In March of 2010, Weill Cornell Medical College will again be visited by a survey team of the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) of the Association of American Medical Colleges and the American Medical Association. The LCME accredits the educational programs leading to the MD degree at medical schools in the US and Canada every seven years, based on the comprehensive review of a database and an institutional self-study (ISS). This review culminates in a four-day site visit and report by medical educators from other medical schools. We were last visited in 2003.
Late last year, Dr. Carol Storey-Johnson, Senior Associate Dean for Education, and her staff began planning for the ISS, which provides an opportunity to examine all of the school's objectives and activities. Nine committees have been formed to study various elements of the school and to report to a steering committee, chaired by me. Each committee will meet four to six times during the spring and produce a report for consideration by the steering group. The steering committee will review all the findings and develop a summary report to be submitted to the LCME in late 2009.
Many faculty, students and administrators will be invited to serve on the task force for this undertaking through participation on a subcommittee or in fulfilling requests for data. Simultaneously, the medical students will be asked to construct and administer a comprehensive survey and those results will also be reported. The project will be staffed through an Accreditation Office in Academic Affairs.
The database forms, the LCME self-study process and committee deliberations provide focus for ongoing institutional planning as well as for accreditation. With the input of the WCMC community, we are poised to excel in these efforts.
Antonio M. Gotto Jr., MD, D.Phil.
Dean, Weill Cornell Medical College
To contact the LCME Accreditation Office call 646-962-4519.
Information for LCME Subcommittees
