Curriculum

3+1 curriculum explanation

We operate with a 3+1 rotational curriculum. It is our opinion that the 3+1 offers the best balance of educational rigor, balanced with a guaranteed “golden weekend” every 4 weeks. 3-week block rotations will include all ward rotations, consult blocks and elective time. The “+1 week” will be the longitudinal continuity clinic and ambulatory block, which will offer you the opportunity and structure to build a long-standing patient panel. We also will utilize the +1 week for additional educational opportunities throughout training: ex: simulation, coaching curriculum, chalk talks, etc.

Example of 3+1 Rotation

*Each resident will be assigned to one color firm and will be in that firm the duration of their residency.

Example of Ambulatory +1 Week

*Individualized Educational Experiences

Continuity Clinic

For our 3+1 curriculum the “+1 week” is considered our longitudinal ambulatory block. During the “+1 week,” residents have four half-day sessions of continuity clinic at the Olathe Campus, where they take on the responsibility of providing primary care to their assigned panel of patients. This scheduling approach emphasizes continuity of care, a fundamental aspect of primary care that enhances satisfaction for patients and residents.

The continuity clinic is overseen by attending physicians, who maintain an optimal 3:1 resident-to staff-ratio. These experienced mentors play a pivotal role in guiding residents through their clinical experiences and tailoring teaching moments to align with the learning objectives of internal medicine ambulatory care.

Outside of the continuity clinic, residents' working hours during the "+1 week" are dedicated to board preparation via guided self-study and subspecialty clinical experiences of their choice. This comprehensive approach ensures that residents receive a well-rounded education that encompasses both primary care fundamentals and specialized knowledge ensuring residents are prepared for boards.

As the program progresses, clinic cohorts will include residents at varying levels of training, encompassing PGY1, PGY2 and PGY3 stages. This intentional and inclusive structure not only fosters peer collaboration but also provides a dynamic learning environment where residents can learn from each other's experiences and insights.

Inpatient Service Teams

All inpatient rotations will be at the Olathe Campus, a 300-bed community hospital. Each academic team will be staffed by an attending physician and two interns for the academic year of 2025-2026. Subsequent years will be staffed by an attending, an upper-level resident and one or two interns. Third- and fourth-year medical students from The University of Kansas School of Medicine may also participate on these academic teams.  

During internal medicine wards months, residents will be expected to have two "long-call" shifts per week while on inpatient wards. Long-call shifts function as a "swing shift" to accept admissions until 7 p.m. with a goal of leaving the hospital by 8 p.m. Sporadic long calls will improve exposure to admissions while maximizing care of the patients on medicine wards without breaking duty hours. Interns will not do overnight shifts to maximize time spent caring for a capped number of patients throughout the day with a focus on continuity, minimizing risk of burnout while maximizing learning opportunities.

Consult Blocks

We have intentionally designed our block rotational schedule to ensure that each resident will be given a 3-week consult rotation in all of the internal medicine subspecialties. Regardless of your post-residency plans, each resident will be well equipped to have the breadth of knowledge to succeed on ABIM Board Certification. It is our vision that this is best accomplished not only by a robust didactic curriculum but mirrored in clinical experience throughout training.

Example of 3-year block schedule grid:

Explanation of Academic Half Days/Didactics:

Research has shown that academic half-day didactics are associated with improvement in resident medical knowledge and increased learner satisfaction compared to traditional noon-conference style learning. It is with this intention that Olathe internal medicine residents will have two academic half-day sessions weekly.

Timing will be from 2:30 p.m.-4:05 p.m., with a small break, allowing for up to four topics to be amply covered weekly. Didactic time will be protected learning time while on rotations to ensure residents can attend.  

Content will be directly taken from the ABIM blueprint, ensuring a comprehensive approach to all topics. 

Explanation of standardized rotation curriculum + IEE for each PGY year

Every resident will have a 3-week rotation in every IM subspecialty, with progressively less inpatient time as they progress through training - which will allow for a large amount of IEE (individualized educational experiences), much more than the 6 months required by the ACGME. As an example: general medicine wards will be six, 3-week rotations during PGY1 year, 5 during PGY2, and 4 during PGY3 year. It is very important to us to develop a program that truly has the resident and the learning environment at the center of every educational opportunity. The Olathe Campus is a hospital system that has functioned seamlessly without residents, so as an educational team, we are poised to truly focus on the educational value of each clinical rotation.

POCUS (Point of Care Ultrasound Training)

Our POCUS training program is designed to equip residents with the skills and knowledge necessary to integrate ultrasound into their clinical practice seamlessly. Our curriculum is carefully crafted to provide residents with hands-on experience, didactic instruction, and clinical application. By joining our Internal Medicine Residency Program, you'll gain functional knowledge in the use of point-of-care ultrasound, enhancing your clinical skills and improving patient care.