ME693 Professional Practice I

This course is part one of a 4-part course series during the students’ clinical year. Professional Practice I is designed to prepare PA students for the transition from didactic education to clinical practice. The course emphasizes the development of interpersonal and communication skills essential for effective information exchange and collaboration with patients, families, and healthcare teams. Students will explore the principles of interprofessional teamwork and apply them to real-world clinical scenarios to optimize patient care. The business of healthcare, including coding, billing, documentation, healthcare delivery systems, and health policy, will be introduced to highlight their impact on clinical practice. Through engagement with board review questions, students will demonstrate and reinforce their medical knowledge from the didactic and clinical phases of the program. The course also focuses on developing clinical reasoning and problem-solving abilities through patient case presentations. Additionally, students will analyze current evidence-based medical literature to support lifelong learning and enhance diagnostic and therapeutic decision-making. This comprehensive approach ensures students are well-prepared for both the clinical year and professional practice.