Expanding CU2RE summer program supports UAB medical students

The summer program is part of the larger CU2RE medical student program, which was created to support medical students interested in serving in areas of the state that lack adequate primary care.
Photography provided by Caroline NewmanThis summer, 14 medical students from the University of Alabama at Birmingham Marnix E. Heersink School of Medicine’s four regional campuses shared at least two characteristics: All are interested in primary care, and all wanted to learn how to care for underserved communities. They make up the second cohort of the Comprehensive Urban Underserved and Rural Experience, or CU2RE, program in UAB’s Department of Family and Community Medicine.

For eight weeks, these students, who had just finished their first year of medical school, spent time together on their respective regional campuses engaged in in-person and virtual workshops, group activities, and excursions. These activities included spending a day in Montgomery visiting several museums and exhibits devoted to the history of slavery, racism and racism in medicine and participating in skills workshops exploring procedures in women’s health and in dermatology. Each student received a $20,000 stipend during their time in the CU2RE program and medical school.

The summer program is part of the larger CU2RE medical student program, which was created to support medical students interested in serving in areas of the state that lack adequate primary care. Several topics, including interprofessional education, behavioral health, social determinants of health, cultural and linguistic competency, practice transformation, and telehealth, are covered in the curricular and clinical experiences this program provides.

These six key areas are the foundation of a Health Resources and Services Administration grant the UAB Department of Family and Community Medicine received in 2020. This $7 million grant allowed the department to launch the CU2RE program, which welcomed its first cohort later that year and its second cohort in 2021.

This year, the summer program has expanded from primarily recruiting Birmingham-based students interested in urban underserved communities to including students from all four campuses with an interest in both urban and rural environments. Faculty and staff from all four campuses — Birmingham, Montgomery, Tuscaloosa and Huntsville — are participating in the summer programming.

Jill Marsh, M.D., director of the Urban Underserved and Rural Pathways, says participation from all campuses benefits every student in the program.

“It’s not just something we’re doing solo here in Birmingham,” Marsh said. “It’s really partnering with the other campuses and their primary care folks that will enrich and sustain this program long-term and ultimately benefit patients all over the state.”

All the in-person, cohort-wide programming took place in a two-week block in Birmingham from June 21–July 1. During these two weeks, students participated in several leadership sessions led by Michael Wiederman, Ph.D.

“In most communities and medical teams, a lot of times the physicians are looked at to be a leader of the team, so it’s important that student-doctors are self-aware and learn to develop emotional intelligence and how to work with others on a team,” Marsh said.

One of the summer program participants, Amiria Blakely, notes that she cherished the program’s lessons on self-awareness, patient awareness, developing a personalized leadership style and the art of tactfully leading patients through tough issues.

“These points are very important but are often overlooked during the first or second year(s) of medical school,” Blakely explained. “I am beyond thankful for the opportunity to explore this in such detail.”

UAB Department of Family and Community Medicine’s Office of Identity, Inclusion and Collective Conscience Director Shyla Fields, MBA, led students in sessions and activities focused on social determinants of health and cultural awareness. Fields led the students on a tour of Birmingham Civil Rights landmarks and cultural sites. Students also visited The Legacy Museum, the National Memorial for Peace and Justice, and the Mothers of Gynecology Monument in Montgomery.

Finally, the CU2RE summer program is also helping students gain clinical experience. CU2RE students provide care for a patient panel during their time in the program, and many begin meeting those patients for the first time this summer. Marsh says this opportunity allows the program’s students to establish the long-term relationships primary care doctors have with their patients, which she says is a key joy and value of the specialty of family medicine. Blakely looks forward to improving in medical school and beyond because of the CU2RE summer program.

“This experience has granted me the opportunity to understand people and medicine from a more conscious and empathetic view,” Blakely wrote. “I am learning how to be a better person and an effective leader, by utilizing my resources and, most importantly, by better understanding others.”

Incoming first-year medical students can apply to be part of the CU2RE program’s third cohort starting in August 2022. The application will be available here.