Health and Medical Sciences Program
School of Public Health
Program Office: 570 University Hall, (510) 642-5479
Director: Ann Stevens, MD
Program Website: Joint Medical Program
Overview
A five-year program leading to a Master of Science degree in Health and Medical Sciences from UC Berkeley and a MD from UCSF. The program’s mission is to produce academic and community leaders in American medicine through early exposure to public health disciplines, medical humanities, bioethics, and social and behavioral sciences. Berkeley awards the master’s degree upon successful completion of the first three years of work and UCSF awards the medical degree after successful completion of the fourth and fifth years. The master’s program is coordinated with both a clinical skills curriculum and a case-based preclerkship science curriculum during the first three years. The master’s curriculum requires a minimum of 20 additional units of academic coursework as well as the researching and writing of a thesis. Students are expected to acquire mastery of the preclerkship sciences and scholarly expertise in a selected area of interest related to health. Students selected for this program meet the rigorous academic requirements for entrance into both medical school and graduate school. The selection process screens for students who have a strong interest in determinants of human health and disease beyond the purely medical and who seek a collaborative small-group process for learning.
Admissions
Applicants to the UC Berkeley-UCSF Joint Medical Program must be eligible for admission to the University in graduate standing, with an undergraduate upper division grade point average (GPA) of at least 3.0, and a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university. They must have fulfilled the standard premedical requirements and have taken the Medical College Admission Test (instead of the GRE) within three years of application. Initial application is via AMCAS, and admission is coordinated with the School of Medicine at UCSF.
For more detailed information about the UC Berkeley-UCSF Joint Medical Program, call (510) 642-5671, or see the program website .
HMEDSCI 98 Directed Group Study 1 - 3 Units
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Offered for pass/not pass grade only.
Hours and format: 3 to 9 hours of group study (or tutorial or fieldwork) per week.
Prerequisites: Consent of instructor; freshman/sophomore status.
Organized group study on topics selected by Health and Medical Sciences faculty for freshman/sophomore students.
Course may be repeated for credit. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
HMEDSCI C133/HISTORY C191/UGIS C133 Death, Dying, and Modern Medicine: Historical and Contemporary Perspectives 4 Units
Department: Health and Medical Sciences; History; Undergrad Interdisciplinary Studies
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 2 hours of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 6 hours of Lecture and 2 hours of Discussion per week for 8 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 2 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
This course will study the end of life--dying and death--from the perspective of medicine and history. It seeks to confront the humanist with the quotidian dilemmas of modern clinical practice and medicine's deep engagement with death more generally. It invites pre-med, pre-law, and public policy students to understand these matters in light of the historical and, more broadly, literary and artistic perspectives of the humanities.
Instructors: Laqueur, Micco
HMEDSCI 150 Introduction to Aging Issues and Opportunities in Aging Professions 2 Units
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 2 hours of Lecture per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: Upper division or graduate standing or consent of instructor.
This course will explore current issues in aging from biological, demographic, psycho-social, and policy perspectives. To begin, lectures will focus on: The changing demographics of the general population of which older adults are becoming a larger and larger percentage; How men and women age differently; The historical context within which aging has been viewed; The physical and mental changes that occur over time. These initial lectures will provide the foundation for the lectures that follow in which professionals present issues--unique to their field--that they encounter in meeting the needs of their elderly clientele. Representative professions will include law, medicine, dentistry, architecture, social welfare, optometry, speech and physical therapy. The importance of an interdisciplinary approach to problem solving will be emphasized as speakers highlight pertinent issues in this population through case study scenarios. By using case studies we will shift the focus from "the disease" or "condition" to "the person." Speakers will discuss how they became interested in their respective professions and what opportunities/ challenges await a new generation of professionals.
Instructors: Micco, Rothman
HMEDSCI 197 Field Study in Health and Medical Sciences 1 - 3 Units
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Offered for pass/not pass grade only.
Hours and format: 3 to 9 hours of Fieldwork per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: Consent of instructor.
Field experience relevant to health and medical sciences. Regular individual and/or group meetings with faculty sponsor are required. A final written report or ongoing field notebook is required. One unit of credit represents three hours of work per week on the part of the student.
Course may be repeated for credit. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
HMEDSCI 198 Directed Group Study 1 - 3 Units
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Spring
Grading: Offered for pass/not pass grade only.
Hours and format: 1 to 3 hour of Directed group study per week for 15 weeks.
