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University of South Carolina    
2019-2020 School of Medicine Bulletin 
    
 
  Nov 22, 2024
 
2019-2020 School of Medicine Bulletin

SURG G700 - Surgery Clerkship


Credits: 7

The Surgery Clerkship is a seven week required clerkship in the third year consisting of primarily inpatient and outpatient experiences. Under the supervision of attending staff physicians and residents, students spend variable amounts of time on general surgery, vascular surgery, and trauma. Students continue to develop skills in medical history-taking, physical examination, and the use of laboratory data in an organized fashion to understand surgical diseases. During this clerkship, students should develop an understanding of the metabolic and physiologic effects of injury and trauma; correlate disordered physiology with the surgical pathologic process; recognize surgical illness and the place of operative intervention in treatment of diseases; understand the impact of surgery on the patient and family, including the psychological and socioeconomic changes that result from an operation; and acquire surgical techniques and skills basic to all physicians, including wound care, suture technique, and the ability to assist in the operating room. Primary methods of instruction include self directed study, case-based discussion/presentation, conferences, small-group discussion, and teaching rounds. Modes of assessment include the Surgery NBME subject examination, clinical evaluations, and an Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE). Student teaching on the wards is provided by direct interaction with all level of the staff, including faculty, senior and junior house staff. Students should expect to scrub on all cases. They should meet patients they have operated on daily. They should strive to write orders with resident supervision. Students are also expected to attend the weekly surgery clinic, morbidity and mortality conference, and grand rounds, as appropriate. The overall goal of the clerkship is to provide relevant experiences for the student in the care of the patients with both acute and elective surgical problems.