TY - JOUR
T1 - The Tensegrity Curriculum
T2 - A Comprehensive Curricular Structure Supporting Cultural Humility in Undergraduate Medical Education
AU - Jones, Anne C.
AU - Bertsch, Kristin N.
AU - Williams, Deborah
AU - Channell, Millicent King
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 Jones et al. This work is published and licensed by Dove Medical Press Limited.
PY - 2024
Y1 - 2024
N2 - Due to growing health disparities in underserved communities, a comprehensive approach is needed to train physicians to work effectively with patients who have cultures and belief systems different from their own. To address these complex healthcare inequities, Rowan-Virtua SOM implemented a new curriculum, The Tensegrity Curriculum, designed to expand beyond just teaching skills of cultural competence to include trainees’ exploration of cultural humility. The hypothesis is that this component of the curriculum will mitigate health inequity by training physicians to recognize and interrupt the bias within themselves and within systems. Early outcomes of this curricular renewal process reveal increased student satisfaction as measured by course evaluations. Ongoing course assessments examine deeper understanding of the concepts of implicit bias, social determinants of health, systemic discrimination and oppression as measured by performance on graded course content, and greater commitment to continual self-evaluation and critique throughout their careers as measured by course feedback. Structured research is needed to understand the relationship between this longitudinal and integrated curricular design, and retainment or enhancement of empathy during medical training, along with its impact on health disparities and community-based outcomes.
AB - Due to growing health disparities in underserved communities, a comprehensive approach is needed to train physicians to work effectively with patients who have cultures and belief systems different from their own. To address these complex healthcare inequities, Rowan-Virtua SOM implemented a new curriculum, The Tensegrity Curriculum, designed to expand beyond just teaching skills of cultural competence to include trainees’ exploration of cultural humility. The hypothesis is that this component of the curriculum will mitigate health inequity by training physicians to recognize and interrupt the bias within themselves and within systems. Early outcomes of this curricular renewal process reveal increased student satisfaction as measured by course evaluations. Ongoing course assessments examine deeper understanding of the concepts of implicit bias, social determinants of health, systemic discrimination and oppression as measured by performance on graded course content, and greater commitment to continual self-evaluation and critique throughout their careers as measured by course feedback. Structured research is needed to understand the relationship between this longitudinal and integrated curricular design, and retainment or enhancement of empathy during medical training, along with its impact on health disparities and community-based outcomes.
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U2 - 10.2147/AMEP.S442569
DO - 10.2147/AMEP.S442569
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85193422253
SN - 1179-7258
VL - 15
SP - 381
EP - 392
JO - Advances in Medical Education and Practice
JF - Advances in Medical Education and Practice
ER -