This year was the second year that our Medicine in the Community apprenticeship ran for 150 third year medical students. It was a great success with excellent student and community teacher feedback. The course has developed significantly since it was started in 2016. With a timetable packed full of centralised teaching, mini speciality choice modules and experience sessions over the ten weeks, we listened to our students who were wanting MORE time in their practices with their teams and patients. We therefore reduced the number of sessions out of the practice and gave them more free space to reflect and learn from the wealth of opportunity gained just by being in their own surgery.
The students enjoyed feeling like they were really part of a team, not only learning through meaningful patient contact as front line members of staff, but becoming embedded in the daily running of a practice where they made a real difference. They got to know their fellow team members and enjoyed being in a nurturing environment where they gained so much experience not only clinically, but regarding medico politics, management, leadership, teamwork, the interface between primary and secondary care and the fact that medicine is about continued professional development and lifelong learning.
Our tutors have given us overwhelmingly positive feedback about their students enabling variety to their daily work and being valuable assets of the team. They enjoyed seeing them thrive and realise the challenges of being a GP.
In term 2 we piloted a “Community Action Project” where students lead community health improvement projects through societal engagement. Given the short time frame they had the students surpassed our expectations producing some fantastic projects ranging from creating a verified resource of translated patient information leaflets for common conditions in multiple languages to running cookery workshops to promote healthy eating for diabetic patients and developing exercise classes in practices for frail elderly patients. They not only realised their ideas but they also developed mechanisms to ensure their interventions could be sustained. We were hugely impressed with the quality and impact of these projects which the students found extremely rewarding. Here are some quotes:
Personally, I was happy I was able to do something that really helped patients. It was heartening to hear patients’ positive feedback for our project. Professionally, I learnt that patients have a lot of healthcare needs and this is an eye-opener for me
Personally I have developed a passion for communication in medicine. Professionally I have developed leadership skills and medical knowledge
Great sense of well-being and professionally, made me realise how it is well within my capabilities to carry out a project like this in my free time whenever
The project benefited my practice population through increased awareness and empowered patients to really understand why doctors make certain decisions and not just to accept it without any explanation
The success of MICA is down to the amazing community teachers involved and I would like to thank everyone including all practice team members, who have ensured an excellent experience for our students. You have trusted our students allowing them to consult independently and given them the opportunity to learn through providing service. The time and effort involved in delivering tutorials, ensuring the student timetables are organised and generally being wonderful mentors is hugely appreciated and we hope our students continue to be able to give back to you, your practice and your patients as the course continues.
I would also like to thank our speciality choice leads who have done a great job in creating opportunities for the students to broaden their experiences in subjects such as research, leadership, health inequalities, health coaching, yoga and mindfulness, medicine and the media, and palliative care. We look forward to launching new modules in surgical skills, CBT and medical education next year.
Next year I will sadly be leaving my role as lead for MICA to live in Liverpool full time. I am thrilled to be handing over to Dr Maham Stanyon who I have helped train in practice and worked closely with at Imperial. Before I even met Maham in 2016 she sent me her CV regarding some project work. I was blown away that an ST2 (which she was at the time) had achieved so much. I was equally if not more impressed when I met her and then worked with her clinically and academically. She is a wonderful GP and educator who connects with all the students she encounters. She is a fabulous role model and will ensure the course goes from strength to strength with as successful full year role out next year.
In the words of Marian Wright Edelman,
“Education is for improving the lives of others and for leaving your community and world better than you found it”.
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