Our Structure

Foundational Knowledge
Anatomy is integrated throughout the curriculum so students acquire regional anatomy knowledge associated with the foundational science concepts they are learning. Competency-based assessment allows students to master concepts before moving on to the next component.

Early in the first year to year-and-a-half of the curriculum, Ohio State medical students begin learning about various body system disorders, including bone and muscle, neurological, cardiopulmonary, gastrointestinal, renal, endocrine and reproductive disorders, and begin seeing patients with these disorders in clinical practice. This type of longitudinal practice reinforces understanding of the foundational concepts while integrating procedure-based training, history taking and physician examination.

Case discussions held in small learning groups also help to integrate core foundational concepts into clinical reasons, patient care and patient management.

Emphasis is placed on how future physicians will work in complex systems of care and advocate for their patients within those systems. Students will be providing care in the field early in their studies, and will be expected to think critically and assertively pose scientific-based inquiries during classroom and clinical experiences. Faculty guided self-assessment and reflection dovetails with critical thinking and is another tenet of LSI.

Longitudinal Projects
Throughout the curriculum, students participate in a variety of longitudinal projects, including community health education with patients, patient safety studies, understanding health systems and interdisciplinary problem solving.

Clinical Applications
Progressing through the curriculum, students gain an understanding of patients with specialized medical needs, reproductive and surgical needs and those within special, vulnerable populations, such as victims of abuse, addiction, poverty and low literacy. An advanced clinical track allows students to experience the full spectrum of clinical application through interdepartmental rotations in specialty areas. An advanced competency track gives students a dedicated block to pursue longitudinal projects, international rotations or research projects.

Assessment and Evaluation
The curriculum employs an evaluation system facilitating student self-assessment and individualized education plans. Evaluation is competency-based and uses multiple domains to measure progress toward mastery. Students see their progress along the way by receiving immediate feedback.

Competency-Based Learning
As students progress through the program, they will be expected to meet certain competencies along the way. These competencies are tasks or responsibilities that students, as future physicians, will be entrusted to perform unsupervised.

The ePortfolio – Charting Professional Growth
Students in the LSI curriculum will receive an account for a web-based education ePortfolio. The ePortfolio allows students to post written reflections on their educational experiences and performance or other topics of choice, with the aim of charting their improved performance and achievements and establishing patterns of lifelong reflective practice and self-directed learning. Students share their portfolios in meetings with a faculty coach, who acts as a mentor and guide throughout the medical school program, and provides feedback on the student's ability to reflect on his or her experiences and assist in establishing goals and plans for the student's next steps.

Community Health Education Project
As part of the Ohio State Lead.Serve.Inspire curriculum, students complete a yearlong community health education project, with the objective of improving the health of a specific underserved population in a clinic or agency in the greater central Ohio community. The project will introduce you to population-based medicine and allow you to identify the needs of the population with which you are working and, in some cases, to develop, implement and evaluate a program for that particular population. Current local project sites include the Columbus Neighborhood Health Center, Lung Health Clinic, Helping Hands Health and Wellness Center, Moms2B, Physicians CareConnection, Clintonville Community Resource Center, Central Community House, St. Stephen’s House, YMCAEast, King Arts Complex, Fort Hayes Metropolitan Education Center, Columbus Free Clinic, Family AIDS Clinic and more. 

Learn more about community service opportunities