Radiology Clerkship

During the third or fourth year of the MD Program curriculum, medical students at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health in Madison will complete a two-week rotation in the Department of Radiology.

In modern medicine, the discipline of radiology plays a crucial role in the diagnosis and treatment of disease. Regardless of whether you choose to practice primary care or one of the specialties, you will find that radiographic imaging and therapy will play an integral role in your medical practice.

For most of you, this short rotation will be the only formal radiology training you receive. We hope to give you a better understanding of imaging modalities that are available to enable you to utilize them with maximal efficiency based on current knowledge.

In addition to learning about the strengths and limitations of different imaging studies, you should be able to relate abnormal radiologic findings to pathophysiology with logic and confidence. This will lead to a more efficient imaging work-up of the patient.

We will also cover some basic emergency interpretation. We do, however, plan to build on the radiographic knowledge that our clinical colleagues have shared with you, and teach essential radiological principles that you can use as your career develops.

Learning radiology is an apprenticeship that takes lots of "seat time." We don't have the luxury of giving you that on this rotation, but we will give you the foundation to which you can add your future experiences. Seminars are designed to mimic time in the "reading rooms," but more efficiently.

What you put into this rotation determines what you get out of it. You can be a passive observer and still pass the test, but that does neither you nor your patients much good.

Instead, ask questions, raise points, or tell us to slow down. We're a friendly bunch, who enjoys what we do, and we're eager to share our knowledge and experiences with you. Hopefully the lessons learned and the colleagues met during this clerkship will continue to be useful throughout your training and into your practice beyond.