Improving Medical Education: Enhancing the Behavioral and Social Science Content of Medical School Curricula

169 Pages·2004·4.05 MB·English

by  Committee on Behavioral and Social Sciences in Medical School Curricula

http://www.nap.edu/catalog/10956.html
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Improving Medical Education: Enhancing the

Behavioral and Social Science Content of Medical

School Curricula

Patricia A. Cuff, Neal Vanselow, Editors, Committee on

Behavioral and Social Sciences in Medical School
Curricula

ISBN: 0-309-53001-6, 168 pages, 6x9, (2004)

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Improving Medical Education: Enhancing the Behavioral and Social Science Content of Medical School Curricula
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/10956.html
Improving
Medical
Education
Enhancing the Behavioral and Social Science
Content of Medical School Curricula
Committee on Behavioral and Social Sciences in
Medical School Curricula
Board on Neuroscience and Behavioral Health
Patricia A. Cuff and Neal A. Vanselow, Editors
Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Improving Medical Education: Enhancing the Behavioral and Social Science Content of Medical School Curricula
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/10956.html
THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS 500 Fifth Street, N.W. Washington, DC 20001
NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing
Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of
the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Insti-
tute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen
for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance.
This study was supported by Award No. N01-OD-4-2139, Task Order No. 112, and Grant
No. 046078 between the National Academy of Sciences and the National Institutes of
Health, Office of Behavioral and Social Science Research and The Robert Wood Johnson
Foundation. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this
publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the organi-
zations or agencies that provided support for this project.
International Standard Book Number 0-309-09142-X (Book)
International Standard Book Number 0-309-53001-6 (PDF)
Library of Congress Control Number: 2004105404
Additional copies of this report are available from the National Academies Press, 500
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For more information about the Institute of Medicine, visit the IOM home page at:
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Copyright 2004 by the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Printed in the United States of America.
The serpent has been a symbol of long life, healing, and knowledge among almost all
cultures and religions since the beginning of recorded history. The serpent adopted as a
logotype by the Institute of Medicine is a relief carving from ancient Greece, now held by
the Staatliche Museen in Berlin.
Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Improving Medical Education: Enhancing the Behavioral and Social Science Content of Medical School Curricula
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/10956.html
“Knowing is not enough; we must apply.
Willing is not enough; we must do.”
—Goethe
Adviser to the Nation to Improve Health
Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Improving Medical Education: Enhancing the Behavioral and Social Science Content of Medical School Curricula
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/10956.html
The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of
distinguished scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the
furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. Upon the
authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate
that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and technical matters. Dr.
Bruce M. Alberts is president of the National Academy of Sciences.
The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter of
the National Academy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It
is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the
National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government.
The National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering programs aimed at
meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior
achievements of engineers. Dr. Wm. A. Wulf is president of the National Academy of
Engineering.
The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sci-
ences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the exami-
nation of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the
responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to
be an adviser to the federal government and, upon its own initiative, to identify issues of
medical care, research, and education. Dr. Harvey V. Fineberg is president of the Insti-
tute of Medicine.
The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in
1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy’s
purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in
accordance with general policies determined by the Academy, the Council has become the
principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National
Academy of Engineering in providing services to the government, the public, and the
scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both Acad-
emies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts and Dr. Wm. A. Wulf are chair
and vice chair, respectively, of the National Research Council.
www.national-academies.org
Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Improving Medical Education: Enhancing the Behavioral and Social Science Content of Medical School Curricula
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/10956.html
COMMITTEE ON BEHAVIORAL AND SOCIAL SCIENCES IN
MEDICAL SCHOOL CURRICULA
NEAL A. VANSELOW (Chair), Tulane University Health Sciences Center
ROBERT DAUGHERTY, JR., University of South Florida College of Medicine
PEGGYE DILWORTH-ANDERSON, School of Public Health, Health
Policy and Administration, and Center for Aging and Diversity/Institute on
Aging, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
