The development of an adviser program at Rush Medical College is described that utilizes faculty members and provides comprehensive counseling with continuity of contact between adviser and student through medical school. Evaluations used to determine its efficacy are also discussed. (Author/MLW)

Physicians are likely to encounter a wide gamut of disorders related to drug and alcohol abuse and will need specialized knowledge and skills to treat the affected population effectively. The development and implementation of a program to meet these needs at the Medical College of Virginia is described. (MLW)

A new required clinical clerkship in family medicine at Duke University School of Medicine is described in terms of planning, implementation, and modification in response to students' evaluations. The data demonstrate that family medicine can be taught effectively as a core clinical rotation. (Author/MLW)

The development of a one-day preenrollment program for early acceptees at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey Rutgers Medical School that informs the acceptees about the educational program is described. An increase of 40 percent of the acceptees appears to be related directly to the program. (Author/MLW)

Adversarial relationships existing among medical students, nurses, and hospital staff members were recognized at Hermann Hospital, a private, nonprofit teaching hospital in Houston, Texas, to be potentially detrimental to patient care. A joint communications committee identified ways to improve relations between medical students and hospital…

A program designed to help first-year medical students understand basic medical ethical issues and view these issues as a essential component of their knowledge base in clinical medicine is described. (Author/MLW)

A summer fellowship program is described that was initiated at Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University to provide an opportunity for interested faculty to interact with selected students who had used computers before entering medical school. (MLW)

Performance objectives, core content, training experiences, and clinical exposure and program evaluations are described for geriatric fellows and house staff members in internal medicine, family practice, neurology, and psychiatry. A modified Delphi study was used. (Author/MLW)

A pilot program in respiratory therapeutics that includes a development and implementation model is reported. Its prerotational and postrotational evaluations and significant improvement in competency areas related to clinical skill areas are described. (Author/MLW)

The development of competitive markets for health services and the shift to the provisions of services through large-scale organizations are having a profound effect on academic health sciences centers. The teaching programs based at the University of Minnesota Hospital and Clinic are threatened as health maintenance organizations restrict…

An interinstitutional project to develop a self-instructional course in international health is described, including the rationale for the project and the operating procedures used to produce course materials. A field trial is also reported and recommendations for materials development and utilization are given. (Author/LBH)

Medical residency programs that offer student support groups and have taken other steps in support of residents' adjustment are reviewed. Options for program development that are flexible and convenient and offer psychological and social support are suggested for programs not already offering them. (MSE)

Two surveys show that the use of prepaid health care plans for educational purposes is rising. A review of published studies that have examined the costs of such training is included. (Author/MLW)

The reasons for the University of Michigan's decision to end development of a health maintenance organization are outlined from its different perspectives as an employer, health care provider, and medical school. Among the considerations were employee attitudes, insurance costs, competition, and revenue sources of the medical school. (MSE)

A pilot program at the University of California, Davis, that incorporated skilled nursing facility training into the required curriculum of their primary care internal medicine residency is described. The goal was to increase the residents' knowledge in the care of geriatric patients. (MLW)