i-Human Patients is like a flight simulator for clinicians in training. Students interview and examine virtual patients, develop hypotheses, order and review diagnostic tests, confirm a diagnosis, and develop a treatment plan. Throughout each case, students receive guidance and comprehensive feedback, which bolsters diagnostic reasoning, application of clinical knowledge, and patient interaction skills.

At Rush Medical College, students in their first and second years supplement their classroom learning of each organ system through interactive patient cases on the i-Human Patients platform. Students spend four weeks learning the fundamental scientific knowledge of each organ system, and they complete two diagnostic assessments per organ system block through i-Human. The cases place each system in the clinical context of a real-life patient complaint.

Over students’ first two years, professors enrich and support classroom learning with about 30 total i-Human cases; in students’ third year, professors conduct assessments through the i-Human platform with a focus on diagnostic reasoning and patient interaction.

“i-Human Patients helped us transform our curriculum into a patient-centered, case-based model that not only engages students, but better prepares them for clinical practice,” said Keith Boyd, M.D., Senior Associate Dean for Education at Rush Medical College. “Our first class of i-Human graduates is ready to cross the stage; this shows the progress we’ve made in promoting the diagnostic and clinical reasoning skills that will help ensure the next generation of physicians is more engaging with patients, attentive to symptoms, and accurate in their diagnoses.”

Over the past four years, faculty members saw Rush students significantly improve their diagnostic reasoning, as they learned to organize and react to pertinent information from patients. Because faculty can review individual and group performance data for each completed case, a course instructor can revisit a particular symptom or question that many students overlooked, reinforcing the steps needed to arrive at the correct diagnosis.

The i-Human Patients platform also allows Rush’s staff of scientists and doctors to craft classroom instruction that has important clinical applications. Because instructors can create or update cases in i-Human with specialized, embedded activities and sidebars, they can create cases that augment concepts taught in the classroom while keeping lessons and instruction fresh, challenging, and relevant in today’s medical landscape.

“Congratulations to the Rush Medical College class of 2015, the first in a new era of medical education,” said Norm Wu, CEO of i-Human Patients. “Rush has been at the forefront of developing curricula that hone diagnostic reasoning and help address the high rate of misdiagnosis. The Rush class of 2015 was one of the first to use i-Human, serving as a beta site for almost two years before our general market launch at the end of 2012. Since then more than 43 medical, nurse practitioner, and physician assistant schools across North America have introduced i-Human Patients as part of their programs. Each of them now demonstrates what medical education can and should be: patient centered, placed in clinical context, and emphasizing the diagnostic detective skills that are the core of every patient encounter.”

For more information on i-Human, visit www.i-human.com.

About i-Human Patients, Inc.

i-Human Patients, Inc. develops virtual medical training products and services, including its flagship i-Human Patients® platform, launched in November 2012, which educators at more than 20 percent of U.S. medical schools are subscribing to or developing content on in anticipation of future use. Cloud-based and interactive, i-Human improves training outcomes and clinical protocol compliance for students, instructors, and practicing clinicians using active learning strategies and content developed by leading medical educators at more than 40 schools. i-Human Patients, Inc. is based in Sunnyvale, Calif.

About Rush Medical College

Rush Medical College, founded in 1837, has been a part of the Chicago landscape longer than any other health care institution. Students train in urban and suburban areas serving patients from a variety of socioeconomic and ethnic backgrounds. Clinical training is split between Rush University Medical Center and John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County, one of the largest public hospitals in the nation. In addition, more than 90 percent of our students are involved in community service projects. Rush Medical College graduates are leaders who advocate for the health of their patients and their entire community.

Media Resources:

i-Human Patients corporate website: www.i-human.com
Rush Medical College student testimonial: https://vimeo.com/122369096
i-Human Patients images and logos: http://i-human.com/media-room/images-logos/