Courses

The listing of a course description here does not guarantee a course’s being offered in a particular term. Please refer to the published schedule of classes on the MyBU Student Portal for confirmation a class is actually being taught and for specific course meeting dates and times.

BU Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine Required Courses

• MED MD 466: Neuroradiology
  
• MED MD 470: Breastfeeding Medicine
  The Breastfeeding Medicine elective’s first week is composed of an independent study module (the Wellstart lactation curriculum) along with other relevant lactation resources and readings. During the remaining three weeks of the elective, the student will apply their knowledge in lactation clinics, breastfeeding classes, and new mother support groups in the community. This elective is expected to be 40 hrs/week for 4 weeks. This elective will benefit any future physician who expects to care for breastfeeding mothers and their infants in any capacity. While students destined for OB/Gyn, Pediatrics, or Family Medicine are a natural audience for this information, any medical student who desires greater knowledge and confidence in management of breastfeeding problems will benefit from this elective. The student will be required to obtain preceptor signoff and feedback on their assessment and management of specific breastfeeding problems. The student will also keep a portfolio of written journal entries documenting all patient encounters, as well as narrative reflections on outpatient learning experiences. The student will also identify a research question based on a patient encounter, search out answers to this question in the current literature, and create an evidence-based case presentation. The student will present this case at the OB/Gyn Maternal-Fetal Medicine noon conference during the rotation.
• MED MD 471: Sub-Internship: Inpatient Gynecology
  The student participates as a subintern in all aspects of the inpatient and ambulatory gynecology service, assisting in minor and major gynecologic surgical procedures and following patients post-operatively.
• MED MD 472: Sub-Internship: Maternal-Fetal Medicine
  The student works with the Maternal Fetal Medicine and resident staff caring for high-risk pregnant patients, in both ambulatory and in-patient settings. The student will function as an acting intern for patients on the ante partum service. The student will attend the high risk prenatal clinics and spend one day per week on the labor floor. They will attend conferences run by the High Risk Department; additionally the student is expected to present at a MFM Thursday noon conference. To receive honors in the clerkship the student will write a paper or create a teaching tool for clerkship students.
• MED MD 473: Substance Use Disorder in Pregnancy
  The student works with the Obstetric and Addiction Medicine staff caring for high-risk pregnant patients, in an ambulatory setting.  The student will have significant outpatient supervised clinical responsibility for the pharmacologic management of chemical dependency during pregnancy, participating in all aspects of antenatal and post-partum care. Pregnancies complicated by substance use disorder including opioids, cocaine and alcohol will be the focus of this elective.  Each student is expected to complete a supervised, scholarly clinical presentation during this rotation.
• MED MD 474: Obstetrics and Gynecology Internship Prep Course
  The students are given the opportunity to participate in an intense four week elective that will better prepare them specifically for an OB/GYN internship.  Each week the elective will focus on reviewing the Association of Professors of Gynecology and Obstetrics (APGO) milestones to ensure that fourth year medical students have a strong foundation in the subject matter and skills before proceeding to an OB/GYN internship.
• MED MD 480: Multidisciplinary Breast Cancer Care
  This elective is based at Boston Medical Center and the Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine.  The student will participate in outpatient activities of the core faculty members including surgical oncology, medical oncology, and radiation oncology clinics.  Students will also participate in the operative management of breast cancer patients as assistants in the operating room.  Exposure to breast imaging technology and interpretation, breast cancer pathology interpretation, and genetics will be incorporated through sessions in those disciplines. In addition, select newly diagnosed patients will be identified at the beginning of the elective and the student will follow those patients to all consultations and treatments.  Students will be expected to participate in weekly multidisciplinary breast tumor board including preparing and presenting case presentations for discussion with direct faculty guidance.  Students will be exposed to early breast cancer, locoregionally advanced breast cancer, and metastatic breast cancer, gaining an appreciation for the full spectrum of presentation.  Integration of expertise from all disciplines will be emphasized.  Landmark clinical trials in breast cancer will be reviewed and discussed through a program of assigned reading and discussion with faculty.  This is primarily an outpatient elective with rare select inpatient activities.  The student will be expected to participate in clinical activities on all weekdays during the elective.  There will be no weekend responsibilities.
