What is ROME ?
ROME is the acronym for Rural Osteopathic Medical Education of Texas. This is the name of the new rural
medicine curriculum being offered to predoctoral medical students at the University of North Texas Health
Science Center at Fort Worth, Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine. The ROME curriculum offers medical school
applicants, with a desire and commitment to provide medical services for rural and underserved populations, the
focused education that will prepare them for life and practice in a rural community.
How do I apply to participate in the Rural Osteopathic Medical Education of Texas
(ROME) curriculum?
You indicate that you are applying for the ROME curriculum (Rural Medicine curriculum) on the
Supplemental Application page of your medical school application for the University of North Texas Health
Science Center, Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine.
What will the admissions process be for a medical school applicant who is applying to
participate in the ROME curriculum?
Your application will be processed initially just as any other applicant's is. If you are offered an
interview, one of your two on-campus interviews will be with the Assistant Director for Rural Medicine.
In addition, you will be asked to complete a two-day shadowing/interview experience off-campus with one of the
private practice physicians, who is a member of the rural faculty.
What is the "shadowing/interview" experience?
The "shadowing" experience is an opportunity for you to learn about the functioning of a rural physician's practice by
spending time observing the physician and their staff. This experience also allows you to consider whether participation in this special curriculum is the right educational choice for you. In addition, your visit gives the rural faculty member a
chance to evaluate you as a ROME applicant.
Can I wait and apply for the ROME curriculum after I am accepted to the Texas
College of Osteopathic Medicine?
No. The ROME curriculum has academic requirements which begin before you
start your medical school 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 readmission process in order to reenter the regular TCOM
medical school curriculum.
How does the two-day Prematriculation Shadowing Experience, 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 Prematriculation 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 continuity site, and one-day visits to rural hospital emergency departments, or other relevant rural health settings. 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.
What is the Community Project referenced in the ROME curriculum outline?
The Community Project is a longitudinal academic requirement that begins in Year 2 and is 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 addressing the problem; and complete a professional paper or poster. A Division faculty advisor, as well as the student's assigned rural family medicine preceptor, will provide guidance for completing this endeavor. The Division advisor will periodically meet with the advisee to review progress and will be the primary evaluator for the project.
What is a preceptorship? What is a clerkship?
A preceptorship is an apprenticeship with a faculty member, who is called a preceptor. A preceptorship can 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 in Years 1 and 2. These are completed at teaching sites (Family Medicine Continuity site), under the auspices of our rural Family Medicine faculty member.
A clerkship is a focused training rotation in a medical specialty area that is scheduled during Years 3 and 4. These rotations may be scheduled in a variety of clinical settings, e.g., ambulatory-based, hospital-based, and have 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 at locations which 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 which specialty 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?
One thread of experience, which runs throughout the ROME curriculum, is what formerly constituted the Rural Family Medicine Track. This element has been folded into the ROME curriculum as the "Family Medicine Continuity Experience." This consists of the: Rural Lifestyle Practice Visit, in Year 1; the Preclinical Community Preceptorship, in Year 2; the 8-week family medicine clerkship rotation, in Year 3; and the primary care partnership and geriatrics rotations, in Year 4. Shortly after matriculation, students will be assigned to one of the Rural Family Medicine teaching sites. This is the community and clinical setting to which students will return, over time, and in which they complete their Community Project. It provides students the opportunity to interface in a continuous manner with a rural medical community.