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VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER

The Department of Radiology & Radiological Sciences

Co-Director, Med Student
4th Year Radiology Clerkship
Associate Professor of Radiology and Radiological Sciences

Co-Director, Med Student
4th Year Radiology Clerkship
Assistant Professor of Radiology and Radiological Sciences
Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine

 CONFERENCES

GRAND ROUNDS SCHEDULE

NOON CONFERENCE SCHEDULE

 For more information on our 4th Year Medical Student Radiology Clerkship contact: 

 
Medical Student Coordinator
Vanderbilt School of Medicine
1161 Medical Center Drive
Medical Center North
Suite CCC-1121
Nashville, TN 37232-2675
(615) 322-0860
Fax (615) 322-3764

MEDICAL STUDENTS - 4th YEAR RADIOLOGY CLERKSHIP

Course Directors:
           * Edwin Donnelly, M.D., Chest Imaging
           * Martin Jordanov, M.D., Musculoskeletal Imaging

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

Fourth year medical students enrolled in the Radiology clerkship spend 4 weeks gaining broad exposure to all areas of Diagnostic Radiology and Nuclear Medicine. Goals of the clerkship are:

  • Become aware of and understand the nature of all currently available imaging procedures.
  • Acquire a basic understanding of what each imaging procedure can and cannot accomplish and how to use these procedures in the evaluation of the clinical problem.
  • Gain a firm knowledge of the indications, contradictions, risks and costs of commonly used imaging procedures.
  •  Learn the preparation and post procedural routines for imaging examinations.
  •  Learn to recognize basic anatomic structures as they appear on imaging studies in the normal patient and in common disease states.
  • Gain an understanding of the role of the radiologist as a diagnostic consultant by understanding the radiographic signs and images of medical imaging.

Students typically spend a considerable amount of time with the Chest Imaging service, as that is the most common exposure to radiology in other specialties. Those students who are going into OB enjoy spending extra time with the Ultrasound section, and those who are looking to go into Pediatrics can get a double dose, as our Pediatric Radiologists also teach in the Pediatric  Radiology Department. The course has a very open structure, and students are free to spend their time studying what interests them the most. There are no requirements on how many procedures have to be observed, or how much time must be spent with each section. There is no patient responsibility, and freedom from night and weekend call. This leaves plenty of time open to students to learn as much as they can about radiology. 

Medical students find that the Radiology clerkship is very laid back and enjoyable. You learn at your own pace, with few limitations but lots of opportunities. As with all courses of this nature, you only get out what you put into it. As doctors, you owe it to yourself and your future patients to learn as much about Radiology as possible.

LECTURES AND EXHIBITS

Numerous members of the faculty also give lectures on a variety of topics including, Intro to CT, Low Back Pain, ENT, Ultrasound, MRI, MRI of the Knee, Emergent Radiology, Nuclear Medicine, Pediatrics, and CT of Trauma.

Students spend a large amount of time at the reading boards with the Radiology residents and faculty. In addition, residents teach 6 exhibits throughout the month on Abdomen, Bone, Head CT, Mediastinum, Pulmonary Parenchyma, Pleura and Chest Wall.

CASE PRESENTATION

During the last week of the elective, groups will be assigned a case that  illustrates good teaching points for a 10 minute report presentation to either Dr. Martin Jordanov or Dr. Edwin Donnelly.  The presentation should include a 2 page typed handout containing history and physical, interesting X-ray findings illustrating why certain radiographic procedures were valuable, and a discussion. If there is a pertinent journal article you wish to include, you may do so. Films from the radiology film library can also be used.

RESOURCES

Medical Students are welcomed and encouraged to use the departmental library, located down the hall from the medical student classroom. Housed in the library are the ACR teaching files that typically are of great benefit to medical students. We provide each medical student with a list of suggested cases for medical students, to eliminate any irrelevant cases. The ACR teaching files are also on laser disc and CD-ROM in the computer lab for student use, with the understanding that radiology residents and fellows have priority and reserve the right to bump medical students off the computers.

Students are provided with a copy of the textbook, Basic Radiology, by Chen, Pope & Ott, to use during the four weeks but it must be returned in the same condition at the time of the final. The medical student classroom is reserved at all times for medical students. There is a cabinet located in the room full of books, projectors, tape players and seminar materials for review.

There are six new lectures from the RSNA in slide/cassette format on the following topics which include: Radiology of Bowel Obstruction, Acute Pulmonary Embolism, Emergency Room Chest Radiology in Infants & Children, Critical Care Radiology, Thoracic Manifestations of AIDS, Spine and Cranial Trauma.  In addition, several of the Lucy Squire slide/cassette series including: Abdomen and Stomach, Bone, Colon, Kidney, Esophagus and Duodenum.

GRADES

 
Students receive a grade for the clerkship based upon:
  • General participation, performance and initiative during the month. Good attendance is mandatory. This constitutes 1/3 of the grade.
  • Performance on the final unknown case presentation. This constitutes 1/3 of the grade.
  • Performance on the final exam. This is a written exam of questions related to hanging films (regular and CT). This constitutes 1/3 of the grade.