The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Curriculum for the Twenty-first Century

Book excerpt: "Our basic philosophy of medical education must be directed not toward creating a neurosurgeon, a family practitioner, a cardiologist, or a general pediatrician but toward creating an undifferentiated 'stem cell' physician who is so well prepared that he or she is fully capable of taking any career path after medical school. Every indication is that our goal is being met. The new curriculum is preparing students for the demands and responsibilities of a new era of medicine, science, and medical arts." -- from the Foreword, by Michael M. E. Johns, M.D. The curriculum taught in many U.S. medical schools today has been altered little since 1910. Now, spurred in part by the recent sweeping changes in health care delivery, medical schools are re-evaluating their curricula. The goal is to develop a program of medical education that not only reflects the latest scientific advances but also prepares physicians in the fields and specialties society now needs. This book provides an extensive description of the process and outcome of developing a completely new curriculum at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. The book is organized around the subjects and courses taught: basic sciences, physician and society, medical informatics, and clinical medicine. Chapters also consider evaluation and reform of the curriculum. The contributors, Johns Hopkins faculty members who participated in developing the components of the curriculum, discuss differences between the old and new courses and programs, reasons for the changes, and the process used to plan and implement them. Throughout, the material is presented in a way that permits easy generalization and adaptation to other medical schools. Contributors: Catherine D. De Angelis, M.D. Diane M. Becker, Sc.D. Gert H. Brieger, M.D., Ph.D. Leon Gordis, M.D. H. Franklin Herlong, M.D. K. Joseph Hurt Michael M. E. Johns, M.D. Langford Kidd, M.D., F.R.C.P. Michael J. Klag, M.D. Harold P. Lehmann, M.D., Ph.D. Nancy Ryan Lowitt, M.D., Ed.M. Lucy A. Mead, Sc.M. Thomas D. Pollard, M.D. Henry M. Seidel, M.D. John H. Shatzer Jr., Ph.D. Patricia A. Thomas, M.D., F.A.C.P. Victor Velculescu Charles M. Wiener, M.D.