The NSF funded National Evolutionary Synthesis Center (NESCent), directed by Allen Rodrigo, has funded a Working Group of scientists and educators to develop model curricula aimed at infusing medical education with evolutionary thinking.
The group, chaired by Mark Schwartz (NYU, Internal Medicine) and Peter Ellison (Harvard, Anthropology), will meet during the next two years. A separate Advisory Group, with distinguished medical leaders, will guide the project. See below for a list of all participants.
Project Summary
Evolutionary biology is a foundational and integrative science for medicine, but few physicians or medical researchers are familiar with its most relevant principles. While undergraduate students have increasing opportunities to learn about the interface of evolution, health, and disease, most premedical students have scant room for electives in their schedules, few premed prerequisite courses incorporate evolutionary thinking, and no medical school develops these competencies. The overarching goal of this Working Group is to lay the groundwork for future endeavors by providing testable models and pathways for infusing premedical and medical education with evolutionary thinking. This Working Group, an interdisciplinary, international, and intergenerational group of physicians, scientists, educators, and students, will 1) define core competencies in evolutionary biology for physicians and other health professionals; 2) investigate the ability of current curricula to prepare health professionals to meet these standards; 3) identify “teachable moments” that provide opportunities to integrate evolutionary principles into premedical and medical curricula; 4) design model curricula and learning experiences that can advance evolutionary education for health professionals; and 5) provide open access to these resources and disseminate them. The Working Group will be supported by an Advisory Committee of senior academic leaders and stakeholders. These efforts will not be sufficient in themselves, but they will establish the intellectual platform from which educational interventions on student learning, and scientific and clinical problem solving, can be developed and tested.
Advisory Committee: | |||
Name | Degree | Field | Institution |
Harvey Fineberg, Chair | MD, PhD | Health Policy | IOM |
Gil Omenn | MD, PhD | Genetics and Public Health | Univ. of Michigan Medical School |
Jeffrey Flier | MD | Endocrinology | Harvard Medical School |
Robert J. Alpern | MD | Nephrology | Yale University School of Medicine |
David Asai | PhD | Undergraduate Science Education | Howard Hughes Medical Institute |
Carol Aschenbrener | MD | Pathology, AMC Culture & Education | Assoc. of American Medical Colleges |
Jay Labov | PhD | Biology, Education | NAS, National Research Council |
Working Group Members
Name | Degree | Field | Institution |
Mark Schwartz, PI | MD | Internal Medicine, Med Education | NYU School of Medicine |
Peter Ellison, Co-PI | PhD | Anthropology, Evolutionary Bio | Harvard University |
Stephen Stearns | PhD | Ecology and Evolutionary Biology | Yale University |
Randolph Nesse | MD | Psychiatry, Evolutionary Medicine | Univ. of Michigan |
Peter Gluckman | MD, PhD | Pediatrics, Perinatal Biology | Univ of Auckland Liggins Institute |
Brandon Hidaka | BS | Medicine | University of Kansas Medical Center |
Chris Reiber | PhD, MPH | Biomedical Anthropology, Epidemiology | SUNY Binghamton |
Gillian Bentley | PhD | Anthropology | Durham University |
William Aird | MD | Vascular Medicine | Harvard Univ School of Medicine |
Cynthia Beall | PhD | Anthropology | Case Western |
Athena Aktipis | PhD | Psychology and Evolution | Arizona State Univ and UCSF |
Andrew Read | PhD | Biology | Penn State |
Judy Scotchmoor | BS | Biology | UC Museum of Paleontology |
Magdalena Hurtado | PhD | Human Evolution & Social Change | School of Human Evolution and Social Change Biodesign Institute – Center for Infectious Diseases and Vaccinology Arizona State University |
Joseph L Graves | PhD | Environmental, Evolutionary and Systematic Biology | North Carolina A&T State University |
Barbara Natterson | MD | Cardiology | UCLA |
Terry Wolpaw | MD | Internal Medicine, Med Education | Case School of Medicine |
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