A large part of the training in adolescent health occurs at a homeless shelter for adolescents where a team of residents, medical students and a family medicine attending provide care on a weekly basis. Emphasis is placed on interviewing and counseling skills, growth and development, and health risk assessment. Upper level residents visit the shelter 14 half-days throughout their second and third years. Training includes family and marital therapy, short term counseling, treating patients with addictive disorders, diagnosing and management psychiatric illness, and treating patients with histories of abuse. Supervision is by a psychologist, social worker, psychiatrist, and our family medicine attendings who have all been trained as behavioralists.
Residents work in interdisciplinary teams to facilitate groups on asthma and diabetes.
Specific training by nurse educators, family medicine attendings, and a Pharm. D. fosters resident competence in patient education issues including literacy, adherence to medicine, dietary modification and behavior change. Residents participate in the care of nursing home patients at Cathedral Village, a continuing care community in West Philadelphia. Visits are made throughout the 2 nd and 3 rd year with supervision and on site teaching provided by the Geriatrics faculty. Experience is obtained both by working with family physicians and in subspecialty clinics.