Introduction

Family medicine offers continuous and comprehensive health care for all individuals and their family members across all ages.

Department of Family Medicine at Taipei Veterans General Hospital was founded in January 1985. We provide all-round medical services including outpatient clinics, preventative health screening and physical examinations, preventive care, co-ordinate and support of the community based medical groups and general practitioners, home visits, palliative care, medical education for medical students, internship and residency programs, and medical research. We have trained more than 160 Family Medicine specialists since our establishment. We welcome you to this clerkship experience to share your learning experiences with us. Our clerkship program will be tailored to ensure that you will gain a wide range of experience and the opportunity to develop your skills in family medicine. You will work side-by-side with our family physicians and residents for patient care The clerkship program can be arranged from 2 to 4 weeks including community care and/or palliative medicine based on personal interest.

Learning

Objective

1. Community Medicine

1. Learning the concept of

• Current community medical system and resources in Taiwan
• Community based medical groups
• Preventive care
• Health screening
• Community health promotion

1. Visiting of long-term care facilities (nursing home, home-based care and visits)

1. Palliative Medicine

1. The understanding of

• Current health service model of the hospice ward, shared-care and home care in Taiwan
• Cooperated end of life decision making and advanced care planning for terminal patients

1. Provide emotional, social, and spiritual support for patients and their family members. 
2. Evaluate pain status and provide adequate analgesics
3. Evaluation and controlling of symptoms of serious illness and dying process
4. Complimentary and Integrative medicine in palliative care
5. Empathy and communication training (Role-play)

Available Supervisors

Tzeng-Ji Chen, MD, PhD

Ming-Hwai Lin, MD, MS

Chih-Kuan Lai, M.Sc

Pin-Yuan Wu, MD

Jui-Yao Liu, MD

Hsiao-Ting Chang, MD, MS

Tentative Schedule

Week 1-2, Community Medicine

1. Participate in community lectures
2. Visiting of general practice clinics, health-related government and institutions, long-term care facilities (nursing home, home-based care and visits)
3. Family Medicine Outpatient Clinics (including teaching clinics)
4. Group discussion
5. Report of a specific community health issue (optional)

Week 3-4, Palliative Medicine

1. Participate in resident work rounds, attending teaching rounds, ward rounds of Dah-der Hospice ward
2. Attend hospice team conferences, morning meeting, role-play sessions and hospice journal reading
3. Participate in hospice consultation, share-care, and home care with supervisors

Assessment

1. A written report of your clerkship and learning experiences
2. Clinical ethics case analysis (using the “Four Quadrants” approach)

References

1. Textbook of Family Medicine, Rakel, Robert E., MD,        Ninth Edition(2016), Elsevier
2. Jekel's Epidemiology, Biostatistics, Preventive Medicine, and Public Health, Katz, David L., MD,     Fourth Edition(2014), Elsevier Inc
3. Palliative Medicine, Walsh, Declan, MD, First edition(2009), Saunders, an imprint of Elsevier Inc.
4. Clinical Ethics: A Practical Approach to Ethical Decisions in Clinical Medicine,  Albert R. Jonsen, Mark Siegler, William J. Winslade, Seventh edition(2010), The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.