Integration / Skillslab

Students can acquire the necessary skills at the moment they study the relevant theoretical knowledge. A continuous interaction takes place between theory and practice.

The curriculum is organised in blocks. Blocks are four- or eight-week periods in which certain groups of patient problems or complaints are topic of study. Guided by an electronic block-book the students acquire the knowledge relevant for these complaints. The skills training in these blocks address the skills relevant for the subject matter they study.

Throughout the first half of the curriculum, students study the theoretical aspects of a complaint in a block and train the relevant skills immediately after their study. Afterwards, they soon meet with a simulated patient with a similar complaint.

Integration of theory and practice thus takes place at a very early stage in the study. Because of this early integration, the acquisition of knowledge as well as skills benefit. By literally ‘manipulating’ the theoretical concepts the students gain more insight into the basic sciences and vice versa.