A preclinical course in decision making

Abstract

An existing multidisciplinary sequence in the preclinical curriculum of the College of Human Medicine at Michigan State University has been revised to include emphasis on psychological principles of clinical reasoning, decision analysis, ethical issues, and health economics. The course is a four-term sequence taught in the first and second years. In each term, the course consists of a one-hour lecture and two hours of group discussion weekly. The focus of the discussions is a series of carefully constructed paper-and-pencil cases that are graded in difficulty and coordinated with concurrent or previous biological science courses. Examinations have been developed based on written cases and using multiple choice, true-false, and short essay questions. The course is aimed at bringing about fundamental change in the new physicians' conceptions of value and benefit, the way uncertainty is managed, and the traditional belief that data and information are identical.