MSCHE Self Study April 2021

 From the onset of the curriculum, students participate in integrative seminars designed to provide an opportunity to integrate the didactic curriculum with clinical care and to develop critical thinking and life ‐ long learning skills (Integrative Seminar Track).  Syllabi, readings, video material, lecture recordings (nearly all courses are lecture captured) and other educational materials are posted on Moodle, the course management system employed by the College.  Students participate in clinical patient care starting in the first year with clinical responsibilities increasing as the student develops competency.  Preclinical courses, in which students learn clinical skills and procedures, include laboratories (student to doctor ratio of 4:1 to 6:1) that support and assess the development of these skills and procedures using high fidelity simulators or actual clinical instrumentation where students perform procedures on each other or actual patients.  During the entire third professional year, and at least one quarter of the fourth year, students render comprehensive patient care in the University Eye Center (UEC) under the supervision of members of clinical faculty where the student to doctor ratio is generally 3 ‐ 4:1 in third year and 4:1 in fourth year.  The fourth year is divided into 4 quarters with students typically assigned to external sites for three of these quarters. o For the in ‐ house UEC rotation, students rotate through each of the three clinical services: Primary Care, Advanced Care, Vision Rehabilitation and the Eyewear Center. 4 o The external rotations are described later in this standard.  Using the Clinic Grading Form, student clinical performance is assessed relative to the curricular learning objectives in the following categories at both on ‐ campus clinics and externship sites: o Patient care abilities including medical knowledge, technical skills, data interpretation and case management o Interpersonal and communication skills o Professional and ethical behavior  The curriculum is continuously monitored through a variety of mechanisms as described in Standard V.  Students experiencing academic and/or clinical difficulties at any point in the curriculum are identified, given assistance and provided opportunities for remediation to help them fulfill course and clinical requirements. The Academic Advising Program assists students with didactic and other difficulties throughout the first three years of the OD program. The Clinical Enhancement Program assists students with remediation for clinical deficiencies in years three and four. In the fall of 2019 we implemented a Boards Assistance Program offering diagnosis and specific assistance for students who did not pass any part of the national boards.

4 Primary Care includes adult primary Care and pediatric optometry; Advanced Care includes glaucoma, retina, anterior segment and contact lenses; and Vision Rehabilitation includes vision therapy and low vision.

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