Curriculum
An End and a Beginning: Three VPIL teams reflect on Capstone projects, interdisciplinary teamwork, and the future
Apr. 30, 2021—by Emma Mattson For M2 Bushra Rahman, this April meant saying some bittersweet goodbyes. As a first-year med student, Rahman joined the Vanderbilt Program for Interprofessional Learning (VPIL). In the almost two years since then, she’s worked on an interdisciplinary team alongside nursing, pharmacy, and social work students to provide holistic care to clinic patients....
Why you should count teaching as an essential part of your medical journey
Apr. 5, 2021—by Emma Mattson M4 Daniel Pereira has a message for med students: teaching is part of your calling. Pereira, who will begin orthopedic surgery residency this summer, has maintained an enthusiasm for medical education for years. In the past academic year alone, he engaged in translation work for Nashville’s Department of Health, taught a beginner’s...
Behind the Scenes of the M2 Practical Skills Elective
Mar. 25, 2021—by Emma Mattson The unique Practical Skills elective starts its third session of the year next week, and three new leaders are joining the team: Amany Alshibli, Lex Erath, and Jessa Fogel. M4s Peety Kaur, Andrew Rees, and Hannah Kay have led this two-week elective, which runs three times each year, through the 2020-2021 academic...
VPIL Teamwork in the Time of COVID-19
Jan. 11, 2021—by Emma Mattson Not even a pandemic can stop interdisciplinary learning on VUSM’s campus. Take the Vanderbilt Program in Interprofessional Learning (or VPIL, for short), for example. Each year, around 40 VUSM students join this unique learning community to spend one afternoon a week doing hands-on work in clinics across Nashville, collaborating with students from...
4 tips for surviving your block exams, from our Students as Teachers experts
Aug. 31, 2020—by Emma Mattson Block exams present a new and exciting challenge during your clerkship year of med school, and we’ve gathered advice from five Students as Teachers experts about what, when, and how to effectively prepare for block exams. Here’s what they had to say! Choose your study resources wisely With so many study materials...
MIDP student Sai Rajagopalan teamed up with experts across the world to bridge a specific gap in maternal-fetal care during COVID-19
Jun. 28, 2020—by Emma Mattson Social distancing over the past four months has challenged medical students across the country to adapt. Some have developed innovative solutions for digital learning, clinical work, and student leadership in the time of COVID-19. Some, like third-year MIDP student Sai S.V. Rajagopalan, have dedicated their energies to hacking. Hacking the coronavirus, that...
Not Just in June: Vanderbilt leaders offer med students advice for supporting the LGBTQ Community in Everyday Healthcare
Jun. 15, 2020—by Emma Mattson Pride Month, celebrated each June, is normally filled with celebrations, parades, and displays of solidarity with the LGBTQ community. But, especially in a year which will go down in epidemiological history, Pride Month is also a time to face the sobering reality of the health disparities afflicting the LGBTQ community. We asked...
2020-21 Students-as-Teachers cohort fosters mentoring skills, teaches pedagogical techniques over Zoom
May. 11, 2020—by Emma Mattson Teaching might not seem to fit into a doctor’s job description, but Vanderbilt’s Students as Teachers elective is proving that pedagogical skills can play an essential role in clinical settings. This spring, a new cohort of thirty third-year medical students began Students as Teachers (SAT), a year-long elective that not only teaches...
Learning in the time of Coronavirus: Faculty and students adapt curriculum, take on new roles
Apr. 20, 2020—by Emma Mattson Distance learning brings a unique set of hurdles, but our students are up for the challenge. As the School of Medicine transitions to digital learning, medical education has adapted to meet the circumstances. According to William Cutrer, the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Medical Education, all first-year lectures have flipped to virtual streaming,...