Clinical Microsystems Clerkship (CMC)
The UCSF School of Medicine Clinical Microsystems Clerkship (CMC) is a required longitudinal clinical skills and health systems improvement curriculum for first- and second-year medical students. It integrates direct patient care, health systems improvement, and interprofessional collaboration.
The CMC occurs one day each week throughout Foundations 1, from the start of medical school to the start of clerkships. Guided by communities of practice and workplace learning principles, physician coaches guide small groups of five to six students in clinical skills training and health systems improvement. Students learn medical history, physical examination, clinical reasoning, patient communication, interprofessional teamwork, and health systems improvement. Clinical skills training occurs in both the Kanbar Center for Simulation and Clinical Skills and in authentic patient care settings. Following an introductory immersion week, students contribute actively to improvement efforts aligned with health system priorities at University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) Health, San Francisco Veterans Affairs Health Care System (SFVAHCS), and Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center (ZSFG). Projects have improved quality, safety, value, patient experience, and health disparities. Students’ quality improvement work has been published, presented, and won awards locally, regionally, and nationally. A deeper exploration of student projects is available here.
Selected publications related to the CMC include:
• Chang A; Pierluissi E; Cornes S; Ishizaki A; Teherani A; Davis J; Hauer KE; Lucey CR. The Clinical Microsystems Clerkship at University of California, San Francisco: Integrating Clinical Skills and Health Systems Improvement for Early Medical Students. Academic Medicine: October 03, 2022
• O’Brien BC, Zapata J, Chang A, Pierluissi E. Bridging medical education goals and health system outcomes: An instrumental case study of pre-clerkship students’ improvement projects. Perspectives on Medical Education. 2022 Apr 8:1-8.
• Leep Hunderfund AN; Kumbamu A; O’Brien BC; Starr SR; Dekhtyar M; Gonzalo JD; Rennke S; Ridinger H; Chang A. “Finding My Piece in That Puzzle”: A Qualitative Study Exploring How Medical Students at Four U.S. Schools Envision Their Future Professional Identity in Relation to Health Systems. Academic Medicine: July 05, 2022
• Gonzalo JD; Lucey CR; Wolpaw T; Chang A. Value-Added Clinical Systems Learning Roles for Medical Students That Transform Education and Health: A Guide for Building Partnerships Between Medical Schools and Health Systems. Academic Medicine: May 2017 - Volume 92 - Issue 5 - p 602-607
The CMC Leadership team consists of a skilled group of faculty and staff with expertise, creativity, and commitment. The CMC co-directors design the curriculum. The CMC staff team operationalizes the curriculum. The CMC site directors and site specialists lead the integration between medical student education and the School's three affiliated health systems, University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) Health, San Francisco Veterans Affairs Health Care System (SFVAHCS) and Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center (ZSFG).
CMC LEADERSHIP:
CMC Faculty Director
• Anna Chang, MD (Division of Geriatrics, Department of Medicine)
CMC Staff Manager
• Kristin Casey Callaghan, MA
CMC Direct Patient Care Faculty Co-Directors
• Sam Brondfield, MD, MA, Co-Director, Clinical Preceptorships (Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Medicine)
• Susannah Cornes, MD, Co-Director, Direct Patient Care (Department of Neurology)
CMC Health Systems Improvement Faculty Co-Directors
• Lei Choi, MD, MPH, FACP (Division of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine)
• Catherine (Cat) Lau, MD, SFHM (Division of Hospital Medicine, Department of Medicine)
CMC Health System Faculty Site Directors:
• James Frank, MD, MA, Faculty Site Director, SFVAHCS (Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine)
• Eric Isaacs, MD, Faculty Site Director, ZSFG (Department of Emergency Medicine)
• Stephanie Rennke, MD, Faculty Site Director, UCSF Health (Division of Hospital Medicine, Department of Medicine)
Coaching Program Director
• Andrea Marmor, MD, MSEd (Department of Pediatrics, ZSFG)
CMC Staff Program Manager, Direct Patient Care
• Anna Kozas, MA
CMC Staff Curriculum Coordinators & Site Specialists
• Therese Denoga, MPH, Curriculum Coordinator & UCSF Health Site Specialist
• Jocelyn Faye, MS, Curriculum Coordinator
• Patience Kriedt, Curriculum Coordinator & ZSFG Site Specialist
• Patricia Runquist, MPA, Curriculum Coordinator & SFVAHCS Site Specialist
