MED 7750 Community Engagement III
Phase 3, Class of 2026
2023-2024

Assessment Plan

The assessment plan sets out the principles and key elements used to assess the learner’s performance in an accurate, consistent, and objective manner for MED 7750 Community Engagement III.

MED 7750 Community Engagement III places learners in physicians’ practices to further experience interactions among patients, their family physician and the health care system when presenting with a change in health status. Through a variety of sessions, learners will also explore other community health related topics.

Attendance is required for the community placement component of MED 7750 Community Engagement III. All absences must be approved by the standard UGME process.

COURSE SUCCESS CRITERIA

To pass the course, a learner must:

• Achieve an average grade of ≥ 70% based on the weighted final marks across the course assessments,
• Complete and submit all course assignments and assessments by the due date,
• Attend all sessions as per the course requirements, including mandatory sessions.

Exam and assignment deferrals will only be approved by the Phase Lead under exceptional circumstances, see Exam Deferral Policy.

Promotion regulations:

• Even if a learner has passed all examinations and assignments, a learner may be required to repeat the Phase or withdraw conditionally or unconditionally from the program (see section 5.3 in the University calendar) if there are significant concerns about a learner’s performance (as communicated to the learner by the Phase Lead). Examples may include, but are not limited to, late assignments and missed mandatory sessions without proper deferral process, lapses in professionalism, recurrent reassessment exams.
• As outlined in Section 5.2 of the Regulations for the Degree of Doctor of Medicine in the University calendar, learners with a Fail grade in any course cannot be promoted to the next Phase.
• As outlined in the MD program objectives, the Faculty of Medicine at Memorial University values professionalism as a core competency and a requirement of the MD program. Recognizing that medical learners are developing their professional identity, professionalism lapses will be remediated where possible and appropriate. Unsuccessful remediation will result in failure of the Phase.  Professionalism lapses may render a learner incompatible with continuation in the MD program (as outlined in the Memorial University Calendar Regulation 10.5 Promotion).

COURSE ASSESSMENT

Learners will be assessed with both formative and summative assessment methods throughout the course. Assessment descriptions and rubrics are available on Brightspace. Learners will receive their grades from the Undergraduate Medical Education (UGME) office via One45.

Original work, completed wholly by the learner, is expected to be submitted in this course. The use of an artificial intelligence tool like chatGPT is not permitted.

Organization, grammar, citations and referencing should be of the quality expected of university graduates. This standard will be considered in the grading process.

Formative assessments do not count towards the final grade and are intended to help learners monitor their learning. Learners will receive formative feedback from their preceptors. Learners are also expected to review and learn from their performance on the summative assessments that occur throughout the course. The process for review of summative examinations is detailed in the Summative Assessment Procedure for Phases 1-3.

Summative assessments 

include: (a) the Family Medicine Handbook, the Black Bag, completed during the Community Placement, (b) in-class assignments for the Emergency Response Preparedness, Environmental Health, and the Physician in a Changing Climate and Environment sessions, (c) an assignment (reflective essay) based on the Community and Indigenous Health sessions, and (d) group assignment on the Administration and Health Systems sessions. Each of these summative assessments is graded and contributes to the final summative mark that the learner will receive for the course.

The course includes mandatory learning sessions, listed in the respective section below. This is in addition to the Community Placement for which attendance is required. Learners must participate in the mandatory learning sessions and complete any associated exercises. As outlined in the Protected Time and Duty Hours Policy, learners may request leave if they are unable to attend a mandatory learning session.

The contribution of marks from each summative assessment towards the final course grade is as follows:

Community Visit Handbook	65%
In-class Assignments for Emergency Response Preparedness, Environmental Health, and the Physician in a Changing Climate and Environment content	8%
Community Health Sessions Assignment	16%
Administration and Health Systems group assignment	11%
Total	100%

Summative assessment consists of the following components:

Component	Summative assessment method	Length	Due date	Contribution to final grade
Community Visit Black Bag	Handbook	NA	June 10, 2024	65%
Emergency Response Preparedness, Environmental Health, and the Physician in a Changing Climate and Environment	In-class Assignments	300 words each	Environmental Health – September 1, 2023 Emergency Response Preparedness – October 6, 2023 The Physician in a Changing Climate and Environment  – October 6, 2023	8%
Administration and Health Systems	Group assignment	NA	November 6, 2023	11%
Community Health Sessions	Reflective essay	1500-2000 words	April 8, 2024	16%
Total				100%

The pass mark for each individual summative assessment is 70%. The final grade and average will be compiled at the end of the Phase.

