Impact Over 3 Years of a Family Medicine-led Addiction Medicine Curriculum for Medical Students

Innovations in medical school training are essential for family physicians to enter practice confident in addressing the opioid epidemic and substance use disorders. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a distance-learning addiction medicine curriculum led by family medicine physicians for third-year medical students.

Our prospective cohort study of third-year medical students compared our educational model to a traditional curriculum. Our distance-learning collaboration employed videoconferencing and community experts to engage students across Minnesota in an addiction medicine curriculum. Students in a family medicine-focused 9-month longitudinal integrated curriculum (LIC) participated in this 16-session curriculum while embedded in a rural or urban underserved community for their core third-year clerkships. We evaluated program effectiveness through a knowledge and attitude self-assessment survey of student participants before and after the program compared to students in a traditional curriculum.

The pre- and postsurvey response rates, respectively, were 22.8% for the control group and 98.4% for the ECHO (Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes) group. Compared to classmates in a traditional curriculum, program participants reported significantly higher self-perceived ability managing addiction concerns upon completing this curriculum (mean score of 3.2 vs 2.2 on a 5-point Likert scale, P<.001).

Data from our LIC showed promise that the model can be effective in building confidence in students' abilities to practice addiction medicine. Because of its broad reach and low cost, this form of medical education may be a key model for medical schools to respond to the opioid epidemic and better serve our patients.