As of winter of 2017, Assistant Dean of Academic Affairs, Dr. Alexie Podcheko, introduced the use of Standardized Patients to medical students in the Integrative Clinical Encounter portion of Introduction to Clinical Medicine on St. Maarten.
It is during ICM on St. Maarten where students practice physical exam skills, history taking, communication skills, and other exercises. Many medical programs use standardized patients as an important part in preparing future physicians. This hands-on approach provides medical students with invaluable opportunities to actually interact with patients and hone their patient-doctor skills and diagnostic abilities.
A Standardized Patient is a person who is carefully recruited and trained to take on the characteristics of a real patient. This practice affords the students opportunities to learn and to be evaluated on medical skills in a simulated clinical environment.Students have the ability to explore techniques without causing harm. Standardized Patients simulate symptoms such as chest pain, abdominal pain, headache, back pain, and other symptoms during clinical skills assessment exams. SP’s are used during the 5th Semester Fundamentals of Clinical Medicine course at the Atlanta campus.
Note: The Standardized Patients in Atlanta are trained and certified through the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates.
