M1s get first taste of medical school during COVID-19

A group of first-year medical students takes a tour of campus during M1 orientation. 

First-year medical student TiAriel Anderson took a seat at a table in the Small Group Learning Center, which was rearranged to allow for social distancing due to COVID-19. Through a mask, she reacted to her first day of orientation at the University of South Alabama College of Medicine.

“I feel a little bit of nerves, but I feel prepared,” said Anderson, of Monroeville.  “I’m not going to doubt myself.”

Her classmate, Tiara Dean, put it another way: “We’re making history,” she said, referring to the new world of medical education during COVID-19.

Franklin Trimm, M.D., associate dean for diversity and 

inclusion at the USA College of Medicine, greets first-year 

medical student Trentyn Shaw.

On Monday, Anderson and Dean were in the first group of M1s to attend an in-person orientation talk on unconscious bias, get photos taken and tour the medical school. Most of the week’s orientation sessions and ice-breaker activities for the 74-member class were moved online to allow for social distancing.

T.J. Hundley, M.D., associate dean for medical education, said the curriculum will remain the same though the delivery method will be different this year. First- and second-year students are being divided into three groups and will take turns attending lectures online and in-person at the medical school.

“The faculty will be making sure to deliver content in a focused way,” said Jeffrey Sosnowski, M.D., Ph.D., assistant dean for curriculum integration. “We have to make sure we keep the students engaged.”

View more photos from orientation on Flickr.