LCME Subcommittee 4
Standard 5: Educational Resources and Infrastructure
A medical school has sufficient personnel, financial resources, physical facilities, equipment, and clinical, instructional, informational, technological, and other resources readily available and accessible across all locations to meet its needs and to achieve its goals.
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Element |
Narrative |
Questions to be completed by subcommittees |
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5.1 |
The present and anticipated financial resources of a medical school are derived from diverse sources and are adequate to sustain a sound program of medical education and to accomplish other programmatic and institutional goals. |
Evaluate the adequacy and sustainability of and the balance among the various sources of financial support for the medical school. Is there evidence that funding is sufficient for the missions of the medical school, including the conduct of a quality medical education program? Identify any constraints on the institution and its medical education program due to the amount of available funding or the balance among funding sources. (5.1 plus Overview section) |
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5.2 |
The dean of a medical school has sufficient resources and budgetary authority to fulfill his or her responsibility for the management and evaluation of the medical curriculum. |
Evaluate whether the dean, or the individual functioning as chief academic officer, has sufficient financial and personnel resources and appropriate authority for planning, implementing, and evaluating the medical education program. Note if any compromises in these areas have had to be made that can be attributed to insufficient resources. (5.2) |
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5.3 |
A medical school admits only as many qualified applicants as its total resources can accommodate and does not permit financial or other influences to compromise the school’s educational mission. |
Comment on whether pressures to generate revenue from tuition, patient care, and/or research are negatively affecting the faculty’s time to effectively conduct the medical education program. Note if decisions about class size take into account the full spectrum of faculty responsibilities. (5.3 plus Overview section) |
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5.4 |
A medical school has, or is assured the use of, buildings and equipment sufficient to achieve its educational, clinical, and research missions. . |
Evaluate the adequacy of the facilities used to support the teaching and research missions of the medical school. How satisfied are students and faculty with the availability and quality of education and research space? Is the availability or quality of educational space negatively impacting the ability to implement or change the medical education program as desired? (5.4) |
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5.5 |
A medical school has, or is assured the use of, appropriate resources for the clinical instruction of its medical students in ambulatory and inpatient settings and has adequate numbers and types of patients (e.g., acuity, case mix, age, gender). |
Evaluate the adequacy of the resources for the clinical instruction of medical students, including patient numbers and case mix and inpatient and ambulatory teaching sites. Note if the constellation of teaching sites used for required clinical experiences collectively can accommodate the assigned number of learners in each discipline and can meet the objectives for clinical education, including the required clinical encounters specified by faculty. Does each site used for required clinical experiences have sufficient and appropriate teaching and study space, information resources, and call rooms (if applicable)? (5.5, 5.6) |
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5.6 |
Each hospital or other clinical facility affiliated with a medical school that serves as a major location for required clinical learning experiences has sufficient information resources and instructional facilities for medical student education. |
Evaluate the adequacy of the resources for the clinical instruction of medical students, including patient numbers and case mix and inpatient and ambulatory teaching sites. Note if the constellation of teaching sites used for required clinical experiences collectively can accommodate the assigned number of learners in each discipline and can meet the objectives for clinical education, including the required clinical encounters specified by faculty. Does each site used for required clinical experiences have sufficient and appropriate teaching and study space, information resources, and call rooms (if applicable)? (5.5, 5.6) |
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5.7 |
A medical school ensures that adequate security systems are in place at all locations and publishes policies and procedures to ensure student safety and to address emergency and disaster preparedness. |
Comment on the adequacy of security systems on campus (including at distributed campuses) and at clinical teaching sites and on institutional policies and procedures to ensure student safety. Has the institution engaged in appropriate and comprehensive emergency and disaster planning? (5.7) |
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5.8 |
A medical school provides ready access to well-maintained library resources sufficient in breadth of holdings and technology to support its educational and other missions. Library services are supervised by a professional staff that is familiar with regional and national information resources and data systems and is responsive to the needs of the medical students, faculty members, and others associated with the institution. |
Evaluate the adequacy of library and information technology resources and staff support. Do staff in these units have appropriate expertise and are they responsive to the needs of students, faculty, and others in the medical education community? If these units serve other schools and colleges, do medical students and faculty have sufficient access? (5.8, 5.9) |
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5.9 |
A medical school provides access to well-maintained information technology resources sufficient in scope to support its educational and other missions. The information technology staff serving a medical education program has sufficient expertise to fulfill its responsibilities and is responsive to the needs of the medical students, faculty members, and others associated with the institution. |
Evaluate the adequacy of library and information technology resources and staff support. Do staff in these units have appropriate expertise and are they responsive to the needs of students, faculty, and others in the medical education community? If these units serve other schools and colleges, do medical students and faculty have sufficient access? (5.8, 5.9) |
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5.10 |
The resources used by a medical school to accommodate any visiting and transfer medical students in its medical education program do not significantly diminish the resources available to already enrolled medical students. |
Evaluate the adequacy of processes in place to ensure that the resources, such as faculty, educational space, clinical placements, used to accommodate visiting and transfer students do not diminish the resources for already-enrolled medical students. (5.10) |
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5.11 |
A medical school ensures that its medical students have, at each campus and affiliated clinical site, adequate study space, lounge areas, personal lockers or other secure storage facilities, and secure call rooms if students are required to participate in late night or overnight clinical learning experiences. |
Evaluate the adequacy and quality of student study space, lounge and relaxation areas, and secure storage space at all locations; include student perceptions of quality and adequacy in your evaluation. If students participate in overnight call at any location, comment on the security, accessibility, and availability of call rooms. (5.11) |
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5.12 |
A medical school notifies the LCME of any substantial change in the number of enrolled medical students; of any decrease in the resources available to the institution for its medical education program, including faculty, physical facilities, or finances; of its plans for any major modification of its medical curriculum; and/or of anticipated changes in the affiliation status of the program’s clinical facilities. The program also provides prior notification to the LCME if it plans to increase entering medical student enrollment on the main campus and/or in one or more existing geographically distributed campuses above the threshold of 10 percent, or 15 medical students in one year or 20 percent in three years; or to start a new or to expand an existing geographically distributed campus; or to initiate a new medical education track. |
Note whether the medical school has provided the LCME with the expected notifications prior to the identified changes taking place. (5.12) |
Standard 7: Curricular Content
The faculty of a medical school ensure that the medical curriculum provides content of sufficient breadth and depth to prepare medical students for entry into any residency program and for the subsequent contemporary practice of medicine.
