Medical students spread out across SW Ontario for Discovery Week

Today marks the first day of Discovery Week -a unique learning experience which has 170 first year medical students from the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry spreading out to communities throughout Southwestern Ontario to interact with health care professionals and their patients.  The experience offers not only hands-on learning to these students, but also a better understanding of the diverse cultural, economic and social factors which impact health and wellness in the rural and regional centres within Schulich Medicine & Dentistry’s distributed education network.  

 

This year’s Discovery Week will extend over two weeks, May 26-30 and June 2-6 in order to accommodate its largest number of participants to date.  The participating communities have names which run from A (Ailsa Craig) to Z (Zurich) in an area from Wiarton to Amherstburg.  Year one medical students will interact with a variety of health professionals to gain a better understanding of how patient care is delivered in the rural and regional centers of our network.  

 

“Discovery Week offers a rich learning opportunity that can be career shaping for our first year students.  It creates a time of consolidation and integration of the learning they have worked hard to achieve this academic year. ” says Dr. Gary Tithecott, associate dean, Undergraduate Medical Education and a practicing Chatham-Kent pediatrician.  “In many cases, students will get their first meaningful hands-on experience participating in patient care in a regional center.  We have directed that they work this week with a variety of unique patient care moments, and spend meaningful time working alongside and understanding the value delivered by our regional physicians and other health professionals including pharmacists, chiropractors, dentists and nurses in patient and family care.”