• MED MD 481: Clinical Hematology/Oncology
  The course in clinical hematology/oncology is designed to prepare students to evaluate and manage hematologic and oncologic disorders. The student will be exposed to patients both in the ambulatory and inpatient hospital setting. He/She will be expected to participate in the initial evaluation of in-patient consultations. In addition, they will have the opportunity to work with an attending physician in at least one outpatient Hematology or Oncology clinical activity per week. The student will be instructed in the technique of performing a bone aspiration and biopsy. In addition considerable time will be spent with the attending interpreting both peripheral blood and bone marrow smears. The student will also attend the weekly clinical and research conferences, which will afford him/her an exposure to the scholastic activities of the section.
• MED MD 482: Clinical Elective in Outpatient Hematology and Oncology
  This elective will take place in the hematology and oncology clinic on the 3rd floor of Moakley. Students will be assigned approximately 4-5 half-day clinic sessions per week during this 2 week elective. During these sessions, students are expected to see patients under the supervision of an attending Hematology/Oncology physician. The expected teaching contact hours are expected to total approximately 30 per week and will take place Monday through Friday from 8AM-5PM. There will be an additional approximately 10 hours per week of other educational time, including attendance at conferences and tumor boards. Expected assignments for this elective will include reviewing the charts of selected patients in advance of each day’s clinic session and completing approximately 2-3 progress notes per clinic session. Students with particular interest in a specific disease-site within hematology/oncology (GI oncology, breast cancer, malignant hematology, sickle cell disease, etc.) are encouraged to contact the course director 2-4 weeks in advance of the rotation. If there is sufficient availability, we will aim to tailor the rotation to allow maximal exposure to the disease-site of interest. During this elective, students are expected to obtain the following skills: • Perform an appropriate initial evaluation of a patient with a suspected hematologic or oncologic condition. • Identify the factors that go into formulating a management plan for patients with hematologic and oncologic conditions. • Recognize common adverse effects of hematology/oncology treatments. To track the acquisition of these skills, students will be provided with a list of expected experiences/patient types at the start of the rotation. We anticipate that this elective will be a valuable experience for students who wish to explore an interest in Hematology/Oncology as well as for future general practitioners (Internal Medicine or Family Medicine) to gain additional familiarity with the care of patients with these conditions.
• MED MD 485: Sub-Internship: Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery
  This elective provides an intense learning experience for students interested in a career in Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, and for others with specific interest in head and neck cancer, facial plastic and reconstructive surgery, allergy involving the nose and sinuses, and the auditory system. Students observe and work with faculty and residents in the Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery at the Boston Medical Center. Approximately half of the time is devoted to learning how to evaluate and treat ambulatory outpatients with otolaryngologic disorders. The other half of the time is spent observing and assisting in the operating room and evaluating hospitalized patients. Students are expected to attend weekly teaching conferences including Friday morning case conference, Pathology conference, Radiology conference, Audiology conference, Tumor Board conference, and structured Wednesday afternoon didactic lectures. Student Responsibilities – Fourth year medical students are required to do the following: 1. Be present and on time for clinics, rounds, surgeries, conferences 2. Acquire specified knowledge and skills (as delineated in “Otolaryngology Student Knowledge/ Skills Checklist”) 3. Assist residents in providing patient care 4. Prepare and present an eight minute Powerpoint presentation on a chosen topic. Participation, Expectations of Performance, and Grading The Department of Otolaryngology uses elements adapted from the ACGME Residency Review Committee Guidelines for General Competencies in Medical Education as a basis for student evaluations. Because the clinical rotation can be considered an opportunity to begin learning skills that a medical school graduate will be expected to acquire, we shall judge student performance in the categories of the six ACGME1 competencies listed below: 1. Patient care that is compassionate, appropriate, and effective for the treatment of health programs and the promotion of health 2. Medical Knowledge about established and evolving biomedical, clinical, and cognate sciences, as well as the application of this knowledge to patient care 3. Practice-based learning and improvement that involves the investigation and evaluation of care for their patients, the appraisal and assimilation of scientific evidence, and improvements in patient care 4. Interpersonal and communication skills that result in the effective exchange of information and collaboration with patients, their families, and other health professionals; 5. Professionalism, as manifested through a commitment to carrying out professional responsibilities, adherence to ethical principles, and sensitivity to patients of diverse backgrounds; 6. Systems-based practice, as manifested by actions that demonstrate an awareness of and responsiveness to the larger contMAS and system of health care, as well as the ability to call effectively on other resources in the system to provide optimal health care.
