Mission Statement

Our sponsoring institution's mission is to heal, comfort, educate and discover. In turn, the core program's focus is to develop physicians who can carry this mission forward. The program mission is to ensure that our residents are trained to act as capable, competent and compassionate primary care physicians that are adaptable to a variety of workplace settings and diverse patient populations. We strive to train physicians that possess the motivation and desire to continue a lifetime of learning, continual self-reflection and professional growth. The program serves both underserved and insured patient populations and is aligned with UF Health's mission to serve these populations.

Program Aims

The core program recently began the self-study process for ACGME re-accreditation. The foundation for this process was to develop aims or key expectations for the program. This may include aspects of the program that differentiate from other programs. The programs are also responsible for conducting a strategic assessment of the program which focuses on strengths, opportunities, areas for improvement and threats. The aims for the internal medicine residency are listed below:

• Produce competent and independent practicing internists that have the ability to care for patients in both inpatient and outpatient settings comprehensively
• Prepare residents to be competitive applicants for fellowship and have the opportunity to pursue other interests beyond internal medicine (this may include scholarship, education, advocacy or leadership)
• Train practitioners to have a basic understanding of quality improvement and patient safety
• Produce residents that will serve the local community through their practice of primary care, hospital medicine and medical subspecialties; these practitioners should have expertise in treating the variety of patient populations in our community, with a particular understanding of the medically underserved
• Develop socially well-adjusted residents through a programmatic focus on physician well-being, with the intent being that emotionally healthy physicians will be more resilient and able to deliver the best care to our community

Goals

Residents who complete our internal medicine residency training program develop the competencies of an experienced practitioner in the areas of:

• Patient Care
• Medical Knowledge
• Practice-Based Learning and Improvement
• Interpersonal and Communication Skills
• Professionalism
• System-Based Practice
• Community Involvement
• Lifelong Learning

Patient Care

Residents provide patient care that is compassionate, appropriate and effective for the treatment of health problems and the promotion of health. Residents:

• Communicate effectively and demonstrate caring and respectful behaviors when interacting with patients and their families
• Gather essential and accurate information about their patients
• Make informed decisions about diagnostic and therapeutic interventions based on patient information and preferences, up-to-date scientific evidence and clinical judgment
• Develop and carry out patient management plans
• Counsel and educate patients and their families
• Use information technology to support patient care decisions and patient education
• Perform competently all medical and invasive procedures considered essential for the area of practice
• Provide health care services aimed at preventing health problems or maintaining health
• Work with health care professionals, including those from other disciplines, to provide patient-focused care

Medical Knowledge

Residents are knowledgeable about established and evolving biomedical, clinical and cognate (i.e. epidemiological and social-behavioral) sciences and the application of this knowledge to patient care. Residents:

• Demonstrate an investigatory and analytic thinking approach to clinical situations
• Know and apply the basic and clinically supportive sciences appropriate to their discipline

Practice-Based Learning and Improvement

Residents investigate and evaluate their patient care practices, appraise and assimilate scientific evidence and improve their patient care practices. Residents:

• Analyze practice experience and perform practice-based improvement activities using a systematic methodology
• Locate, appraise and assimilate evidence from scientific studies related to their patients' health problems
• Obtain and use information about their own population of patients and the larger population from which their patients are drawn
• Apply knowledge of study designs and statistical methods to the appraisal of clinical studies and other information on diagnostic and therapeutic effectiveness
• Use information technology to manage information, access on-line medical information and support their own education
• Facilitate the learning of students and other health care professionals

Interpersonal and Communication Skills

Residents demonstrate interpersonal and communication skills that result in effective information exchange and teaming with patients, their patients families and professional associates. Residents:

• Create and sustain a therapeutic and ethically sound relationship with patients
• Use effective listening skills and elicit and provide information using effective nonverbal, explanatory, questioning and writing skills
• Work effectively with others as a member or leader of a health care team or other professional group

Professionalism

Residents demonstrate a commitment to carrying out professional responsibilities, adherence to ethical principles and sensitivity to a diverse patient population. Residents:

• Demonstrate respect, compassion and integrity; a responsiveness to the needs of patients and society that supersedes self-interest; accountability to patients, society and the profession; and a commitment to excellence and on-going professional development
• Demonstrate a commitment to ethical principles pertaining to provision or withholding of clinical care, confidentiality of patient information, informed consent and business practices
• Demonstrate sensitivity and responsiveness to patients' culture, age, gender and disabilities

Systems-Based Practice

Residents demonstrate an awareness of and responsiveness to the larger context and system of health care and the ability to effectively call on system resources to provide care that is of optimal value. Residents:

• Understand how their patient care and other professional practices affect other health care professionals, the health care organization and the larger society and how these elements of the system affect their own practice
• Know how types of medical practice and delivery systems differ from one another, including methods of controlling health care costs and allocating resources
• Practice cost-effective health care and resource allocation that does not compromise quality of care
• Advocate for quality patient care and assist patients in dealing with system complexities
• Know how to partner with health care managers and health care providers to assess, coordinate and improve health care and know how these activities can affect system performance

Community Involvement

Residents become involved in their community and its well being. Residents:

• Promote preventive health behavior
• Participate in community health screening
• Participate in volunteer activities in the community

Lifelong Learning

Residents develop a personal commitment to and process of lifelong learning. Residents:

• Sit for ABIM certification upon completion of their training
• Pass the ABIM certification examination on the first attempt
• Re-certify as required by the ABIM
• Participate in continuing medical education within the discipline
• Become involved in local and/or national professional societies

Objectives

It is our objective to see that residents learn:

• To perform a thorough and efficient history and physical examination and to effectively communicate patient care information to patients and colleagues in a logical, organized and thorough manner
• To use laboratory data to support the findings on physical examination
• To interpret, appropriately, the results of diagnostic tests and determine how the results influence patient management
• To formulate and carry our plans of care based on both medical and psychosocial assessment with the patient's consent
• To develop a safe, cost-effective and evidence/outcomes based approach to patient evaluation and management plans
• To seek appropriate medical and surgical consultation
• To develop effective communication and interpersonal relationship skills with patients and colleagues
• To coordinate comprehensive care for a patient
• To be proficient in both basic (i.e. arterial puncture, pelvic exam, urethral catheterization, nasogastric tube insertion) and advanced procedural skills (i.e., lumbar puncture, central venous catheterization, arthrocentesis, thoracentesis, paracentesis, skin biopsy)
• To understand medical-ethical principles and legal issues (advance directives, informed consent, confidentiality, professional-patient relationship) and their application in the practice of clinical medicine
• To develop the knowledge of the principles of nutritional assessment and intervention
• To assess and manage occupational and environmental health problems and promote interventions to decrease risk
• To use and critically review the medical literature
• To incorporate the use of computers in clinical practice
• To review deaths and correlate with clinical presentation
• To understand the unique health care needs, presentations, key management strategies and the importance of an interdisciplinary approach to specific patient populations (i.e. geriatrics, adolescents)
• To become familiar with practice management issues (i.e. time management, office organization and record keeping) types of practice settings and/or incorporations, types of insurance, use of staff, assessing patient satisfaction and continuous quality improvement issues