Family Medicine
Dear students of the English study! Welcome to the Department of Family Medicine!
BASIC INFORMATION ABOUT THE DEPARTMENT:
Head of the Department: Marion Tomičić, MD, GP, PhD (marion.tomicic@mefst.hr)
Deputy Head of the Department: : Irena Zakarija Grković, MD,GP,PhD (izakarijagrkovic@yahoo.com)
Secretary of the Department: Sanja Žužić Furlan, MD,GP,PhD (sanjazuzic@yahoo.co.uk)
Family medicine is a clinical and scientific discipline, the only one set exclusively outside of the hospital system. It is characterised by its holistic approach and continuity of health care, with the family as its basic unit. Family medicine synthesizes preclinical and clinical subjects and applies them in practice, which is the fundamental role of every medical school: to prepare young doctors for managing common, ’front line’ problems, using a scientific and humanistic approach.
The main goal of teaching family medicine is to prepare the future doctor for the application of acquired knowledge and the uptake of new knowledge (mechanisms of disease, predictors, prevention, the effect of interpersonal relationships on disease, both in the family and at work, pharmacoeconomics, rational diagnostics and treatment, basic research methods), command of skills (communication, making a diagnosis, decision making, application of epidemiological methods, collaborating with medical/non-medical personel, workplace organisation, clinical skills) as well as the development of certain attitudes (empathy, the patient as a unique individual, self-protection, code of ethics, taking on responsibility, patient rights).
The thing that differentiates a family doctor from other clinical specialists is the whole person approach in family medicine where patients, or those who think they are unwell, are perceived as a whole, taking their surroundings into consideration as well, and not just the disease. Family doctors are also expected to be able to manage a large number of patients with a broad spectrum of conditions in a variety of different settings (surgery, home visit, telephone consultations, field work...). Specific characteristics of family medicine are the holistic approach and continuity of care.
Classes in family medicine are the last opportunity for you to ask, find out and learn about things and skills you will need in your practice tomorrow. You still have Clinical rotations to complete but this will be you last opportunity to learn about family medicine, a job that most of you will end up doing at least initially, and a quarter of you permanently.
Most of you have the necessary knowledge and skills; you just need to learn to focus them on the small and varied problems that you will encounter at the frontline of the health care system. Currently, you are focused on rare, complicated diseases. It’s time to learn that most people do not have serious illnesses but need advice on how to cope and find their way through the health system. Hence our classes are conducted in a number of different settings, including on the nearby islands, so that you get an idea of how the health system functions. It is also an opportunity for you to see how most problems can be solved without having a hospital nearby. These classes are led by our most experienced and knowledgeable colleagues.
During practical classes, you are expected to fulfill certain tasks (letter to the patient, EBM) which will not be assessed by are preconditions for sitting the exam. Instructions can be found on our web site. Class attendance is compulsory. Up to 20% of classes can be missed with a valid excuse only. To be able to receive the final signature, all missed classes need to be made up for by either sitting a mini oral or doing extra practical classes. Assessment is based on participation during seminars, the objective structured clinical examination, written test and finally the oral exam.
Plan and Program for Family Medicine
A) Family Medicine is a subject conducted during the 6
th year of Medicine, allocated 180 hours (8 hours/day) and 8 ECTS points.
1. It consists of teaching (lectures and seminars), field work/practical classes and an objective structured clinical examination (OSCE).
2. All exam documents are kept in written format at the Department of Family Medicine
B) Teaching
Teaching (lectures and seminars) are held at the University of Split School of Medicine and at the University Hospital of Split (locations: Firule, Križine and PAK). Practical classes are held in family medicine practices in Split, on the surrounding islands and towns. The OSCE is held at PAK and preparatory classes in clinical skills are held at the ’Old maternity hospital’ (Matoševa 2).
C) Examination and assessment
1. The exam consists of three parts. The total number of points are divided into the following categories: satisfactory 60-69 points; good 70-79 points; very good 80-89 points and excellent 90-100 points.
2. Exam components and their contribution to the total score
a) Oral exam-55%
b) Written test-25%
c) OSCE-20%
a) Oral exam
Consists of: communication skills, applied knowledge, logical reasoning, decision making, dijagnostics, specifics of family medicine (holistic approach, continuity of care, home visits, palliative care), treating the patient and not the disease. Total of 5 questions, each question carries 0-11 points, maximum points: 55, minimum for a passing grade: 33 points (60%).
b) Written test
Consists of 25 questions, each with five possible answers of which only one is correct (MCQs). Each question carries one point with a possible total score of 0-25 points. Passing grade is 15 points (60%).
c) Objective structured clinical examination (OSCE)
The OSCE consists of five (5) stations for assessing clinical skills, of which each have four (4) steps. Each Step is assessed as ˝successful˝ or ˝unsuccessful˝. All stations carry 0-4 points, with a total of 20 points. A minimum score of 12 points (60%) is needed to pass.
Not achieving the minimum score for any of the exam components disallows progression to the remaining exam components.
SCHEDULE FAMILY MEDICINE 2023/2024
Questions for oral exam
EXAM TERM 2023/2024
I. 22.12.2023.
II. 12.07.2024.
III. 05.09.2024.
IV. 19.09.2024.
LITERATURE
Katić M, Švab I and associates. Family Medicine. Zagreb, Medicinska naknada: 2017.
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