• MED MD 486: Research Elective in Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery
  This elective is designed for students willing to take the initiative and devote time to planning, investigating, and implementing an independent study that will culminate in preparation of a manuscript for publication in a peer reviewed medical journal. The student is required to meet with Dr. Levi two months prior to beginning the elective to review potential projects and arrange a mentor. Although most projects should be designed for completion within the four week elective, students may need to devote additional time to complete the independent study project after conclusion of the one month elective rotation. Students who have taken this elective have had high success at having completed projects presented at a national Otolaryngology meeting and subsequently published.
• MED MD 487: Advanced Otolaryngology
  This elective provides an intense learning experience for students interested in a career in Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, and for others with specific interest in head and neck cancer, facial plastic and reconstructive surgery, allergy involving the nose and sinuses, and the auditory system. Students observe and work with faculty and residents in the Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery at the Boston Medical Center. Approximately half of the time is devoted to learning how to evaluate and treat ambulatory outpatients with otolaryngologic disorders. The other half of the time is spent observing and assisting in the operating room and evaluating hospitalized patients. Students are expected to attend weekly teaching conferences including Friday morning case conference, Pathology conference, Radiology conference, Audiology conference, Tumor Board conference, and structured Wednesday afternoon didactic lectures.
• MED MD 490: Pathology Elective
  This elective will allow the 4th year Boston University medical student to explore the discipline of Pathology by allowing them to do rotations in Surgical Pathology, Cytopathology, Hematopathology and Laboratory Medicine to comprise a total of 4 weeks for the elective.  They will work with the Course Director and Coordinator to develop the 4-week experience. The Surgical Pathology rotation, resection and biopsy divisions, with a duration of two weeks are held in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at Boston Medical Center. Responsibilities include participation in gross prosections, frozen section evaluations, microscopic evaluation of surgical pathology specimens with histologic diagnosis and differential diagnostic considerations and performance of autopsies. Students are supervised by pathology residents, faculty on service and pathology assistants. The Cytopathology rotation (shared with the Hematopathology rotation), one week duration, is held in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at Boston Medical Center. During this rotation the student will value the clinical application of cytopathology to include diagnosis, differential diagnosis, ancillary tests and therapy. Responsibilities include evaluation of gynecologic and non-gynecologic specimens, participation in the fine needle aspiration service and daily cytology sign-out with the cytology fellow, resident and staff cytopathologist. The Hematopathology rotation (shared with the Cytopathology rotation), one week duration, is held in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at Boston Medical Center. During this rotation the student will develop the skills needed to interpret and formulate a differential diagnosis of the more commonly occurring disorders seen in peripheral blood, bone marrow, and lymph node biopsies. The student will gather pertinent clinical history on assigned cases, and review the slides with the resident rotating in the hematopathology service. During sign out with the attending faculty and resident, the student will have the opportunity to present their brief case histories, and summarize available laboratory data. Morphologic evaluation and case interpretation will take place during sign out. The Laboratory Medicine rotation, one week duration, is held in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at Boston Medical Center. During this period the student will rotate through Hematology, Blood Bank, Clinical Chemistry and Microbiology services and attend Amyloid and Hematopathology Conferences. Through these rotations, students will gain an understanding of the role of the pathologist in patient care in a multidisciplinary professional team. At the end of the block students will present to attendings, residents and pathology assistants an interesting anatomic or clinical case they encountered during the elective. Supervision and feedback will be provided during our daily sign out sessions. Students are supervised daily by pathology residents and clinical faculty on service.
