What is the Community Project referenced in the ROME curriculum outline?

The Community Project is a longitudinal academic requirement that begins in Year 2 of the ROME curriculum, and must be completed by mid-Year 4.  The purpose of the project is to identify a community-related problem; support the problem by citing current statistical data and literature; formulate a plan to address the problem; and complete a professional paper or poster.  A Division faculty advisor, as well as your assigned rural family medicine preceptor, will provide guidance for completing this endeavor.  The Division advisor will periodially meet with the advisee to review progress and will be the primary evaluator of the project.

What is a preceptorship?  What is a clerkship?

A preceptorship is an apprenticeship with a faculty member, called a preceptor,  This may range from observation to active participation in healthcare.  Preceptorships are, usually, a broad-based exposure to a particular area of medicine.  In the ROME curriculum, there are preceptorships during Years 1 and 2, which are completed at rural family medicine teaching sites, under the auspices of a rural faculty.

A clerkship is a focused training rotation in a medical specialty area that occurs during Years 3 and 4 of medical school.  These rotations are scheduled in a variety of clinical settings, from ambulatory-based, to hospital-based, with specific academic and testing requirements.  For example:  The TCOM Year 3 curriculum includes rotations in family medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics, OB/Gyn, surgery, psychiatry, and osteopathic manipulative medicine.  ROME students complete these rotations, but the location may be rural-based.

If I were accepted to participate in the ROME curriculum, am I required to select family medicine as my practice specialty?

No, not at all.  The intent of this curriculum is to provide a solid foundation of knowledge and skills to any medical student who aspires to serve a rural, or underserved population, regardless of the specialy the student is interested in.

The vision of a program, such as ROME, is to address the need for physicians in rural and underserved areas of Texas.  Primary care specialties, such as family medicine, OB/Gyn, pediatrics, general internal medicine, and general surgery are critical areas of need.  Obviously, these are areas we hope students will eventually consider.

Why am I assigned to a family medicine teaching site and preceptor?

Can I wait and apply for the ROME curriculum after I am accepted to the Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine?

No. The ROME curriculum is a parallel curriculum with academic requirements that begin before you start classes and continues throughout the four years of your medical education. All applicants are accepted for this curriculum through the Health Science Center's admissions process.

What happens if, after being accepted to TCOM as a ROME participant and I have matriculated, I decide to withdraw from the rural medicine program?

ROME is a four-year curricular commitment.  A student, who wants to withdraw, will be required to complete a re-admission process in order to re-enter the regular TCOM medical school curriculum.

How does the two-day Pre-matriculation Shadowing Experienced, which is referenced in the ROME Curriculum Overview, differ from the one-day shadowing experience?

The one-day shadowing experience is completed during the admissions process by all medical school applicants, who, also, apply to participate in the ROME curriculum.

The two-day Pre-matriculation Shadowing Experience is completed by students, who have been accepted to TCOM and to ROME.  This experience is the first ROME curricular activity that the ROME participant completes.  It is an evaluated activity, with academic requirements, for which the student receives Rural Medicine course credit upon satisfactory completion.

How much time do I spend off-campus for ROME curricular activities?

During Years 1 and 2, you will complete brief visits of 4-6 days at your assigned rural family medicine site.  During Years 3 and 4, clerkship rotations are completed in a variety of rural venues, as well as urban tertiary clinical settings.  You can anticipate spending a large percentage of Years 3 and 4 away from the Fort Worth campus.

What is the Rural Health Organization?

The Rural Health Organization is a student organization that has recently been reactivated.  The goal of this organization is the exchange of ideas and information regarding the intricacies of rural health.  An important objective is to provide additional learning opportunities for student members and active involvement in rural community programs.  ROME matriculants, automatically, become members (a one-time membership fee of $15).  However, this organization is not restricted to ROME students.  Any student at the Health Science Center, who has an interest in rural health, is welcome and encouraged to join.