A community outreach training program for pediatric residents and medical students

In 1982 the Division of Community Pediatrics of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill began a new training program for all first-year pediatrics residents and fourth-year medical students taking an ambulatory pediatrics elective. The program was designed to introduce the trainees to community resources for children and increase their knowledge of the factors affecting children's development. During their regular hospital clinic rotations, the trainees spend approximately one-third of their time in program activities that involve 25 community agencies. Educational packets (consisting of books, journal articles, films, slides, videotapes, self-instruction materials, manuals for developmental tests, and/or agency materials) are provided for each program component. At the end of each one-month rotation of program activities, the trainees meet individually with the program director and coordinator to discuss the trainee's experiences and reactions and to identify strengths and weaknesses of the program components.