Rural Medicine Community Oriented Primary Care Research

National Center for Rural Health Professions

  • Course Information

    Course Number: RRHP660

    Prerequisites: Completion of all Phase 2 clerkships and enrollment in Rural Medicine Preceptorship in Family Medicine A or B

    Length of Time: 2 credit hours. Must be taken concurrently with Rural Medicine Preceptorship in Family Medicine A or B. May only be taken one time.

    Phase Availability: Phase 3

    Course Type: Open

    Call: None

  • Contact Information

    Program Director: Dr. Hana Hinkle

    Coordinator/Scheduling: Dr. Hana Hinkle (hhinkle1@uic.edu); Jessica McGuire (jam226@uic.edu)

    Location: UIC College of Medicine Rockford sites across Illinois

Narrative Description: The Community Oriented Primary Care (COPC) research project requires the Rural Medicine student to formulate a question, plan how to answer the question, and analyze their findings as it applies to a specific rural cohort. This course builds on the longitudinal curriculum RMED students receive in Phases 1 and 2. In Phase 1 students learn about the relationships between medical practice and the health of rural communities and in Phase 2 where they learn the foundational knowledge and skills of community oriented primary care model in order to conduct the community project during their 16-week immersion. This research course culminates in the presentation of the COPC project at Research Day or its equivalent experience.

Learning Objectives: By the conclusion of the preceptorship, the student will complete a COPC project which will assess a health care need in the community and provide further understanding of the problem and/or work on an intervention.

  1. Demonstrate effort planning the overall question as it pertains to the rural community in which the student is doing their 16-week Family Medicine Immersion.
  2. Discuss their findings with an open forum prior to graduation.
  3. Present their project findings in poster format prior to graduation.

Learning Activities: During the course of the student’s 16-week Family Medicine Preceptorship, the student will conduct their COPC project. They may use up to 3 half-day blocks/week during this time to accomplish this. Students must satisfactorily complete the community structure and COPC projects by the end of the preceptorship, having met intermediate assignment goals and deadlines. The student must create a poster of their COPC project to be presented at Research Day – Rockford, IL.

Method of Assessment: The 16-week Rural Family Medicine Preceptorship (RMED IV) is a senior required clerkship for RMED students which is described and recorded on the College and site transcripts. During this preceptorship the student must complete their COPC project. The criteria for evaluation of the COPC project includes: planning effort, implementation, quality of final report and poster presentation, and student evaluation of the project.

Required Reading: None

Additional Resources: None

Miscellaneous Information: None