Capstone Activities Prepare Graduating Students for Residency

Each year, CCLCM’s graduating students participate in capstone, a final curriculum experience to help them prepare for their first year of residency. The students take advantage of this opportunity to help enrich their clinical skills and to spend valuable time with their classmates before graduating and moving on to residency.

Below are some highlights of this year’s capstone activities:

WEEK 1
Monday, March 6 (Health Education Campus)

• The capstone rotation began with a short orientation by Neil Mehta, MBBS, MS, Professor of Medicine, Associate Dean of Curricular Affairs and Director of the capstone program, and Debbie Schuster, Program Coordinator.
• Cleveland Clinic CEO and President Tom Mihaljevic, MD, Professor of Surgery, met with the students to offer guidance and advice for their residency years.
• Cory Chevalier, MD, Assistant Professor of Medicine and Director of Wellness at CCLCM, and Susan Rehm, MD, Professor of Medicine and Executive Director of Physician Health, presented a session on personal well-being, sharing the importance of self-care as a prerequisite to caring for others.
• Stacey Jolly, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine, gave the students an overview of the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP).
• Eric Kodish, MD, Professor of Pediatrics, and Katherine Burke, MFA, Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine, presented a program on professionalism, called “Looking Back/Looking Ahead: On Becoming a Doctor.” They led the students in a discussion about how to keep the “being” part of themselves alive during the next stage of their medical career journey.
• Venkatesh Kambhampati, MD, Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine; Charles Kwon, MD, Clinical Assistant Professor of Pediatrics; Ajita Prabhu, MD, Associate Professor of Surgery; Richard Wardrop III, MD; and a group of Cleveland Clinic residents led a session on “How to Be an Effective Intern.” The team shared their insights into the characteristics of an excellent first-year resident and what students can expect from that first year.
• Prior to lunch, students met with the Cleveland Clinic Alumni Relations team including Richard Lang, MD, MPH, Associate Professor of Medicine; Dr. Susan Rehm; Hardeep Phull, MD (‘11); Margaret Bird; and Melinda Stroh to learn more about the alumni group and how to stay connected following graduation. The Alumni Relations team provided lunch and alumni swag to the students.
• In the afternoon, students had a choice of several hands-on skill-building workshops on such topics as controlled substances, IV fluid management, goals of care and optimizing laboratory testing, designed to help them prepare for residency.

Tuesday, March 7 (Health Education Campus)
All the students participated in their choice of skill-building workshops that included such topics as patient handoffs; diabetes management in the hospital; patients’ dietary needs in the hospital; ECG interpretation; managing pain; and more.

Wednesday and Thursday, March 8 and 9 (Simulation Center and Euclid Hospital)
The students spent two full days getting trained and certified in Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS) and Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS). The training was led by Cleveland Clinic Nursing Education and professionals from the American Heart Association.

Friday, March 10 (Health Education Campus)
Students and faculty gathered for the 13th Annual Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine Research Day, featuring keynote speaker Caitlin Hicks, MD (‘12), MS, Associate Professor of Surgery, Associate Fellowship Program Director of Vascular Surgery, and Director of the Center for Outcomes Research at Johns Hopkins University. See “Graduating Students Showcase Their Research Projects at Research Day.”

• 27 students
• 34 courses
• 78 sessions
• 80 instructors

WEEK 2
Monday, March 13 (Health Education Campus)
This day was reserved for free time.

Tuesday, March 14 (Simulation Center)
Students participated in a full day of additional hands-on simulation training around airway and crisis management, along with radiology and ultrasound.

Wednesday and Thursday, March 15 and 16 (Simulation Center and Health Education Campus)
Students participated in two full days of skill-building exercises on topics related to transition of care; placing IV lines; wound care; prescription writing; cardiac auscultation; laparoscopic suturing and knot tying; and more.

Friday, March 17
Capstone activities this year concluded with Match Day. See “Lerner College of Medicine Students’ Hard Work Pays Off on Match Day” and view the 2023 Match results.

A host of faculty, staff and residents collaborates to organize and deliver the CCLCM capstone sessions. The planning and coordination that goes into this two-week experience is monumental. To all those who participated in the planning and delivery of this important education, we extend our sincerest thanks and gratitude. Your time, effort and enthusiasm give our students that extra measure of confidence as they begin the next stage of their medical career.

Photo credit: Reen Nemeth