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Internal Medicine Interest Group of the Month: Touro University Nevada

Where the rest of the world comes to live their latest hedonistic ventures, the Nevada campus of the Touro University College of Medicine holds down the fort in medical education. As part of the only medical school in Las Vegas, the Internal Medicine Interest Group (IMIG) of Touro University Nevada College of Medicine (TUNCOM) has taken on a vast responsibility to promote adult primary care in a city that approaches a population of 2 million. Needless to say, we are “betting” on a promising outcome. This is the fourth year our campus has been operational and the first year that the ACP-sponsored IMIG has been in operation. When considering the needs of this community and, indeed, the nation as a whole, it is an obvious connection to work with the ACP to come up with some solutions. The field of internal medicine offers more to the medical community in today’s world than it ever has in the past. There is a growing void of adult care in the community of Las Vegas and we have begun this year to enlighten those around us to the opportunities in internal medicine. Through a campaign of encouragement we strive to help others make an educated decision when applying for residency programs. We feel that the simple matter of understanding the role of internal medicine and its subspecialties will lead to an increase in the number of medical students who decide to enter the field of adult medicine. There has been an overwhelming response.

Under the leadership of our faculty advisor, Paul Kalekas, DO, we have organized recruiting events and talks based on our IMIG goal to educate patients and medical students in the field of internal medicine. In only three months of operation, our group is now the second largest in the school and has a membership of more than 50% of the entire student body. We have already hosted a talk on the gamut of options within internal medicine and the support that ACP can provide to these physicians. We enjoyed participating in National Primary Care Week by hosting talks from local physicians every day of that week. Our most recent meeting was directed by a local cardiologist who told us of the high demands that must be met over the next decade. The student body who attended the talk went away with an increased desire to not simply become a doctor, but to fill the need for competent physicians in specific fields.

The IMIG at TUNCOM is progressing at a rapid rate and we hope to host several more lectures and activities to meet the needs of the Las Vegas area. We are anticipating an excellent response to our current project, a community program to promote immunizations among low income patients. As we look into the future of medicine in the state of Nevada, we feel confident that the IMIG of TUNCOM will play a major role in the development of quality care.

Craig Boyle
Co-President, Internal Medicine Interest Group
Touro University Nevada College of Medicine, Class of 2010
E-mail: craigboyle@gmail.com

Back to December 2007 Issue of IMpact

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