Clinical Education Center (CEC)
The Clinical Education Center (CEC) is a Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine facility committed to medical student education and evaluation in clinical skills including communication, history-taking, physical examination skills, and diagnostic and therapeutic management of common medical and surgical problems. Its mission is to produce skilled, compassionate and effective physicians. Dr. John Butter MD serves as its medical director. A crucial aspect of the work in the CEC is the opportunity for medical students to work with standardized patients (SPs) who assist in teaching and assessing students on these skills. SPs (many of whom are actors) use scripts developed by the CEC staff from cases provided by physicians and faculty in their various specialties. The SPs are trained to portray these patients in a realistic and consistent manner and trained to reliably assess students’ performance. Validated checklists are used to verify whether certain physical examination maneuvers are performed correctly or not, whether specific history questions are asked and whether appropriate communication skills are verbalized. In addition, written or verbal feedback on interpersonal skills is often provided with the goal of improving communication skills and bedside manner of our future physicians.
There are several simulator based research projects being conducted in the CEC. Dr. Carla Pugh has further developed the curriculum to help teach the breast, pelvic and prostate exams on plastic models before students practice these skills with trained patient instructors in the examination rooms. Dr. Butter led a project investigating how ultrasound may impact the teaching of the abdominal physical examination which has been submitted for publication. He is also initiating a project to assess and improve the cardiac auscultation skills of our trainees which may involve collaboration with the University of Illinois. Funding for these research projects is provided by the Office of Medical Education at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine.
The CEC facility consists of 12 exam and one consultation room that are connected to a
digital video recording system. Each room has 2 video cameras and microphone which connect to a monitoring/observation room. In addition, the CEC has a 44-seat classroom, 3 seminar rooms, computer lab, video recording viewing room for students, faculty viewing stations, a teaching laboratory that houses “Harvey,” a computer based cardiac simulator and a designated SP training room. This center is used mainly by Northwestern medical students but is also used by resident physicians, physical therapy and genetic counseling students. Occasionally the facility has been leased to private physician groups for use in training.
Marsha Kaye, RN, MSN is the assistant director of the Clinical Education Center. Her responsibilities include oversight of all clinical skills activities that take place in the CEC, supervise staff, developing scripts and evaluation tools such as the checklists completed by the SPs, assist with their training and assure accuracy of their case portrayals. She is supported in this work by two full time SP trainers John Nygro and Rick Gilbert and one part time SP trainer, Errol McLendon.
For further information about the CEC or SP program, contact Marsha Kaye at (312) 503-1124.
Interested in becoming an SP?
Contact either John Nygro at (312) 503-1863 or Rick Gilbert at (312) 503-0170.