Thomas Kuhn's conceptions of the influence of paradigms on the progress of science form the framework for analyzing how medical educators have approached research on medical problem solving. A new paradigm emphasizing multiple types of problems with varied solution strategies is proposed. (Author/MLW)

An institutional strategy that permits consideration of sociomedical issues in some depth throughout the undergraduate curriculum at the State University of New York at Buffalo School of Medicine is discussed. In the freshman year, each student is required to choose one of eight seminars, or "selectives." (Author/MLW)

The development of a program designed to improve the teaching effectiveness of faculty members of a new Introductory Psychopathology course at the University of Washington School of Medicine is described. The lecture observation schedule developed was used to assist faculty in self-improvement. A literature review is included. (Editor/JT)

A pilot program in respiratory therapeutics that includes a development and implementation model is reported. Its prerotational and postrotational evaluations and significant improvement in competency areas related to clinical skill areas are described. (Author/MLW)

Over the past eight years the obstetric and gynecology specialty has applied a system model of instructional planning to the continuum of medical education. The systems model of needs identification, preassessment, instructional objectives, instructional materials, learning experiences; and evaluation techniques directly related to objectives was…

A 2-month program for third-year students at Yeshiva's Albert Einstein College of Medicine that provides a model for integrating basic sciences and clinical training is described. It demonstrates the importance of lifelong learning in a field that constantly changes. (Author/MLW)

Consultation rates of medical house staff physicians were examined to determine the factors that lead to the use of consultants. The factors that were studied were clinical experience and teaching in medical school, intensity of use of services, residency year, Alpha Omega Alpha membership, and future practice plans. (Author/MLW)

At the University of Minnesota Medical School a course, Introduction to Clinical Medicine, introduces communication skills; develops interview skills consistent with students' personality, their role as medical students, and the patients' needs; assists students in becoming comfortable as medical students in the hospital setting; and teaches them…

A review of effective primary care education and service delivery. Eleven issues are highlighted, including those involving physicians and non-M.D. professionals, financing, the pluralistic approach to education and care, students and faculty, specialty boards, and evaluation. Consensus approaches as well as diversity of opinions are noted.…

A model educational program for third-year pediatric clinical clerkss and pediatric level I and II house officers is presented. Learning is defined in three areas: patient management, behavioral care needs, and hospital and community health care needs. Information on goals, objectives, learning experiences, and evaluation methods is provided.…

Since there is a growing emphasis on the behavioral and psychological aspects of health and illness in pediatric practice, training programs must expose future primary care provides to behavioral and developmental issues. An interdisciplinary training model developed at Rochester's Department of Pediatrics is described. (Author/LBH)

A case-based, problem-oriented, modular curriculum in geriatrics for medical students was evaluated to investigate whether: students would demonstrate cognitive knowledge gain, students' attitudes toward the elderly would change favorably, suggested activities would influence students' ratings, and which institutional characteristics facilitate…

The curriculum of the General Internal Medicine Residency at the University of California, San Diego, has been designed to prepare graduates for the practice of general as opposed to subspecialty internal medicine. Relevant psychobehavioral topics are incorporated and residents are exposed to long-term management of psychiatric patients. (LBH)

A project to develop curriculum and instructional materials in preventive medicine has been initiated by the Association of Teachers of Preventive Medicine in cooperation with the Center for Educational Development in Health at Boston University. A model delineating physician responsibilities in the preventive dimension of clinical practice was…

A course in the early detection and outpatient management of alcoholism for medical residents is discussed. Unlike other courses on alcoholism that have emphasized changes in physicians' attitudes, this course was designed to promote changes in residents' practice behavior and to foster the development of necessary clinical skills. (MLW)