Organized group study on topics selected by Health and Medical Sciences Program graduate students under the sponsorship and direction of a member of the faculty.
Course may be repeated for credit. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes. Instructors: Steinbach, Swartzberg
HMEDSCI 200A Contextual Integrated Case-Based Curriculum 10 Units
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Graduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 10.5 hours of Seminar per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: Graduate standing in Health and Medical Science Joint Medical Program.
The six semester sequence (200A-200F) introducing principles of the medical basic science, health policy, public health, and clinical aspects of medicine taught in a contextual-integrated case-based format. The sequence includes curriculum in biochemistry, histology, microbiology, immunology, neuroanatomy, pathology, physiology, pharmacology, and clinical sciences.
HMEDSCI 200B Contextual Integrated Case-Based Curriculum 10 Units
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Graduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 10.5 hours of Seminar per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: Graduate standing in Health and Medical Science Joint Medical Program.
The six semester sequence (200A-200F) introducing principles of the medical basic science, health policy, public health, and clinical aspects of medicine taught in a contextual-integrated case-based format. The sequence includes curriculum in biochemistry, histology, microbiology, immunology, neuroanatomy, pathology, physiology, pharmacology, and clinical sciences.
HMEDSCI 200C Contextual Integrated Case-Based Curriculum 10 Units
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Graduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 10.5 hours of Seminar per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: Graduate standing in Health and Medical Science Joint Medical Program.
The six semester sequence (200A-200F) introducing principles of the medical basic science, health policy, public health, and clinical aspects of medicine taught in a contextual-integrated case-based format. The sequence includes curriculum in biochemistry, histology, microbiology, immunology, neuroanatomy, pathology, physiology, pharmacology, and clinical sciences.
HMEDSCI 200D Contextual Integrated Case-Based Curriculum 10 Units
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Graduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 10.5 hours of Seminar per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: Graduate standing in Health and Medical Science Joint Medical Program.
The six semester sequence (200A-200F) introducing principles of the medical basic science, health policy, public health, and clinical aspects of medicine taught in a contextual-integrated case-based format. The sequence includes curriculum in biochemistry, histology, microbiology, immunology, neuroanatomy, pathology, physiology, pharmacology, and clinical sciences.
HMEDSCI 200E Contextual Integrated Case-Based Curriculum 10 Units
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Graduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 10.5 hours of Seminar per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: Graduate standing in Health and Medical Science Joint Medical Program.
The six semester sequence (200A-200F) introducing principles of the medical basic science, health policy, public health, and clinical aspects of medicine taught in a contextual-integrated case-based format. The sequence includes curriculum in biochemistry, histology, microbiology, immunology, neuroanatomy, pathology, physiology, pharmacology, and clinical sciences.
HMEDSCI 200F Contextual Integrated Case-Based Curriculum 7 Units
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Graduate
Term course may be offered: Spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 10.5 hours of Seminar per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: Graduate standing in Health and Medical Science Joint Medical Program.
The six semester sequence (200A-200F) introducing principles of the medical basic science, health policy, public health, and clinical aspects of medicine taught in a contextual-integrated case-based format. The sequence includes curriculum in biochemistry, histology, microbiology, immunology, neuroanatomy, pathology, physiology, pharmacology, and clinical sciences.
HMEDSCI 201 Systemic and Regional Human Anatomy and Development 8 Units
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Graduate
Term course may be offered: Summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 11 hours of Lecture and 11 hours of Laboratory per week for 8 weeks.
Prerequisites: Consent of instructor.
Regional and functional human anatomy and development (embryology) will be taught through lecture, laboratory, and problem-based exercises in a fashion that requires learning traditional anatomy and the use of anatomical reasoning in the context of clinical problem solving. The understanding of regional anatomy will be taught by prosection demonstration and dissection strengthened by teaching basic interpretation of medical imaging. Computer programs will be used to supplement all elements of the course. To increase clinical competence, the surface anatomy that is essential to physical examination will be taught. Students will learn the skills of professional communication by presenting patients and explaining the anatomical basis of the patient problem. Small group process is used to practice interactional and explicative skills.
Instructor: Patterson
HMEDSCI 202A Clinical Skills 1 2 Units
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Graduate
Term course may be offered: Fall
Grading: Offered for satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade only.
Hours and format: 2 hours of Seminar per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: Graduate standing in Health and Medical Sciences Joint Medical Program.
