Note: K, S, and A, with corresponding numbers in parentheses (e.g., K1, S2, A4), refer to Weill Cornell Medical College’s Educational Objectives of the program leading to the MD degree found at http://weill.cornell.edu/education/curriculum/edu_obj.html.

By the end of the course, the student should be able to:

Knowledge:


1. K1 Explain gross brain morphology (including the brain’s developmental configuration and its blood supply) and dynamics of CSF.


2. K1, K5, K7 Identify functional properties of nervous tissue in the CNS, as a basis for understanding its normal activity (including memory, attention, cognition, emothion, and sleep) and how activity is disturbed by pathological processes (e.g., ischemia, neurodegeneration, traumatic injury, and epilepsy).


3. K1, K6 Describe anatomy and function of motor and sensory pathways and their control centers in relation to the principles of neurological testing and localization of neurological lesions.


4. K5, K6, K7 State the neuropathology of important clinical entities, including neoplasms, degenerative disorders, infections, vascular disease, and autoimmune disease.


5. K8 Describe the pharmacology of clinically important drugs, including analgesics, anesthetics, anti-epileptics, anti-depressants, anti-psychotics, anxiolytics, drugs of abuse, and ophthalmological medications.


6. K1, K6, K7 Explain the gross anatomy of the head and neck, including its implications for clinical problems, especially in relation to the nervous system.


7. K6 Explain the use of brain imaging (i.e., CT, MRI, PET, SPECT, angiography) for clinical and experimental purposes.


8. K4, K5, K6, K7, K8 Describe the epidemiology, etiology, clinical manifestations, diagnostic procedures, and treatment of common psychopathological syndromes, including schizophrenia, depression, bipolar disorder, suicide, anxiety, personality disorders, eating disorders, substance abuse, somatoform disorders, and childhood disorders.


9. K4, K5, K6, K7, K8 Discuss the epidemiology, etiology, clinical manifestations, diagnostic procedures, and treatment of common neurological disorders, including nerve compression, dementia, aphasia, pain syndromes, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, neoplasms, headache, paraplegia, Tourette’s syndrome, neuropathies, and stroke.


10. K8 Relate introductory information on neurological surgery.


11. K6 List basic principles of the neurological examination.


12. K7, K8 Recognize various important ophthalmological diseases and their treatment.


Skills:


13. K10, S5, S12 Apply the essentials of history-taking and diagnosis in psychiatric and neurological patients (with particular emphasis on approach to interview skills in cognitively and psychiatrically impaired patients).


14. S5 Perform a complete mental status examination in psychiatric and neurological patients.


15. S5 Perform a complete neurological examination and demonstrate use of the ophthalmoscope.


16. S11 Present oral and written history, physical findings, and diagnostic formulation of patients with neurological and psychiatric disorders.


17. S1, S3, S8 Solve clinical problems in a team setting using critical thinking and decision-making.


18. S2, S3, S10, A9, A10 Search various electronic and other databases and resources for evidence-based studies so as to understand how basic science, clinical, and translational research are conducted and critically evaluate their usefulness and clinical relevance.


19. S11, S12 Demonstrate enhanced communication and interpersonal skills with patients and with colleagues in a small group setting.


Attitudes:


20. A2, A3 Demonstrate sensitivity to patients’ psychiatric and neurological needs.


21. A5 Respect the views, time, and participatory rights of classmates and faculty in small and large group teaching settings.

How Learning Objectives are Assessed
This course uses a variety of methods to assess students throughout the course that include both formative and summative evaluation. Methods for assessing student achievement of course learning objectives include weekly quizzes, practicum examination in clinical anatomy and neuroanatomy, clinical performance in psychopathology clinics and neurology physical diagnosis, patient write-ups, neurological examination of a standardized patient, Triple Jump examination, and attendance, participation, and quality of contributions in journal club and problem-based learning small group sessions. Please refer to the course syllabus for more specific details on grading.