• MED MD 491: Forensic Pathology
  Mornings are spent in the autopsy room observing medical examiners in the investigation and certification of causes and manners of death. The day starts with case distribution conference where histories and autopsy approaches are discussed before assignment to individual pathologists. Afternoons are available for students to work with medical examiners reviewing toxicology and histopathology of older cases. Students will also have the opportunity to spend time with our forensic neuropathologist in our neuropathology lab. In addition, students can observe our medicolegal investigators, forensic odontologist and forensic anthropologist to learn more about the identification process. Later in the afternoon are the daily case discussions (“sign-out” rounds) with senior staff and visiting residents. Students who participated in cases may present them at these meetings.
• MED MD 495: Quality Improvement Elective I
  In the current contMAS of health care today and into the foreseeable future, health care professionals have two overarching responsibilities: Delivering high quality care and constantly undertaking efforts to improve the care they deliver Medical students who are completing their undergraduate medical training must be equipped with the knowledge and skills that form the foundation for improving care within this contMAS. Students on this elective will work with a faculty advisor with quality improvement expertise to: Identify a quality problem in a specific clinical area Assess and systematically analyze the problem using quality improvement tools and Complete a quality improvement project proposal. To initiate the knowledge and skills development needed for future quality improvement efforts that will be required in graduate medical education and professionally after training. At the completion of the elective the expectation is that the student will have completed a QI project proposal that can be used to initiate and complete a quality improvement project defined in the Quality Improvement II Elective.
• MED MD 496: Research Elective: Assessing Utility of Patient Data Sets for Addressing Clinical Research Questions
  Modern data science and analysis capabilities applied to clinical data sets has played a significant role in enabling many recent advances in medical research. However, each distinct clinical data set has inherent traits that dictate its utility for providing relevant answers to particular clinical questions. Characteristics such as the types of data elements being collected, frequency of collection, structured vs. unstructured format, consistency, completeness, and accuracy all play a major role in determining the overall effectiveness of the data for specific research studies. Quantifying and measuring data set attributes requires a deep understanding of the underlying clinical workflows that generate the data as well as a working knowledge of modern data modeling, capture, and curation practices. This elective will introduce students to techniques for identifying and analyzing the characteristics of patient data sets and provide hands-on learning opportunities for students to directly assess a data set’s capacity for deconstructing various classes of clinical questions. Students will utilize patient data directly MASracted from the VA healthcare system’s electronic health record (EHR) that has been secured in a pre-approved repository, as well as other well-known open source data sets. The VA EHR data contains clinical data such as demographics, medications, laboratory values, hospitalizations, surgical procedures, progress notes, and radiology reports. Examples of open source data include The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) clinical and molecular data and the MIMIC-III critical care database. Questions that have been asked of the clinical data in the past have included determining the number of patients with lung cancer who had been identified prior to and after the LDCT national recommendation. Students will receive didactic instruction on the VA’s clinical workflows as well as basic database principles such as relational data modeling and the Structured Query Language (SQL). Didactic instruction covers several introductory data science topics including database systems, the Structured Query Language, and standard analysis techniques. Laboratory sessions provide students with practical mentorship to ensure projects make timely progress. Students are familiarized with the workflows, processes, and practices involved in data generation that dictate the usefulness of the data. No previous data science knowledge is required but fundamental computer skills are necessary. Students will be required to work with the research mentors to obtain access to clinical data sets as a prerequisite approximately 8 weeks before the elective begins. At the beginning of the elective, students will meet with the research mentors to discuss research aims and formulate a preliminary timeline for the elective’s major milestones. The timeline for the elective will generally consist of: finalization of research questions to be addressed and initial access to and familiarization with patient data sets (first week); comprehensive examination of data set characteristics and data analysis towards fulfilling research aims (second and third week); and finalize project results and generate documentation (fourth week). The main deliverable of this elective is a final presentation at a research-in- progress meeting of the VA Boston Informatics Group. If sufficient progress has been made, students may also develop an abstract or poster presentation targeted for informatics and/or clinically related conferences. First week hours will be met and tracked by student participation and engagement in all five instruction and laboratory sessions. The second- and third-week hours will be met by students on their research projects and tracked by requiring students to send daily updates on their progress. Students in the fourth week will spend their time developing and giving their final presentation and writeup and hours will be tracked based on the quality of these artifacts. This elective will be held at the VA Boston Cooperative Studies Coordinating Center (CSPCC) offices at 5 Post Office Square in downtown Boston. The proposed research mentors will be Drs. Daniel Chen and Frank Meng.
