title: Teaching global health with simulations and case discussions in a medical student selective.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Among US medical schools, demand for Global Health (GH) programs continues to grow. At the same time, cultural competency training has become a priority for medical students who will care for an increasingly diverse US patient population. We describe a pilot period for a new GH Selective designed to introduce medical students to global medicine and enhance culturally-sensitive communication skills.
  
  
  METHODS
  As a 4-week clinical clerkship, the GH Selective was offered annually over a three-year period to a total of 33 students. Activities included clinical assignments, cultural competency and clinical skills simulations, patient case discussions in tropical medicine, journal clubs, and lectures. Faculty assessments of student performance and student evaluations of course content were focused on 6 course objectives, adapted from standardized GH objectives.
  
  
  RESULTS
  For each offering of the GH Selective, at least 40 faculty members and fellows volunteered over 200 teaching hours from 11 medical school departments. Student feedback was consistently positive through competency-based curricular evaluations. As a result of its successes, the course is now offered on a biannual basis.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Experiential, student-centered teaching employed in this course proved successful as an introduction to delivery of evidence-based and culturally sensitive GH. Special emphasis on working with standardized patients in interdisciplinary and cross-cultural simulations provided students with clinical skills applicable for care provided both locally and on international rotations.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  With a special emphasis on cross-cultural sensitivity, this pilot elective trained future practitioners in fund of knowledge, clinical skills, and service delivery methods in GH.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Medicine and Population Health, New York University School of Medicine, Bellevue Hospital Center, 16N1, 462 First Ave, New York, NY, 10016, USA. Nathan.Bertelsen@nyumc.org.|Koç University School of Medicine, Rumeli Feneri Campus, Sariyer / Istanbul, Turkey. Nathan.Bertelsen@nyumc.org.
authors.forename: Nathan S
authors.initials: NS
authors.lastname: Bertelsen
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA.
authors.forename: Michelle
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: DallaPiazza
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Director of Global Health Initiatives, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA.
authors.forename: Mary Ann
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Hopkins
authors.affiliation: Departments of Population Health and of Medicine, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA.|Global Institute of Public Health, New York University, New York, NY, USA.
authors.forename: Gbenga
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ogedegbe
mesh_terms: D014943:Global Health; D006801:Humans; D010865:Pilot Projects; D000066908:Simulation Training; D013337:Students, Medical; D013663:Teaching / Q000379:methods*; D014481:United States