2 Wisconsin Institutions Join National Effort To Change Medical Education

The University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health and the Medical College of Wisconsin announced Thursday they are joining a national initiative to change how medical students are educated.

They are among seven schools to form a network that will focus on ways to improve medical education.

The two Wisconsin schools will be founding members of the National Transformation Network.

Dr. John Raymond, president of the Medical College of Wisconsin, said it’s time to change the traditional approach to education to meet today’s health care needs

“Health care has evolved dramatically and we now recognize a need for changes,” he said. “Some of those changes are integrating basic and clinical science curricula as well as teaching aspiring clinicians, and physicians how to think and communicate rather than memorize.”

Cheryl Maurana, the founding director of the initiative, said they will take a “triple aim” approach.

“The triple aim will be integrated into four pillars of faculty, students, curriculum and perhaps most important, culture and systems change,” she said.

Maurana said those changes will focus on character, caring and competence throughout a student’s entire time as a medical student.

Initiative leaders expect to enhance patients’ experiences, improve overall health, and reduce the cost of health care.

The collaboration of the schools is funded by a $52 million gift from private donations.

The other members of the network are the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Mayo Clinic School of Medicine, University of California-San Francisco School of Medicine, University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School and Vanderbilt University School of Medicine.