title: Process of discovery: a fourth-year translational science course.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The Liaison Committee on Medical Education notes the importance of educating medical students on clinical and translational research principles.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To describe a fourth-year course, "Process of discovery," which addresses teaching these principles, and to discuss students' perceptions of the course.
  
  
  METHODS
  Core components and pedagogical methods of this course are presented. Course assessment was performed with specific pre- and post-course assessments.
  
  
  RESULTS
  During academic years 2004 to 2009, 562 students were enrolled, with assessment response rate of 94% pre-course and 85% post-course. The students' self-assessment of their current understanding of clinical and translation research significantly increased, as well as their understanding of how clinical advances will take place over the next decade.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A fourth-year course teaching clinical and translational research is successful, is seen as a positive experience and can meet the requirements for including clinical and translational research in the medical school curriculum.
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, USA. Benedict_DiGiovanni@urmc.rochester.edu
authors.forename: Benedict F
authors.initials: BF
authors.lastname: DiGiovanni
authors.forename: Denham S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Ward
authors.forename: Steven M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: O'Donnell
authors.forename: Chin-To
authors.initials: CT
authors.lastname: Fong
authors.forename: Robert A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Gross
authors.forename: Tana
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Grady-Weliky
authors.forename: David R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Lambert
mesh_terms: D003479:Curriculum; D004504:Education, Medical, Undergraduate; D013337:Students, Medical / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D057170:Translational Research, Biomedical / Q000193:education*