Basics of ACGME Requirements:
Patient Care
The essence of being a rheumatologist is the ability to use information derived about a patient (history, physical examination, laboratory and imaging studies) along with medical knowledge to orderly synthesize a differential diagnosis, plan of further evaluation and comprehensive management for the patient being evaluated for rheumatic disease or rheumatic disease manifestations.
Medical Knowledge
The scholarly assimilation of established and evolving biomedical, clinical, and cognate sciences, and the application of this knowledge to patient care. Our program will provide physicians with a solid foundation in the basic and clinical science of rheumatology so they can demonstrate medical knowledge about established and evolving biomedical, clinical and cognate (e.g. epidemiological and social-behavioral) sciences and apply this knowledge to patient care and performance of research in the rheumatic diseases. Our rheumatology trainees will be taught state-of-the-art management of the rheumatic diseases and develop an understanding of the approaches and modalities used by other specialists and health professionals in managing the same diagnoses.
Professionalism
One of the foundations of the practice of medicine. By virtue of their prior medical school education and internal medicine training, rheumatology trainees have already attained a substantial level of professionalism, which can be further enriched during the fellowship training period. Traits of professionalism are also modeled by the multiple daily interactions of the trainees at all stages of training with senior rheumatology faculty physicians. Our educational goals throughout the training are to continuously emphasize the requirement that the trainee act in the best interest of the patient, while displaying the appropriate sensitivity to patient and accepting responsibility for patient care
Practice-based Learning and Improvement
Our rheumatology trainees will have a lifelong commitment to practice-based learning and improvement so that they investigate, evaluate and improve their patient care practices, appraise and assimilate scientific evidence, possess the skills to competently educate medical students /physicians /other health care professionals about rheumatic diseases and improve their research practices in rheumatology.
Interpersonal and Communication Skills
Communication skills are essential for the formation of a desirable and effective physician patient relationship. The complexity of most of the rheumatic diseases, as well as the increasingly complicated treatment regimens, require a working partnership between patient and physician, and often between both physician and the patient’s family or caregiver(s), as well as physician and members of an inter-professional team of providers. In addition to improved patient satisfaction, confidence and understanding, such working partnerships promote medical compliance.
Systems-based Practice
Systems-based practice (cost effective healthcare) reflects an understanding of and responsiveness to the larger context and system of health care, as well as the ability to call effectively on other resources in the system to provide optimal health care. The increasing complexity and diversity of health care delivery systems presents both challenges and opportunities for the practice of rheumatology. The goal of the systems-based practice curriculum is to enhance the ability of our rheumatology trainees to positively influence patient care by effectively utilizing these internal and external resources, to serve as effective advocates for their patients, and to provide cost-effective patient care. In some cases this may also mean identifying and organizing changes in the local systems’ problems that can improve patient care.