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Element |
Narrative |
Questions to be completed by subcommittees |
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7.1 |
The faculty of a medical school ensure that the medical curriculum includes content from the biomedical, behavioral, and socioeconomic sciences to support medical students' mastery of contemporary scientific knowledge and concepts and the methods fundamental to applying them to the health of individuals and populations. |
Evaluate whether there is sufficient representation in the curriculum of topics from the biomedical, behavioral, and social sciences and of medical ethics. Does evidence support the determination of adequacy and appropriateness of content coverage? (7.1, 7.7) |
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7.2 |
The faculty of a medical school ensure that the medical curriculum includes content and clinical experiences related to each organ system; each phase of the human life cycle; continuity of care; and preventive, acute, chronic, rehabilitative, end-of-life, and primary care in order to prepare students to:
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Comment on whether the curriculum adequately covers each of the levels of care and phases of the human life cycle. (7.2) |
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7.3 |
The faculty of a medical school ensure that the medical curriculum includes instruction in the scientific method (including hands-on or simulated exercises in which medical students collect or use data to test and/or verify hypotheses or address questions about biomedical phenomena) and in the basic scientific and ethical principles of clinical and translational research (including the ways in which such research is conducted, evaluated, explained to patients, and applied to patient care). |
Evaluate the adequacy of experiences that permit students to directly apply the scientific method and to become familiar with the basic principles of clinical and translational research. (7.3)
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7.4 |
The faculty of a medical school ensure that the medical curriculum incorporates the fundamental principles of medicine, provides opportunities for medical students to acquire skills of critical judgment based on evidence and experience, and develops medical students' ability to use those principles and skills effectively in solving problems of health and disease. |
Evaluate whether the curriculum includes sufficient experiences and assessment to ensure that students develop skills in medical problem-solving and evidence-based clinical judgment. (7.4) |
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7.5 |
The faculty of a medical school ensure that the medical curriculum includes instruction in the diagnosis, prevention, appropriate reporting, and treatment of the medical consequences of common societal problems. |
Evaluate whether the curriculum adequately prepares students to recognize and appropriately address the medical consequences of common societal problems. (7.5) |
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7.6 |
The faculty of a medical school ensure that the medical curriculum provides opportunities for medical students to learn to recognize and appropriately address gender and cultural biases in themselves, in others, and in the health care delivery process. The medical curriculum includes instruction regarding the following:
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Evaluate how well medical students are being prepared to communicate appropriately with patients and others. Is the curriculum preparing students to understand and work effectively with and identify their own biases related to patients from a variety of backgrounds? (7.6, 7.8) |
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7.7 |
The faculty of a medical school ensure that the medical curriculum includes instruction for medical students in medical ethics and human values both prior to and during their participation in patient care activities and requires its medical students to behave ethically in caring for patients and in relating to patients' families and others involved in patient care. |
Evaluate whether there is sufficient representation in the curriculum of topics from the biomedical, behavioral, and social sciences and of medical ethics. Does evidence support the determination of adequacy and appropriateness of content coverage? (7.1, 7.7) |
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7.8 |
The faculty of a medical school ensure that the medical curriculum includes specific instruction in communication skills as they relate to communication with patients and their families, colleagues, and other health professionals. |
Evaluate how well medical students are being prepared to communicate appropriately with patients and others. Is the curriculum preparing students to understand and work effectively with and identify their own biases related to patients from a variety of backgrounds? (7.6, 7.8) |
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7.9 |
The faculty of a medical school ensure that the core curriculum of the medical education program prepares medical students to function collaboratively on health care teams that include health professionals from other disciplines as they provide coordinated services to patients. These curricular experiences include practitioners and/or students from the other health professions. |
Evaluate whether medical students are being prepared adequately to function collaboratively in health care teams. Are there objectives related to collaborative team care and are sufficient experiences related to these objectives included in the curriculum? (7.9) |
