that the students would receive authorship on any publication resulting from studies on which they are involved, provided that their participation is meaningful.

Early in the elective, there will be an emphasis on didactic material beginning with discussions about the regulations and ethical considerations related to research in humans, the background for these and the role played by the IRBIRBd an Office of Research Integrity. This will be followed by sessions on how to develop the proposal for a research project from conception of the idea through formulation of a hypothesis and specific aims, compiling the background, constructing the appropriate methods and analysis of results and, finally, a discussion of the potential significance. It will be expected that each student will develop a proposal/protocol during the elective with an ongoing active critique process.

Description: This course, Advancement in Patient Safety, will introduce the healthcare student to the concepts in promoting and providing patient safety. Archived videos and live content expert presentations will build a framework of knowledge that the student can then apply to vignettes involving a sentinel event. Completion of this course will prepare the student with the fundamental knowledge required for the interprofessional root cause analysis course (CLARION).

The goal of this course is to provide the all students of the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center Schools with the opportunity to practice the core competencies recommended by the Institute of Medicine (IOMIOMThe IOMIOMcommended in a 2003 publication entitled "Health  Professions Education: A Bridge to Quality" that five core competencies be integrated into health professions education: patient-centered care, interdisciplinary teams, evidence-based practice, quality improvement and informatics. In this course students will work in interprofessional teams as they study the following concepts: root cause analysis, budget analysis, professional conduct and policies, team communication, legislative initiatives, information technology.