Link to memo (pdf)

Office of the Dean
1301 Catherine Street
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-0624
(734) 763-9600
(734) 763-4936
www.med.umich.edu/medschool/
MEMORANDUM
TO:
Class of 2017
FROM:
Michael P. Lukela, M.D.
Director, M2 Comprehensive Clinical Assessment
Chair, M2 Comprehensive Clinical Assessment Committee
DATE:
November 17, 2014
SUBJECT:
M2 Comprehensive Clinical Assessment (CCA)
The M2 CCA is an examination designed to assess the physical examination, history taking,
and communication skills learned during the first two years of medical school.
The exam will be administered on the following dates on the 7th floor of the Neuroscience
Hospital (old Mott): Saturday, January 31; Monday, February 2; Tuesday, February 3;
and Wednesday, February 4, 2015. The exam is approximately 4 hours, including a brief
introduction prior to the start and ending with a student evaluation of the exam.
In addition, you will also take a written examination. The details of which will be
forthcoming.
Beginning in December, you will have the opportunity to sign up for an exam session on one
of the dates listed above on the Sign-Up for Events page. Please keep in mind that
assignment to these dates will be on a first-come, first-served basis. You will be notified in
advance when the sign-up page will be available on-line.
What is the M2 CCA?
The primary purpose of the M2 CCA is to help both you and the faculty assess your clinical
skills prior to beginning the M3 year. Students will complete three integrated stations
covering core areas of clinical knowledge and skills. Standardized patients will be used at
each of these stations. It is expected that students act in a professional manner throughout the
Memorandum to the Class of 2017
exam, treating patients and staff with courtesy and respect. Behavior that is felt to be
unprofessional will be grounds for dismissal from the exam. A grade of
“Incomplete/Exam” will be assigned and it will be necessary to repeat the entire CCA
exam. Keep in mind that the CCA is not an open book exam. Therefore, notes or textbooks
may not be used.
Exam Structure
As noted above, the M2 CCA will consist of a total of four integrated stations within three
“blocks”. The stations will assess your physical exam, history taking/communication skills,
and verbal presentation skills or patient write-up skills. The physical exam stations will
include the abdominal, cardiac, musculoskeletal, neurologic, and pulmonary exams. The idea
is not to have you elicit abnormal findings during the physical exam, but to assess your
understanding of important physical exam principles and findings that have been taught
during the Clinical Foundations of Medicine (CFM) and Clinical Educator Program (CEP)
sessions. The format of the exam will be outlined at the class meetings held in January.
M2 CCA Written Examination
The written exam will consist of approximately 90-100 single best answer (multiple choice)
questions covering general principles of the physical exam, including basic physiology and
pathophysiology relevant to the diagnosis of common clinical conditions covered during the
CFM and CEP sessions. The written exam will be open on Wednesday, January 28
through Wednesday, February 4, 2015.
Preparing for the M2 CCA
The content of the exam has been well covered during the CFM and CEP sessions. We
recommend that your preparation for the CCA include careful review of your physical
diagnosis syllabus (including checklists), physical diagnosis lectures, as well as your physical
diagnosis textbook (Swartz: Textbook of Physical Diagnosis). Additional information and
resources are available on the M2 CCA website:
http://www.med.umich.edu/medstudents/curRes/cca/m2/index.html
M2 CCA Grading
The M2 CCA is graded on a Satisfactory/Fail basis. Passing standards will be determined by
the M2 CCA Committee for each of the exam stations and for the CCA overall. There is also
a communications score that is the average of the communication skills assessed on the
history-taking stations, as well as a separate station focusing specifically on communication
skills. You must achieve a passing score on each station, including communication skills,
as well as a passing score overall, to receive a grade of Satisfactory.
If you fail one or more of the exam stations or the communication skills component, but pass
the CCA overall, you will be assigned a grade of “Incomplete”. You must participate in
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Memorandum to the Class of 2017
remediation and then demonstrate sufficient mastery of the station(s) failed by repeating a
similar station(s).
It is a requirement that you pass the M2 CCA prior to advancement to the M3 year. A Makeup exam session will be held on, Wednesday, March 18, 2015. Please refer to the M2 CCA
website for further details on the M2 CCA exam grading policy.
If you have any questions about the scheduling of the M2 CCA, please contact Kelly
Poszywak ([email protected]). Please feel free to contact me with any additional
questions regarding the CCA exam at [email protected].
We wish you the best of luck on the exam and your advancement to the clinical phase of
education!
MPL/kkp
cc: Raj Mangrulkar
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