• MED MD 497: Quality Improvement Elective II
  Students on this elective will work with a faculty advisor with quality improvement expertise to: • Assess and systematically address a problem previously identified in QI Elective I using quality improvement tools and • Actively participate and/or lead the design and implementation of a quality improvement project to address that quality problem • Complete a quality improvement project abstract and summary To provide the knowledge and skills needed for medical students to develop future quality improvement efforts that will be required for residency. At the completion of the elective the expectation is that the student will have completed a quality improvement project involving two tests of change (PDSA). QI projects will be used to create an abstract and project summary that can be submitted for presentation at a local/national meeting, funding for further support of QI project, and/or certification from the Institute for Healthcare Improvement Open School’s QI Practicum Certificate.
• MED MD 500: Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics
  The focus of this elective will be on gaining an understanding of normal developmental processes; attachment, autonomy, mother-infant interaction, coping, Piaget’s cognitive theory, temperament. Different types of screening techniques will also be taught; and Denver Developmental Screening Test skills will be practiced. Structured activities will include supervised consultations, a literature seminar, ongoing child development activities in the Pediatric Department and Division of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics and participation in the various clinics. Flexibility in the elective exists for those who wish to gain some experience with children with specific developmental problems, e.g., learning disabilities, prematurity, and in utero substance exposure.
• MED MD 501: Pediatric Gastroenterology
  The pediatric gastroenterology elective is an opportunity for students to learn to recognize and manage common gastrointestinal disorders in children (ages birth to 22 years) including: abdominal pain, constipation, chronic diarrhea, recurrent vomiting, hematochezia, hematemesis, failure to thrive, abnormal liver function tests, etc.  The majority of the student’s time will be spent in the outpatient GI clinic.  The student will be assigned to evaluate patients with an attending during a clinic session, with increasing independence after he/she demonstrates competency in obtaining the core elements of the history and physical exam.  Through this experience, students will gain familiarity with both the initial work-up as well as the long-term management of patients with both acute and chronic illnesses as mentioned above.  The student will learn the initial approach for new patients as well as long term management of chronic illnesses.  The student will also attend endoscopy session one or two morning a week, and will learn the indications for procedures, exposure to normal and abnormal findings, and post-operative care. When there are pediatric GI inpatient consults, the student will be responsible for evaluating and then presenting the new consultations during daily rounds. The student will follow these patients throughout their admission, writing progress notes, reviewing relevant radiologic imaging and finding related journal articles to augment his/her understanding of each patient’s gastrointestinal disorder. The student will present relevant journal articles during rounds, communicate consultant recommendations to the floor team and reference applicable material learned in their daily progress notes.
• MED MD 502: Pediatric Infectious Diseases
  The course is designed to assist the student in developing expertise in the diagnosis and management of pediatric infectious diseases with emphasis on the clinical pharmacology of antimicrobial agents and newer modalities of diagnostics. The student will participate in the activities of the pediatric infectious disease group at Boston Medical Center, including in-patient consultation, daily rounds, and conferences. Experiences will include viral, bacterial, and fungal diagnostic labs, as well as Infection Control. Students will have an opportunity to attend Pediatric HIV and International Health Clinics. Students will be evaluated on the basis of their participation in rounds and conferences and one clinical presentation to members of the division at the end of the month.