The ACGME defines six domains of physician competency:
- Patient Care
- Medical Knowledge
- Practice-Based Learning and Improvement
- Systems-Based Practice
- Professionalism
- Interpersonal Skills and Communication
Although originally developed for residency training, the ACGME competencies are widely used throughout medical education and clinical practice. Students planning postgraduate training in the US are encouraged to become familiar with ACGME Core Competencies and the ACGME Milestone Guidebook for Resident and Fellows.
The AAMC Core Entrustable Professional Activities (EPAs) describe essential clinical activities that graduating medical students should be able to perform upon entering residency:
- Gather a History and Perform a Physical Examination
- Prioritize a Differential Diagnosis Following a Clinical Encounter
- Recommend and Interpret Common Diagnostic and Screening Tests
- Enter and Discuss Orders and Prescriptions
- Document a Clinical Encounter in the Patient Record
- Provide an Oral Presentation of a Clinical Encounter
- Form Clinical Questions and Retrieve Evidence to Advance Patient Care
- Give or Receive a Patient Handover to Transition Care Responsibility
- Collaborate as a member of an Interprofessional Team
- Recognize a Patient Requiring Urgent or Emergent Care and Initiate Evaluation and Management
- Obtain Informed Consent for Tests and/or Procedures
- Perform General Procedures of a Physician
- Identify System Failures and Contribute to a Culture of Safety and Improvement
Subsequent sections in this Manual describe the training tasks students undertake during each clerkship. Through these experiences, students develop the specialty-specific competencies and achieve the outcome objectives required for graduation. Although medical knowledge and certain clinical skills vary among specialties, professional behavior, interpersonal skills, and communication are fundamental expectations across all clerkships.