The Sarasota medical school offers a new model of medical training.
There is only one medical school in Sarasota. This is a regional branch of Florida State College of Medicine based at Florida State University (FSU) in Tallahassee. The Sarasota campus provides third- and fourth-year students with clinical training in community-based medicine through affiliations with local physicians and hospitals. FSU's use of regional campuses around the state represents a new model in medical education.
Purpose
The FSU model of medical training is based on learning from practicing physicians working in the community or ambulatory care facilities, rather than from residents or interns at large, academic medical centers. The FSU philosophy encourages students to share knowledge and understand the benefits of teamwork rather than working in competition with each other. In addition, the training focuses on primary care skills and treating elderly patients with sensitivity. The school sees training doctors to work with people who have less access to medical care as its most important mission.
Education
The first two years of medical training are given at the main College of Medicine campus in Tallahassee. Students then move to one of the regional campuses to complete their clinical rotations. The Sarasota campus offers clinical rotations in family medicine and pediatrics, obstetrics and gynecology, geriatrics, internal medicine and surgery, as well as psychiatry and emergency medicine. Students also work in the rural areas surrounding the Sarasota campus, ensuring that they experience a realistic mix of medical care settings.
Applications
The FSU College of Medicine states that it is primarily looking for students who are passionate about the FSU mission to improve medical care for those people least able to afford it. The college looks for compassion and commitment to public service as well as academic qualifications in applicants and is particularly interested in candidates with an interest in primary and community care that believe in a patient-centered approach to medicine. Applicants must have completed a bachelor's degree before beginning the M.D. training.
Future
FSU says there is a shortage of primary care physicians, particularly in the Florida Panhandle region. It hopes to encourage students from Florida to train within the state, and this is one reason for establishing the regional campuses, such as the one in Sarasota. FSU believes that physicians born and trained in Florida will better serve the health care needs of Florida residents, especially the more disadvantaged ones.
Tags: College Medicine, medical care, medical training, model medical, regional campuses, Sarasota campus, clinical rotations