The IU School of Medicine has adopted a competency curriculum for the past 5 years. These 9 competencies are threaded through existing course and clerkship work. Every student must achieve level 2 in all competencies in order to graduate, and level 3 in three of the 9. Failure to do so will result in failure to graduate. IU was only the second school in the nation to develop and implement a competency curriculum. We believe medical students and practitioners should embrace a lifetime of learning, keeping current with competency issues. Introducing this curriculum was a means to effectively monitor and evaluate students outside of their regular coursework while at the same time explicitly telling students what was expected of them as ethical professionals.

The nine competencies are:
1. Effective communication
2. Basic Clinical Skills
3. Using Science to Guide Diagnosis, Management, Therapeutics, and Prevention
4. Lifelong Learning
5. Self Awareness, Self-Care, and Personal Growth
6. The Social and Community Context of Health Care
7. Moral Reasoning and Ethical Judgment
8. Problem Solving
9. Professionalism and Role Recognition

For more info contact:
Margaret M. Gaffney, M.D.