Clinical Curriculum
Clinical Curriculum
As a WesternU osteopathic medical student, you’ll gain considerable early clinical experience and be well-prepared when you enter your third- and fourth-year rotations. Your rotation experiences will enable you to further develop your clinical skills.
The rotation order will vary as OMS3 schedules are selected by a lottery system
3rd Year Curriculum
The OMS III year is comprised of core rotations and schedule didactic touchpoints. Core rotations are designed to expose the OMS III students to the breadth of medical knowledge, and to standardize the learning experience in the OMS III year. Accreditation requirements dictate that a certain number of these rotations must be completed in hospitals, with osteopathic physicians, and in academic environments with residents on the service. There are three elective rotations in addition to the core rotation requirements. Throughout the year students receive supplemental material such as clinical cases, simulations and procedural practice, elective topics, board preparation, professional development, among others. These touchpoints come in didactic overlays to required rotations, a longitudinal course, monthly virtual meetings, and live conference weeks.
The order of rotations is selected by a lottery system.
- Clinical Orientation (1 week)
- Elective 1.0 (4 weeks):
Selective means that the discipline (type) of the rotations is set by the COMP Curriculum Committee, and that the rotation must be done at an affiliated clinical site, such as a CORE site. - Elective 1.1 (4 weeks):
Elective means that both the discipline and location are chosen by the student and may be completed at any affiliated site or with a COMP credentialed preceptor. - Elective 1.2 (4 weeks):
Elective means that both the discipline and location are chosen by the student and may be completed at any affiliated site or with a COMP credentialed preceptor. - Family Medicine (4 weeks):
This rotation provides exposure and experience in the clinical setting of the normal and abnormal conditions encountered by Family Physicians. Attention is devoted to the recognition and management of common problems typically seen by primary care physicians as well as conditions which may be less common with critical thinking of the problem to conclusion of treatment. Students evaluate patients in the inpatient and outpatient setting. They may perform the breadth of evaluation and management, write notes in the medical record, assist with common minor office procedures. - Internal Medicine (8 weeks – 4 weeks X 2):
This course provides supervised clinical education in general internal medicine including clinical management, technical and procedural skills, interpretation of diagnostic data, patient education, development of diagnostic and management plans, and interprofessional communication. In subsequent courses in this series, students are exposed to progressive involvement and independence in patient management. - Pediatrics (4 weeks):
The Clinical Pediatric Didactic core rotation is offered to the third-year student (OMS III) as a four-week intensive course. The goal of the online Pediatric rotation is to develop the student’s ability to address issues unique to childhood and adolescence by exploring age-specific health concerns and emphasizing the impact of family, community and society on child health and well-being. Additionally, the student will focus on the impact of disease and its treatment on the growing child, and the principles of health supervision and recognition of common health problems. - OBGyn/Women’s Health (4 weeks):
This course provides exposure to and experience with the normal and abnormal reproductive physiology of women throughout their lives. Attention is devoted to the recognition and management of common problems typically seen by primary care physicians as well as to reproductive health conditions, which may be less common but could be life threatening if not diagnosed correctly. Students will review obstetric and gynecologic patient cases as they may present in both the inpatient and outpatient settings. They will supplement that didactic experience with supervised clinical experiences and/or specific online and written resources. - OMM (4 weeks):
To provide students with a robust well-rounded osteopathic rotation that is comprised of two portions; a live clinical experience in which the students evaluate and treat patients under the guidance of experienced preceptors and a didactic portion comprised of modules which address how to approach common conditions in a distinctive osteopathic manner. - Psychiatry (4 weeks):
This will be a four-week onsite or online/virtual rotation during which the student will demonstrate and apply concepts of diagnosis and treatment to virtual patients with mental/emotional… - Vacation (2 weeks)
- Surgery (4 weeks):
The purpose of this rotation is to provide 3rd year medical students exposure to common surgical diseases, their diagnosis, treatment, and management. This will enable you, the student, to utilize your basic knowledge of surgical diseases and help develop problem-solving skills that will strengthen your ability in clinical decision-making as it relates to surgical patients. - Conference & CPE Weeks (4 weeks in total):
Conference Week activities and clinical examination performance (CPE) are an essential part of the student’s final core education. All Conference Week activities are MANDATORY. The week includes, but is not limited to, activities such as prospective plenary sessions for upcoming rotations, Standardized Patient Case Presentations, Standardized Patient encounters with associated notes, elective lectures, hands on/simulation guided learning, feedback sessions, etc. -
Fourth Friday (1/2 day monthly):Students are given protected time to virtually converge at the end of every rotation where they are provided importantly timely information for professional development, rotational guidance, wellness & wellbeing, didactic additions, etc.
