When James Woolliscroft, MD, professor of Medicine and dean emeritus at the University of Michigan Medical School, wrote a one-page treatise on the definition of expertise, he didn’t expect to carry it with him for the next thirty years.
Nevertheless, he brought it along to every position he’s held since. Woolliscroft discussed the principles in the essay and more during his keynote speech at the seventh annual Medical Education Day, held September 29 and sponsored by the Department of Medical Education, Northwestern Simulation and the Feinberg Academy of Medical Educators (FAME).
“What’s the difference between a novice and an expert? What are the key personal characteristics that facilitate the development of expertise?” Woolliscroft said. “Medicine provides a great context for the study of fundamental cognitive and learning questions that have the potential to extend far beyond the domain of medicine.”
The day-long conference featured didactic lectures and activities on researching and improving medical education, the induction of 34 new Feinberg faculty members into FAME and the presentation of Mary McBride, MD, MEd, assistant professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Cardiology, as the new associate director of FAME.
“I think Medical Education Day makes a statement of how important we value the educational mission here at Feinberg,” said Walter Eppich, MD, MEd, associate professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Emergency Medicine and director of FAME. “Without the excellence of medical educators who work every day with our students and residents, we would not be producing high-quality physicians — so I appreciate that we pause and recognize educational excellence.”
McBride is also an assistant professor and Eppich an associate professor in the Department of Medical Education.
In a breakout session, attendees were invited to participate in a microteaching exercise, supervised by Mobola Tolulope Campbell-Yesufu, MD, MPH, ’07 GME, assistant professor of Medicine in the Division of Hospital Medicine, and Marianne Tschoe, ’00 MD, ’03 GME, assistant professor of Medicine in the Division of Hospital Medicine.
Volunteers improvised a ten-minute talk on a topic of their choice, teaching the topic to the group. Afterwards, each volunteer watched a video of his or her performance while the group critiqued the talk and prepared constructive feedback, which was then shared with the volunteer. Linda Morris, PhD, associate professor of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, delivered a presentation on clinical tracheostomy care.
“I’ve been in education a long time and I’m always looking for ways to improve,” said Morris, also an associate professor of Anesthesiology. “If I can develop short talks like this, it can improve the bedside educational experience during rounds.”
In the “Bringing Equity Back” session, attendees tested their Chicago neighborhood knowledge, identifying each of the city’s 77 community areas on a blank map. Participants were then assigned a neighborhood at random and told to research community assets, an exercise designed to remind educators that neighborhoods are not defined by their shortfalls.
“We are used to hearing about certain Chicago communities through their deficits, looking at the glass half-empty,” said Virginia Bishop, MD, MPH, assistant professor of Preventative Medicine in the Division of Behavioral Medicine. “We want to explain to our students that while zip code can affect longevity, every community also has assets — we want them to look at these neighborhoods with the glass half-full.”
The session also featured methods for teaching social determinants of health, including tools and activities for engaging students, presented by Ashti Doobay-Persaud, MD, assistant professor of Medicine in the Division of Hospital Medicine; Deborah Clements, MD, chair of Family and Community Medicine and the Nancy and Warren Furey Professor of Community Medicine, and a professor of Medical Education; Heather Heiman, MD, associate professor of Medicine in the Division of General Internal Medicine and Geriatrics and of Medical Education; Daniel Evans, ’00 MD, ’03 GME, assistant professor of Medicine in the Division of General Internal Medicine and Geriatrics, and Karen Mangold, MD, MEd, ’11 GME, assistant professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Emergency Medicine and of Medical Education.
An afternoon presentation simulated effective learning techniques, a valuable lesson for medical school faculty because they may not have had training in teaching strategies supported by cognitive psychology, like a technique called “cold-calling,” according to presenters Aditi Puri, MD, MS, and Margaret Chapman, MD, both assistant professors of Medicine in the Division of Hospital Medicine.
“The key is to set expectations and to select students fairly and randomly,” Puri said. “If done right, cold-calling doesn’t feel punitive to learners and can keep them more engaged.”
Eppich also highlighted the winners of the John X. Thomas, Jr. Best Teachers of Feinberg Awards and the FAME Outstanding Teacher Awards (listed below), and congratulated the 108 Feinberg faculty members who were promoted in 2017.
John X. Thomas, Jr. Best Teachers of Feinberg Awards
- Mike Angarone, DO, assistant professor of Medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases and of Medical Education
- Margaret Chapman, MD, assistant professor of Medicine in the Division of Hospital Medicine
- Kathryn Hufmeyer, ’11 MD, ’14 GME, assistant professor of Medicine in the Division of General Internal Medicine and Geriatrics
- Robert Kushner, MD, professor of Medicine in the Division of Endocrinology, Metabolism, and Molecular Medicine
- Linda Lang, RN, MPAS, PA-C, assistant professor of Medical Education in the Physician Assistant Program
- Ronit Lever, MD, instructor of Pediatrics in the Division of Hospital-Based Medicine
- Karen Mangold, MD, MEd, ’11 GME, assistant professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Emergency Medicine and of Medical Education
- Amee Seitz PT, PhD, assistant professor of Physical Therapy and Human Movement Sciences
- Kavitha Selvaraj, MD, ’15 GME, instructor of Pediatrics in the Division of Academic General Pediatrics and Primary Care
- Toshiko Uchida, MD, associate professor of Medicine in the Division of General Internal Medicine and Geriatrics and of Medical Education
- Kristy Wolniak, MD, PhD, ’09 ’13 ’14 GME, assistant professor of Pathology.
FAME Outstanding Teacher Awards
- Marcello Cherchi, MD, PhD, clinical associate professor of Neurology
- Roberto Lopez-Rosado, DPT, assistant professor of Physical Therapy and Human Movement Sciences
- Alice Lyon, MD, ’91 GME, Leonard and Bernice Lavin Endowed Ophthalmology Research Professor and an associate professor of Ophthalmology
- June McKoy, MD, JD, MBA, ’01 GME, associate professor of Medicine in the Division of General Internal Medicine and Geriatrics and of Preventative Medicine
- Rukhsana Mirza, MD, associate professor of Ophthalmology
- Matthew Pirotte, MD, ’12 GME, assistant professor of Emergency Medicine
