Rush Medical College

Rush University
Rush Medical College
Type Private
Established 1837
Endowment US$389 Million
Dean Thomas A. Deutsch, MD
Academic staff
 2,600
Students 525
Location Chicago, Illinois, USA
Campus Urban
Website www.rushu.rush.edu/medcol/

Rush Medical College is the medical school of Rush University, located in the Illinois Medical District, just 2 miles west of the Loop in Chicago. Offering a full-time Doctor of Medicine program, the school was chartered in 1837, and today is affiliated primarily with Rush University Medical Center, nearby John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County, and NorthShore University HealthSystem – Skokie Hospital (formerly known as Rush North Shore Medical Center).

History

Rush Medical College was one of the first medical colleges in the state of Illinois and was chartered in 1837, two days before the city of Chicago was chartered, and opened with 22 students on December 4, 1843. Its founder, Dr. Daniel Brainard, named the school in honor of Dr. Benjamin Rush, the only physician with medical school training to be a signatory of the Declaration of Independence. He later taught Meriwether Lewis the basic medical skills for his expedition with William Clark to the Pacific Northwest. Dr. Rush was also known as the "Father of American Psychiatry."[1]

During the early 1860s Rush Medical College staff members started discussions on establishing a dental department. On March 12, 1869 a charter was issued to found the Chicago Dental College,which was intended to be Chicago's first dental school. All attempts to put this charter in to operation, however, failed and an appeal was made to the Chicago Dental Society to become involved. As a result, on February 20, 1883 a charter was issued for the Chicago Dental Infirmary, which opened on March 12, 1883.

During the college's first century, more than 10,000 physicians received their training there. A "Rush Doctor" was a highly prized commodity in the American West of the 19th century. Rush Medical College was affiliated with the University of Chicago from 1898 until 1942.

With the onset of World War II, the medical college temporarily suspended its educational program, although it continued as an institution. Its faculty continued undergraduate and graduate teaching of medicine and the biological sciences as members of the faculty of the University of Illinois. The charter of the medical college was reactivated in 1969 when it became part of Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke's Medical Center. In 1971, Rush Medical College reopened with a class of 66 first-year students and 33 third-year students.

In 2012 US News & World Report ranked Rush Medical College among the 10 medical schools in the United States with the lowest acceptance rates.[2] Overall, it ranked Rush 62nd among U.S. M.D. medical schools.[2] For the entering class of 2014-2015, a total of 9,428 AMCAS applications were received, with 128 students matriculating.[3]

Curriculum

In 2010, the Rush Medical College curriculum underwent an extensive transformation as it implemented a system-based curriculum. Each organ system is organized into an individual block that integrates material from anatomy, biochemistry, histology, physiology, microbiology, pathophysiology, immunology, and pharmacology. Recently, the school has embraced a "tablet-based" approach, providing all students with an iPad for teaching and examination use.[4] Preclinical years are graded as Honors, Pass, Fail, and clinical years are graded as Honors, High Pass, Pass, Fail.

Concurrently, students in the first two years are enrolled in the Physicianship Program. This program introduces students to various aspects of medicine and provides hands-on physical examination training. Students obtain clinical experience starting in the first weeks of school as they are required to work alongside a mentoring physician in pediatrics, internal medicine, or family medicine. An evidence-based medicine (EBM) course is included during the second year. A USMLE Step 1 passing score is required for promotion into the clinical years. USMLE Step 2 CK and CS must be taken by November 1 of the fourth year, and passing both is required for graduation.

Notable alumni

See also

References

  1. ↑ edu/CampusWWW/Companion/rush_benjamin.html Benjamin Rush
  2. 1 2 http://www.usnews.com/education/best-graduate-schools/articles/2011/04/05/10-medical-schools-with-lowest-acceptance-rates
  3. ↑ "Rush > RMC At-A-Glance".
  4. ↑ http://in-training.org/no-more-paper-syllabi-3181
  5. ↑ THE LEGISLATIVE MANUAL OF THE STATE OF WISCONSIN (9th ed.). Madison, Wis. 1870. p. 368. Retrieved 2015-09-28.
  6. ↑ "JEWEL HENRY ARTHUR CALLIS". Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc – Omicron Delta Lambda Chapter. Retrieved February 6, 2014.
  7. ↑ "The Runners-Up". Science 334 (6063): 1629. 2011. doi:10.1126/science.334.6063.1629.
  8. ↑ "Evarts Ambrose Graham" (PDF). National Academy of Science. Retrieved January 30, 2014.
  9. ↑ Journal of the American Medical Association, Volume 53, Part 2. American Medical Association. 1909. p. 2120.
  10. ↑ "Clem Neacy: All-Pro Guard, Boxer and Surgeon" (PDF). The Coffin Corner. Retrieved February 5, 2014.
  11. ↑ http://www.blackpast.org/aah/peck-dr-david-jones-c-1826
  12. ↑ THE BLUE BOOK OF THE STATE OF WISCONSIN. 1891. p. 579. Retrieved 2015-08-03.

Further reading

External links

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