Sustained service: a community-driven framework for longitudinal service-learning

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Community Health
• Service-Learning

Background:

• Traditional medical education often lacks longitudinal community engagement.
• Students require deeper understanding of social determinants of health in authentic settings.
• Developing community-responsive physicians necessitates sustained, context-specific training.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce and define a four-year longitudinal service-learning framework for medical schools.
• To outline the benefits of sustained engagement for students and communities.
• To establish goals for developing community-responsive physicians and enhancing student credentials.

Main Methods:

• Implementing a community needs assessment with systematic inclusion of community voices and data.
• Focusing all student service on identified community priority needs.
• Incorporating a Capstone research project for synthesizing service experiences.

Main Results:

• The framework facilitates deep, long-term student engagement with communities and colleagues.
• Students gain expertise in addressing social determinants of health through authentic service.
• Initial results show community impact, focused service hours, and positive student reactions.

Conclusions:

• The sustained service framework effectively addresses community needs and develops physician identity.
• Longitudinal service-learning enhances student skills, credentials, and community responsiveness.
• This model provides a structured approach for impactful medical school community engagement.