Learning Objectives | Family Medicine | School of Medicine

Goal: to provide a one-year intensive experience in GH to certified Family Physicians that will better prepare them to organize and provide primary health services in resource-poor settings, to underserved or otherwise disadvantaged populations in Canada or internationally.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

The Family Physician as Medical Expert

The ESGH resident will:

1. Develop diagnostic and therapeutic skills for the prevention and treatment of relevant infectious and non-infectious diseases, including diarrheal disease, HIV, malaria and tuberculosis, in resource-poor settings in Canada and internationally.

2. Develop knowledge and skills in the provision of health services to the immigrant populations in Canada.

3. Develop knowledge and skills to apply a population health approach to the planning and delivery of health services for resource-poor settings and for specific underserved populations.

4. Develop skills in accessing relevant medical information in a variety of under-resourced settings and be able to apply it to the specific context.

5. Demonstrate understanding of the global burden of disease, the concept of epidemiologic transition and its impact on the health of populations in Canada and abroad.

6. Demonstrate an understanding of the impact on health from forced displacement, migration and armed conflict.

The Family Physician as Communicator

The ESGH resident will:

1. Build on their skills as good communicators by demonstrating cultural competence, in working with translators and consideration of patient needs.

2. Develop skills in working with people with lower levels of literacy or people who are literate in other languages.

3. Consider undertaking language training if this is relevant to the individual's program objectives.

The Family Physician as Collaborator

The ESGH resident will:

1. Build on their skills working as a member of a health care and social services team, especially in the complex settings of resource-poor or isolated communities.

2. Develop knowledge and skills in designing and organizing health care services to be delivered by a multi-disciplinary team for specific populations and circumstances.

The Family Physician as Health Advocate

The ESGH resident will:

1. Expand their knowledge of epidemiology and population health to better serve specific populations.

2. Expand their knowledge of resources provided by social services to specific Canadian populations, including new immigrants and those claiming refugee status.

3. Demonstrate knowledge of the social determinants of health and how these are reflected in the communities in which the resident works and within the sub-populations being served.

4. Develop understanding of the important role played by Non-Governmental Organizations, multi-lateral organizations such as WHO, Global Fund, UNFPA and physician-led lobbying organizations and other agencies engaged in addressing inequities in health care.

The Family Physician as Leader

The ESGH resident will:

1. Expand his/her knowledge of the different approaches to delivery of primary healthcare services internationally and the differences in health outcomes in high- and low-income countries.

2. Develop an understanding of the impact and cost-effectiveness of public health interventions on population health.

3. Develop understanding of policies and programs of NGOs, major development donors and stakeholders and how these impact the communities they serve.

The Family Physician as Scholar

The ESGH resident will:

1. Demonstrate ability to identify personal learning objectives and needs, adapting these to specific experiences during the course of the year.

2. Expand their understanding of the definitions, history and basic principles of development in the post-colonial period.

3. Expand their knowledge of important geopolitical events that have an impact on the health of more vulnerable populations. This would include: climate change; food security; patterns of migration; economic globalization; global conflict; income redistribution within Canada; the impact of gender on health in global settings.

4. Expand their understanding of the various charters that express health as a human right.

5. Provide education around GH themes to other health and social science students when opportunities arise.

The Family Physician as Professional

The ESGH resident will:

1. Develop a sense of cultural humility that enables the delivery of compassionate, ethical, relevant and effective care to people of different social, economic and cultural groups.

2. Expand their knowledge of the opportunities available to family physicians to work with under-served populations in Canada (including aboriginal communities, inner city, and immigrant and refugee populations).

3. Expand their awareness of opportunities and challenges for global health work internationally.