Monday, April 27, 1998
UCLA Medical School gets seal of approval
MEDICAL SCHOOL: Full accreditation by committee acclaims campus’
programs, facilities, research
By Kathryn Combs
Daily Bruin Staff
After a year and a half of preparation and a rigorous review
process, the UCLA Medical School recently received a full
seven-year accreditation from the Liaison Committee on Medical
Education (LCME).
"We won’t see them again until 2004-5," said Dr. Gerald Levey,
provost and dean of the school. The school received the best
possible rating, but still has areas of possible improvement.
The medical school was reviewed in areas such as finances,
facilities, computer information resources, research and medical
education.
"We are probably one of the most complex medical schools that
(the LCME) visits because of the affiliated programs we have at
Drew University and UC Riverside," explained Dr. Alan G. Robinson,
vice provost of the school.
"Those programs operate quasi-independent but are still
accredited by us … It’s almost like they are reviewing three
schools," Robinson added.
"I think that the LCME review validates our impression that we
are giving the same high-quality educational experience to our
medical students on all the campuses," said Dr. Edward McCabe,
executive chair of the department of pediatrics.
During the last review for accreditation in 1991, the medical
school received a seven-year accreditation. However, LCME made a
return visit in 1993 because they felt training programs at Drew
University and UC Riverside were weakening rather than
strengthening overall training programs.
"The (LCME) visit this time saw (these programs) as a real
strength of the overall program, and we were pleased that we were
able to get that point across," Robinson said.
Although this year the medical school received the best possible
rating, their review was not without suggestions.
Areas of improvement indicated by the review included mental
health services and better access to the newly opened health
clinic. Also they were concerned with the health care benefits
being offered through the school’s student insurance.
"It was interesting … their concern was that if you are going
to train physicians to be doctors concerned with full health in
preventive medicine, then you really ought to be providing this as
a model," Robinson said.
After completing the review process, staff, faculty and medical
students indicated it was well worth the effort.
"It was a major step forward," Robinson said.
"We believe we have an outstanding medical school, but it is a
big and complex school … to get someone to understand it in just
a few days requires quite a bit of organization," he added.
Prior to the LCME site visit, the medical school completed a
self-study survey. This involves completing an extensive
questionnaire designed to examine the school’s medical and
educational objectives.
Then, the school is required to submit a 30-page written report
identifying overall strengths and weaknesses.
"It’s incredibly stressful," said Fried. "We had somewhere
between 150-200 faculty involved."
The week-long LCME site visit was in January .
"We knew we were well prepared and had done our homework to
receive the seven-year accreditation," McCabe said.
"It validates our own impression that we are doing a good job in
teaching. Many people question how we can integrate teaching among
all the campuses (and) give our students the same quality education
across all lines," McCabe said.