KAREN EMMONS, Harvard School of Public Health; Dana-Farber Cancer
Institute
EUGENE K. EMORY, Department of Psychology and Department of
Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University
DANA P. GOLDMAN, RAND Corporation; University of California Los
Angeles School of Medicine and School of Public Health
TANA A. GRADY-WELIKY, University of Rochester School of Medicine
and Dentistry
THOMAS S. INUI, Regenstrief Institute for Health Care; Indiana University
School of Medicine
DAVID M. IRBY, University of California San Francisco School of Medicine
DENNIS H. NOVACK, Drexel University College of Medicine
NEIL SCHNEIDERMAN, University of Miami Behavioral Medicine
Research Center
HOWARD F. STEIN, Department of Family and Preventive Medicine,
University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center
Board on Neuroscience and Behavioral Health Liaisons
BRUCE MCEWEN, Alfred E. Mirsky Professor, Harold and Margaret
Milliken Hatch Laboratory of Neuroendocrinology, The Rockefeller
University, New York
RHONDA ROBINSON-BEALE, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Michigan
IOM Project Staff (starting in 2003)
PATRICIA A. CUFF, Study Director
BENJAMIN HAMLIN, Research Assistant
JUDITH ESTEP, Senior Program Assistant
IOM Project Staff (ending in 2003)
LAUREN HONESS-MORREALE, Study Director
OLUFUNMILOLA O. ODEGBILE, Research Assistant
ALLISON BERGER, Program Assistant
v
Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Improving Medical Education: Enhancing the Behavioral and Social Science Content of Medical School Curricula
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/10956.html
IOM Board on Neuroscience and Behavioral Health Staff
ANDREW M. POPE, Director
ROSA POMMIER, Finance Officer
TROY PRINCE, Administrative Assistant (starting in 2003)
CATHERINE A. PAIGE, Administrative Assistant (ending in 2003)
vi
Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Improving Medical Education: Enhancing the Behavioral and Social Science Content of Medical School Curricula
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/10956.html
Independent Report Reviewers
This report has been reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their
diverse perspectives and technical expertise, in accordance with procedures ap-
proved by the NRC’s Report Review Committee. The purpose of this indepen-
dent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the institu-
tion in making its published report as sound as possible and to ensure that the
report meets institutional standards for objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness
to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confiden-
tial to protect the integrity of the deliberative process. We wish to thank the fol-
lowing individuals for their review of this report:
David B. Abrams, Brown University
Nancy E. Adler, University of California, San Francisco
William Branch, Emory University
F. Daniel Duffy, American Board of Internal Medicine
Neil J. Elgee, The Ernest Becker Foundation of the University of
Washington
Marti Grayson, New York Medical College
William M. McDonald, Wesley Woods Health Center of Emory Healthcare
Joseph P. Newhouse, Harvard University
Susan Scrimshaw, University of Illinois at Chicago
Lu Ann Wilkerson, University of California, Los Angeles
Although the reviewers listed above have provided many constructive com-
ments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the report’s conclusions or
recommendations nor did they see the final draft of the report before its release.
vii
Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Improving Medical Education: Enhancing the Behavioral and Social Science Content of Medical School Curricula
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/10956.html
viii INDEPENDENT REPORT REVIEWERS
The review of this report was overseen by Charles E. Phelps, Provost, Univer-
sity of Rochester, New York, appointed by the National Research Council and
the Institute of Medicine, who was responsible for making certain that an inde-
pendent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with institu-
tional procedures and that all review comments were carefully considered. Re-
sponsibility for the final content of this report rests entirely with the authoring
committee and the institution.
Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Improving Medical Education: Enhancing the Behavioral and Social Science Content of Medical School Curricula
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/10956.html
Preface
There are a number of compelling reasons for all physicians to possess knowl-
edge and skill in the behavioral and social sciences. Perhaps most important is
that roughly half of the causes of mortality in the United States are linked to
social and behavioral factors. In addition, our nation’s population is aging and
becoming more culturally diverse. Both of these trends highlight the need for
enhanced physician capabilities in the behavioral and social sciences. Knowledge
from these disciplines helps physicians understand the role of stress in both their
patients’ and their own lives and provides them with coping strategies. Moreover,
many believe that competence in these areas is an important element in promot-
ing humane medical practice.
Cognizant of important new research findings in the behavioral and social
sciences and believing that all medical students should receive up-to-date instruc-
tion in these disciplines, the Office of Behavioral and Social Science Research of
the National Institutes of Health and The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation asked
the Institute of Medicine to conduct a study to accomplish three purposes:
• Review the current approaches used by medical schools to incorporate the
behavioral and social sciences into their curricula.
• Develop a list of prioritized topics from the behavioral and social sciences
for possible future inclusion in those curricula.
• Consider the barriers to incorporation of behavioral and social science
content into medical school curricula, and suggest strategies for overcoming these
barriers.
ix
Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.