The Behavioral Medicine Clerkship will provide clinical exposure to various aspects of mental health issues. Students will gain knowledge, experience, and competency in the diagnosis, classification, and treatment planning of psychiatric patients in the clinical setting. Students will also become competent in the skills of performing a psychiatric interview, developing a differential diagnosis, and identifying and managing psychiatric emergencies. Prerequisite: successful completion of all pre-clinical (Year 1 and Year 2) coursework.
It is critical to note that the clinical clerkship experience is not intended to teach the student everything on the subject of Behavioral Health Medicine nor provide the student with clinical experience in every aspect of the discipline. The Clerkship Director and the assigned Preceptor may provide educational guidance, but it is each student’s individual responsibility to learn the subject content. Lifelong self-learning is the ultimate goal and is expected in this core clinical clerkship. Students must show that adequate direct patient care experience has been achieved by demonstrating adequate patient log support of an average of at least 4 outpatients or 2 inpatients per day.
(Year 1 and Year 2) coursework and passing score on COMLEX Level 1.