Medical School Experience Symposium

by Barbara Bibel
Reference Librarian
Oakland Public Library
Oakland, California

Most librarians who are not affiliated with academic medical centers know little about the process of training physicians. The Medical School Experience Symposium is a program that gives librarians a taste of the intense process that turns students into physicians. I participated in this symposium at the Medical Library Association annual meeting in Washington, D.C. The instructors were all faculty members from the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York. It is interesting to note that all of them are involved in geriatrics and rehabilitation, very patient-centered specialties. They wanted to share an overview of medical education with librarians so that librarians would understand how doctors think and how they use information. Knowing this will help them integrate the library into the curriculum more effectively by choosing relevant resources for the collection, by participating in conferences and grand rounds with faculty and house staff, and by serving as clinical information professionals.

Symposium attendees broke up into small groups for sessions on the medical education process, anatomy and physical examination and diagnosis, physiology and pathophysiology, and pharmacology. The physician leading each discussion explained the basics of the subject and provided an opportunity for the participants to "play doctor" by taking medical histories, thinking about how drugs will affect a patient, or considering treatment options for patients with various diseases. Attendees also learned about the intense competition and high cost involved in obtaining a medical degree and specialty training.

As a public librarian and consumer health information specialist, I felt that the symposium was a valuable experience. I already know quite a bit about medical education and I have worked as a paramedic, but I attended to evaluate the course as a tool for training the public and public librarians. This is an excellent opportunity for partnership between public and medical librarians and physicians. It will allow them to learn from each other. The physicians and medical librarians can explain medical education and the diagnostic process. Public and consumer health librarians are patient centered. They can educate physicians and medical librarians about the information needs of their patients and serve as advocates for information as part of the treatment process. Regional Medical Libraries can play an important role in this experience by providing support for the course and encouraging partnerships between public libraries, medical schools, and large teaching hospitals. The result will be informed patients and physicians who work together for better health.

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