Introduction
In Mexico the last year of the medical school curriculum is dedicated to
social service where students get the opportunity to explore different health
care settings. One of the four available track is providing primary care in
the local community. For this track, at the Autonomous University of Mexico
(UNAM), the Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes program (ECHO) has
been implemented. ECHO is a virtual case-based program to support the
students in caring for their patients, sharing knowledge with professionals
and students, and to increase confidence and practical skills
Methods
The 1-hour online ECHO sessions focus on collective learning and problem
solving by working on real community problems that the students encountered.
Each session has an introduction to support group building among the
students, a discussion about a real-life case brought forward by one of the
medical students, and a 15 minutes talk by a medical specialist on a specific
topic. The case discussion is the main part of each session where
collaborative problem solving occurs. The role of the specialist focusses on
coaching and mentoring, and sharing their expertise
Results
ECHO was implemented in 2023, starting with monthly Teleclinic for medical
students in social service in the state of Hidalgo. During 2024, the program
was extended to the states of Morelos, Tlaxcala and Oaxaca, where in the
latter state it was also open to medicine students in social service from
other universities. Under this program, so far 421 medical students have been
trained and 54 clinical cases have been presented. Overall, 17 medical
experts have participated in the different sessions
Conclusions
By offering the ECHO program, students have become more confident and
knowledgeable in the area of providing health care at the primary care level.
With the ECHO program, everyone learns, and everyone teaches!