Community Visit Black Bag

The Family Medicine Handbook, the Black Bag, identifies tasks associated with each of the CanMEDS objectives for Phase 3. The tasks in this handbook will be reviewed and signed off by the preceptor and the learner throughout the 2-week community placement. An overall score of 2 (scale of 1-4) on the assessment sheet is required to pass. This score will be converted to a score out of 100 for the purposes of determining its contribution to the overall course grade. The handbook and this assessment sheet must be received by the debriefing session following the visit.
Due date: June 10, 2024                                                                                                     

In-class Assignments for Emergency Response Preparedness, Environmental Health, and Physician in a Changing Climate and Environment

Learners will work in groups to complete an in-class assignment during each of the Emergency Response Preparedness, Environmental Health, and Physician in a Changing Climate and Environment sessions. Learners will upload their assignments to Brightspace. Each assignment will be graded on a pass/fail basis.
Word limit per assignment: 300 words
Due dates:

• Environmental Health – September 1, 2023
• Emergency Response Preparedness – October 6, 2023
• The Physician in a Changing Climate and Environment  – October 6, 2023

Community Health Sessions Assignment

This assignment is a reflective essay and should incorporate the learning from the following Community Health sessions in Phase 3: Health Inequities and Building Advocacy and Allyship; Healthy Sexuality; Weight Bias and Obesity; Nutrition and Health; and Indigenous Health. Learners are expected to link the concepts from these sessions into the essay, recognizing the impacts of the social determinants of health on individual and population health, while also reflecting on socially constructed assumptions and biases. A detailed description of the assignment and the assessment rubric are available on Brightspace.
Word limit: 1500-2000 words
Due date: April 8, 2024

Administration Health Systems Group Assignment

Learners will work in groups to complete this assignment, integrating the concepts from the Administration Health Systems sessions. Each group will prepare up to 10 PowerPoint slides. Details for the assignment and the assessment rubric are available on Brightspace. The mark assigned to the group for the assignment will be applied to each learner in the group.
Due date: November 6, 2023

Mandatory Learning Sessions

Mandatory learning sessions are defined as sessions that require learners to attend in order to achieve the learning objectives. Sessions are designated mandatory if they meet one or more of the following criteria:

• Provide an introduction or overview of learner expectations for the MD program, phase or course;
• Involve application of clinical decision-making skills such as tutorials, case-based learning and laboratories; 
• Include an assessment component;
• Involve interactivity such as integrated learning sessions, interprofessional education sessions, guest speakers or patient volunteers; and/or
• Provide support and/or counseling to promote learner well-being and success.

Mandatory learning session	Date
Black Bag Orientation	As scheduled in Brightspace.
Community Visit Debrief
Indigenous Health Sessions
Environmental Health
Emergency Response Preparedness
The Physician in a Changing Climate and Environment

REASSESSMENT

• Reassessment will be required if a learner achieves <70% on any summative assessment, excluding the preceptor assessment which cannot be reassessed.
• Learners will be required to resubmit the assessment for the component they have failed addressing the inadequacies that have been identified (excluding the preceptor assessment).
• Assignments for reassessment must be submitted within two weeks after the learner is notified by the Undergraduate Medical Education (UGME) office. In circumstances where a learner has multiple reassessments due in the same two-week time frame, an extension of the deadline date can be made at the discretion of the Phase Lead.
• A learner may be reassessed for any failed assessment only once.
• The maximum mark for a reassessment is 70%.
• Learners who fail a reassessment will be required to meet with the Phase Lead or a delegate, and the Learner Well-being Consultant if the learner so wishes, to support the learner’s academic needs.

LATE ASSIGNMENTS

If a learner is prevented from completing an assignment by the listed due date, they must follow the procedure outlined in the Undergraduate Medical Education Deferred Examination Policy and request a deferral of the assessment. Where possible, learners must make their request prior to the listed due date of the assignment. If a learner fails to submit a deferral request, any assignment submitted up to two days after the listed due date is considered late and the maximum mark the assignment can receive is 70%. Assignments which are submitted more than two days after the listed due date without a submitted deferral request, will not be accepted for grading unless extenuating circumstances exist and at the discretion of the Phase Lead. Learners are encouraged to seek support from the Learner Well-being Consultants, especially if circumstances arise which may impact a learner’s ability to complete assignments on time.

Version: January 8, 2024
Reviewed by SAS: May 24, 2023
Approved by UGMS: June 21, 2023