Career Exploration—Community-Based Med/Peds

Department of Medicine and Medical Specialties

  • Course Information

    Course Number: RMDN606

    Prerequisites: Completion of the Phase 2 Internal Medicine and Pediatrics clerkships

    Length of Time: 2 weeks

    Phase Availability: Phase 2 students RMED only. Phase 3 RMED preference. Registration with course director approval.

    Credit Type: Physician Assessed Patient Facing (PAPFE) or Open

    Call: At the discretion of the local preceptor and depending on local community needs some night duty may be assigned. If required, night call will not exceed 1 night in every 4. The UIC policy on duty hours will apply in this situation (appendix “UI duty hour rules out of town students”).

  • Contact Information

    Program Director at Abraham Lincoln Memorial: Melissa Cox, MD

    Program Director at Taylorville Memorial: Roger McClintock, MD

    Program Director at OSF St. James John W. Albrecht Medical Center: Benjamin Mikeworth, MD
    *Site temporarily unavailable for AY2026-2027

    Program Director at Pinckneyville Community Hospital: Andrew Forbes, MD

    Coordinator/Scheduling: Jessica McGuire (jam226@uic.edu); Allison King (aking75@uic.edu)

    Locations: Springfield Clinic Lincoln Memorial Hospital (100 Stahlhut Drive, Lincoln, IL 62656); Springfield Clinic Taylorville Memorial Hospital (600 North Main Street, Taylorville, IL 62568); OSF Saint James John W. Albrecht Medical Center (2500 W Reynolds St, Pontiac, IL 61764); Pinckneyville Community Hospital (5383 IL-154, Pinckneyville, IL 62274)

Narrative Description: A 2-week rotation to allow a student to have an extended experience providing ambulatory and hospital care in a more rural setting with somewhat fewer resources than the medical center where their prerequisite clerkship was completed. While chiefly an office- based ambulatory experience, occasionally preceptors may allow students to participate in care in the local hospital while under direct supervision. At no time will the student provide any patient care or entries to the medical record without their preceptor being directly present.

Students are encouraged by the participating hospitals and clinics to consider completing 2 consecutive 2-week rotations in the same community to provide for easier access to housing and more exposure to the host location.

Learning Objectives:

  1. Describe/discuss issues facing practitioners caring for individuals, families and communities distant from a comprehensive medical center.
  2. Be able to evaluate patients and contribute to treatment planning for patients and families in small communities.
  3. Describe common health problems in rural areas.
  4. Be able to demonstrate proficiency in clinical/procedural skills for treatment and management.
  5. Describe strategies for health promotion and illness prevention
  6. Identify available resources in the host community.
  7. Be able to determine when local treatment is appropriate, when to involve visiting subspecialties, and when to refer patients to higher levels of care. Explain why these decisions are appropriate.
  8. Compare and contrast the scope of practice of Internal Medicine/Pediatrics as opposed to Family Medicine in community settings.

Learning Activities:

  1. The student will keep a journal, summarizing their daily activities, level of participation (observed,  partial or full) and their personal observations & thoughts about the experience. (see appendix “Community Electives Log Procedures”)
  2. Student will perform medical histories and physical exams as assigned by their preceptor, present their findings orally, and develop differential diagnoses and treatment plans appropriate to their experience level
  3. The student will spend time with the office manager, nursing, and support staff, becoming familiar with their responsibilities.
  4. Student will obtain feedback from their preceptor using the Direct Observation Form as in regular required clerkships – one at the beginning of the clerkship and again at the end. Completion of this feedback and submission of the Direct Observation Form is required but the comments are formative only and will not be used for evaluation purposes.
  5. In order to help with advising and scheduling of future students, each student must complete a narrative summary of their experience in each 2-week rotation and submit this to the Phase 2/3 Director in Rockford at the end of their rotation. Grades will not be posted until this is completed.

Method of Assessment:

  1. The existing Elective Evaluation form will be used to provide feedback to the student about their performance. Grading method will be consistent with College policy.
  2. Student’s journal will be reviewed by supervising provider in the community for accuracy and completeness. (see appendix “Community Electives Log Procedures”)
  3. Completion of the Direct Observation Form will be documented.

Required Reading: None required by the campus – readings as assigned by local preceptors. Students are expected to take advantage of the Medical Mobile Resources available from the UIC library (appendix “EBM- Medicine Mobile Resources for out of city students”). Given the variety of these resources at the students’ disposal, note that use of UpToDate as the only clinical resource is not acceptable.

Additional Resources: As determined by the local preceptor.

Miscellaneous Information: None