Curriculum Development for JABSOM’s Learning Communities: Medical Ethics

Abstract

In Fall 2020, the John A Burns School of Medicine (JABSOM) implemented Learning Communities for medical students. Learning Communities are intentionally developed, student focused, longitudinal groups of faculty and students that aim to enhance a student’s medical school experience and maximize learning. During a summer elective, second-year medical students designed and implemented a curriculum module to complement an existing Problem-Based Learning module at JABSOM.

The module, implemented in December 2020, focused on the ethics of medical aid in dying. This module featured a presentation led by a local physician in Hawaiʻi who has experience with the recently passed “Our Care, Our Choice Act,” which allows terminally ill patients with the capacity to make medical decisions to determine their own medical treatment at the end of their lives. After the presentation, small-group discussions within first-year Learning Community groups took place.