Tools for integrating women's health into medical education: Clinical cases and concept mapping

The authors describe two teaching tools, case-based learning and concept ma pping, and how they support cross-disciplinary, multidisciplinary, and inte rdisciplinary learning, use a biopsychosocial model, and promote the integr ation of sex- and gender-based science into the medical curriculum. The pro cess of case development at MCP Hahnemann University (MCPHU) is outlined in detail for a specific case. That case, which integrates three different co mponents of women's health, is then presented in full. The authors then pro vide an example of a concept map dealing with women and alcohol use; the ma p defines current knowledge and serves as a blueprint for developing curric ular goals and learning objectives for the topic. Properly constructed concept maps and cases help teach patient-centered app roaches to problem solving, address sex- and gender-based differences in di sease as well as in pathophysiology and pharmacology, integrate psychosocia l issues-such as family dynamics, environmental stressors, access to health care, effective gender-based communication between patient and provider, a nd cultural variations-along with biomedical ones, and encourage a multidis ciplinary approach to patient care. The authors maintain that these tools m ight be used to transform medical education by making it more integrated an d interdisciplinary.