The first course in a six-semester sequence introducing first-year medical students to the skills necessary to obtain a complete medical history, to manage successfully the dynamics of the doctor-patient interaction, and to master interpersonal communication skills required of doctors in a clinical setting.
Instructor: Micco
HMEDSCI 202B Clinical Skills 2 2 Units
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Graduate
Term course may be offered: Spring
Grading: Offered for satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade only.
Hours and format: 3 hours of lecture/laboratory offered alternate weeks.
Prerequisites: Graduate standing in Health and Medical Sciences Joint Medical Program and completion of all requirements of Health and Medical Sciences 202A.
Students learn the cardiovascular, pulmonary, eye, and gastrointestinal exam and practice a complete medical history and physical exam with their preceptor. The dynamics of the physician-patient relationship are discussed on an ongoing basis with both the preceptor and the faculty instructor. Each student is required to turn in at least five patient write-ups per term.
Instructor: Micco
HMEDSCI 202C Clinical Skills 3 2 Units
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Graduate
Term course may be offered: Fall
Grading: Offered for satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade only.
Hours and format: 3 hours of lecture/laboratory offered alternate weeks.
Prerequisites: Graduate standing in Health and Medical Sciences Joint Medical Program and completion of all requirements of Health and Medical Sciences 202A and 202B.
Students learn the neurologic, musculo-skeletal, ear, nose, throat, thyroid, and skin exam and practice the medical history and physical exam with their preceptor. The dynamics of the physician-patient relationship are discussed on an ongoing basis. Each student is required to turn in at least five patient write-ups per term.
Instructors: Stevens, Swartzberg
HMEDSCI 202D Clinical Skills 4 2 Units
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Graduate
Term course may be offered: Spring
Grading: Offered for satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade only.
Hours and format: 3 hours of lecture/laboratory offered on alternate weeks.
Prerequisites: Graduate standing in Health and Medical Sciences Joint Medical Program and completion of all requirements of Health and Medical Sciences 202C.
Students learn the male genito-urinary exam and practice the complete medical history and physical exam with their preceptor. The dynamics of the physician-patient relationship are discussed on an ongoing basis. Each student is required to turn in at least five patient write-ups per term.
Instructor: Stevens Swartzberg
HMEDSCI 202E Clinical Skills 5 2 Units
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Graduate
Term course may be offered: Fall
Grading: Offered for satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade only.
Hours and format: 3 hours of lecture/laboratory offered alternate weeks.
Prerequisites: Graduate standing in Health and Medical Sciences Joint Medical Program and completion of all requirements of Health and Medical Sciences 202C and 202D.
Students learn the gynecologic exam and practice the complete medical history and physical exam with their preceptor. The dynamics of the physician-patient relationship are discussed on an ongoing basis. Each student is required to turn in at least five patient write-ups per term.
Instructors: Stevens, Swartzberg
HMEDSCI 202F Clinical Skills 6 1 Unit
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Graduate
Term course may be offered: Spring
Grading: Offered for satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade only.
Hours and format: 3 hours of lecture/laboratory per week.
Prerequisites: Graduate standing in HMS Joint Medical Program.
Under supervision, students perform a complete history and physical exam on hospitalized or clinic patients five times during the semester. They present the patients in written and verbal format to the instructor and class. These presentations are critiqued and the tools to effectively present cases are taught. The course runs for the first half of the student's last semester in the program. Each student is required to turn in three patient write-ups.
Instructors: Stevens, Swartzberg
HMEDSCI 203 Introduction to Clinical Radiology/Anatomy Correlates 1 Unit
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Graduate
Term course may be offered: Summer
Grading: Offered for satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade only.
Hours and format: 1 1.5-hour lecture per week for 8 weeks.
Prerequisites: Graduate standing in HMS Joint Medical Program; must be taken concurrently with 201 and 202.
An introduction for medical students to the study of radiology and the examination of healthy and diseased organs by imaging techniques, correlated with the Gross Anatomy and Anatomy of Human Development courses. Areas that will be covered include introduction to the major organ systems through the use of radiographs.
Instructor: Price
HMEDSCI 210 Readers' Theater - Topics on Medicine in Society 1 Unit
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Graduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of seminar per week for 8 weeks.
Prerequisites: Graduate standing or consent of instructor.