The rotation order will vary for each individual student
4th Year Curriculum
During 4th year, students are required to complete a total of 32 weeks of clinical rotations and receive 8 weeks of vacation.
- Emergency Medicine (4 weeks):
This course provides supervised clinical education in Emergency Medicine. Expected competencies include clinical management, technical and procedural skills, interpretation of diagnostic data, patient education, development of diagnostic and management plans, and inter-professional communication. - Sub-Internship I (4 weeks):
A 4-week rotation in a student’s 4th year (may be split two, 2-week rotations in same discipline). Rotations that meet the criteria are: Inpatient Internal Medicine, Inpatient Surgery, and Inpatient Family Medicine. - Selective (4 weeks):
Selective means that the discipline (type) of the rotations is set by the COMP Curriculum Committee, and that the rotation must be done at an affiliated clinical site, such as a CORE site. - Vacation (8 weeks):
Vacation can be used in 1 week increments. - Elective Rotations (20 weeks):
Elective means that both the discipline and location are chosen by the student and may be completed at any affiliated site or with a COMP credentialed preceptor.
WesternU and will expose you to a wide range of practice options. It is our philosophy to give students a variety of experiences that include community-based hospitals, county-based hospitals, and private practice offices.
Rotation sites include a variety of settings including community and county hospitals, sites with and without residency programs, and inpatient, so that students are able to experience the broad spectrum of medical practice.
In southern California we have yearlong placements within a hospital system or placements with varied systems within a region.
Some examples of Southern California rotation hospitals that we partner with include:
- Antelope Valley Hospital, Lancaster, CA
- Arrowhead Regional Medical Center, Colton, CA
- Citrus Valley Medical Center, San Bernardino, CA
- College Medical Center, Long Beach, CA
- Kaiser Permanente, Fontana, CA, Orange, CA, San Diego, CA
- Kern Medical Center, Bakersfield, CA
- Marian Medical Center, Santa Maria, CA
- Metropolitan State Hospital, Norwalk, CA
- PIH Health Hospital, Downey, CA
- Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center, Pomona, CA
- San Bernardino County Department of Behavioral Health, Rialto, CA
- Temecula Valley Hospital, Temecula, CA
- Community Memorial Hospital, Ventura, CA
- Western University of Health Sciences Patient Care Center, Pomona, CA
In the Northwest we have the above yearlong placements or placements with varied systems around a general area.
Some examples of these areas include:
- Portland, Oregon
- Astoria, Oregon
- Salem, Oregon
- Eugene, Oregon
- Corvalis, Oregon
- Bend, Oregon
- Roseberg, Oregon
- Medford, Oregon
- Tacoma, Washington
- Humboldt, California
Hundreds of elective rotation sites are available to our students all over the country. Elective rotations are possible in all medical specialties. Additionally, students may participate in clinical research electives and international medicine electives.
Please note that students are required to remain compliant with the University’s student health insurance policy when completing rotations. Students are strongly encouraged to review the student health insurance website, paying particular attention to language regarding Medicaid eligibility based on their individual campus by program. Pomona campus students are only eligible to waive out of the student health insurance plan with Medicaid based coverage that originates in the state of California, and Lebanon campus students are only eligible to waive out of the student health insurance plan with Medicaid based coverage that originates in the state of Oregon. There are no exceptions to this policy, regardless of your participation in year-long track programs.
International Elective Rotations
Fourth year students are encouraged to apply for international rotations, dependent upon WesternU or National/International travel restrictions, (please make sure to check the U.S. Department of State for any travel advisories). WesternU students have rotated through sites in numerous countries including Mexico, Germany, England, Morocco, Ecuador, India, Papua New Guinea, and more!
Students can research international rotation options through websites such as the Child Family Health International (CFHI) and Hands with Heart Foundation. For more information on international rotations, please contact Dr. Maryam Othman.
Residency Placement
The College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific’s fourth-year curriculum provides students the flexibility to rotate at residency sites in their desired specialties. Additionally, COMP supports a number of residency programs through Osteopathic Post-Graduate Training Institute (OPTI) and affiliated hospital systems. Recent graduates have matched competitive residency programs throughout the country representing all medical specialties.