An Albany Medical College program utilizes private internists' offices as sites for resident ambulatory education. The private practitioner is perceived as an excellent teacher and role model who provides a positive effect on the long-term career goals of residents. (MLW)

The effectiveness of medical consultation studied at Johns Hopkins Hospital was measured as a function of compliance by the requesting physicians with the consultants' recommendations. Compliance rates are discussed. The definitiveness of the advice offered was significantly related to compliance. (MLW)

A shift in the composition of departments of medicine, which are now required to provide a more balanced faculty effort in the areas of patient care, teaching, and research, is discussed. The development of a division of general medicine at the University of Pittsburgh is described. (Author/MLW)

Matrix organization offers a structure that can facilitate coordination and cooperation in health care educational administration. Its application within the health care system is reviewed, the matrix organization of the primary care residency at the University of Pennsylvania is reported, and advantages and disadvantages are discussed.…

An academic general medicine clinic (GMC) was studied and profiles were generated to determine current patterns, shortcomings, and potential solutions. Conclusions include that GMC offers insufficient variety of patient presentations for optimal postgraduate medical education and inadequate accessibility for comprehensive medical care. (Author/JMD)

A seminar devoted to the psychological aspects of medical care has formed the major portion of the psychiatric training of primary care internal medicine residents at the Kenmore Center of the Harvard Community Health Plan. Content issues include professional identity, relationships with coworkers, and difficulties in handling patients.…

Specialty choices for medical school graduates of the University of Sao Paolo (Brazil) in 1975-84 and 1989-94 were analyzed by gender. Results showed women predominating in pediatrics and men in surgery and orthopedics in both periods, with no gender predominance in other specialties. Significant changes occurred in specialty choice patterns…

A study of medical students' and internal medicine course directors' perceptions of the value of medical case write-ups and the faculty evaluations of those write-ups found broad agreement on the exercise's value but major concerns about variability of criteria and standards of write-up evaluation. (MSE)

A program using role-playing to model humanistic attitudes and encourage humanistic behavior in internal medicine residents is described. Resident attitudes and key features relating to the program's success are noted. (MSE)

As internal medicine residency programs struggle to produce enough general internists adequately prepared for practice, the graduate medical education system must have a clear picture of what competencies these practitioners will need. It must constantly monitor the changing practice environment and its varied generalist career choices.…

The resource manual provides guidelines and resources for individuals interested in integrating a substance abuse curriculum into existing programs for medical students and residents in internal medicine. Materials and resources appropriate for practicing physicians are also included. Three sections are: (1) a statement of minimum knowledge and…

Medical specialty choice and reasons for change among those Wright State University students who switched their choice between entry and graduation were studied, based on questionnaire findings. For the class of 1982, 35 of the 70 students chose as their eventual specialty their preference at entry to medical school. Primary care specialties…

Experience on the traditional internal medicine, surgery, pediatrics, obstetrics-gynecology, and psychiatry clerkships was compared with the experience on a family medicine clerkship. The family medicine clerkship offered the most experience with circulatory, respiratory, digestive, neurological, musculoskeletal, and skin problems and with…

The hypothesis that the relationship between medical school achievement and postgraduate performance would vary by specialty was confirmed in a comparison of grades, standardized medical exams, and ratings in four areas of competence (medical knowledge, data-gathering skills, clinical judgment, and professional attitudes) in internal medicine,…

An interdisciplinary faculty of the University of Califiornia at Los Angeles School of Medicine has developed a behavioral science program to teach interns the interpersonal skills necessary for effective physician patient encounters. Curriculum topics include interviewing, problem identification, and situational stress. (JMD)