In readers' theater, texts not written explicitly for the stage are adapted for public performances. Students thus learn actively about a subject by performance of relevant literature and discourse with involved audiences. In this course, selected stories deal with many aspects of medicine in context, e.g. dying, childbearing, aging, living with chronic pain, biomedical ethics, and disparities in care. The stories are presented to audiences such as elders, care-givers, patients, and providers.
Course may be repeated for credit as topic varies. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes. Instructor: Micco
HMEDSCI 211 Narrative and Medicine 1 Unit
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Graduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 1 hour of Seminar per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: Graduate standing in health and medical sciences or consent of instructor.
This course's goal is to provide a method for medical students to think, write about, and discuss feelings engendered by clinical encounters. Medical students are taught the need to be emotionally detached from patients, yet being emotionally detached does not mean devoid of emotion. This course offers a means to express and analyze those feelings. Also considered is the value of regarding the medical history as "text" which can be written and read from differing, equally valid viewpoints.
Course may be repeated for credit as topic varies. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes. Instructor: Micco
HMEDSCI 212 Health and Human Rights 1 Unit
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Graduate
Term course may be offered: Fall
Grading: Offered for satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade only.
Hours and format: 2 hours of Seminar per week for 5 weeks.
Prerequisites: Graduate standing.
Public health and human rights are two complementary approaches to protecting and promoting human well-being and dignity. Enshrined in international law, human rights describe how governments must create conditions where individuals can achieve their full potential. Human rights abuses profoundly affect health; health policies can directly or indirectly impact human rights adversely. We explore these interrelationships and examine how the "right to health" is challenged both in war and peace.
Formerly known as Public Health 211. Instructors: Stover, Weinstein
HMEDSCI 215 The Interdisciplinary Team: Improving the Care of Our Elders 2 Units
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Graduate
Term course may be offered: Spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 2 hours of seminar per week, plus field work.
Prerequisites: Limited to health care professional graduate students at UCB, UCSF, Samuel Merritt University, and GTU students.
Through field experiences, readings, film, and discussions with multi-specialty healthcare professionals, students will gain an understanding of the purpose, function, and dynamics of the geriatric interdisciplinary team (GIT). We will compare and contrast the unique perspectives, values, and contributions of each profession, and students will consider how participation in a team will affect their own future professional practice.
Instructors: Micco, Robinson
HMEDSCI 240 The Death Course 2 Units
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Graduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 2 hours of Seminar per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: Graduate standing or consent of instructor.
This course is intended for medical and graduate students who share a keen interest in the problem of death. The topic will be explored from various religious, cultural, and personal perspectives through the use of literature, in-class writing and discussion, and occasionally film and music. A 10-15 page paper will be required.
Instructor: Micco
HMEDSCI 261 Research Seminar 1 - 2 Units
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Graduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 2 hours of Seminar per week for 15 weeks. 2 hours of Seminar per week for 8 weeks.
Prerequisites: Graduate standing in Health and Medical Sciences UCB-UCSF Joint Medical Program.
A seminar to help Joint Medical Program students acquire skills necessary to define a research question, find appropriate mentorship, and design a research project. Summer course introduces research design, methods, and expectations for M.S. research in Health and Medical Sciences. Fall and spring semesters address topics in research; student progress toward M.S. thesis is reviewed and critiqued. Development of research plan, protocol design and implementation, and research findings will be reviewed. Each student takes this course three times in the first year.
Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
HMEDSCI 296 Special Study 1 - 10 Units
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Graduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Offered for satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade only.
Hours and format: Individual meetings with faculty members.
Prerequisites: Graduate standing.
Designed to permit qualified graduate students to pursue special study under the direction of a faculty member.
Course may be repeated for credit. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
HMEDSCI 298 Directed Group Study 1 - 5 Units
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Graduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: The grading option will be decided by the instructor when the class is offered.
Hours and format: Variable.
Prerequisites: Graduate standing in Health and Medical Sciences Program or consent of instructor.
Group study for graduate students. Intensive examination of health-related topics.
HMEDSCI 299 Independent Study and Research in Health and Medical Sciences 1 - 12 Units
Department: Health and Medical Sciences
Course level: Graduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: Independent study. 1 unit of credit represents 4 hours of student work per week in the regular semester.
Prerequisites: Graduate standing in HMS Program or consent of sponsoring HMS faculty member.
Independent study, research, and writing in an area related to program of study, sponsored by an approved faculty member and approved by program adviser.
Course may be repeated for credit. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
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