Population Health and Systems Science: Medical Student Feedback on a Novel Approach That Follows a National Curricular Framework

INTRODUCTION: Population Health and System Science, a longitudinal course at a new medical school in northeast Texas, incorporates case-based learning and experiential field visits during an 18-month pre-clerkship phase. The course integrates content from public and population health, preventive medicine disciplines, and health administration and leadership. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional survey assessed student self-reports on achievement of session objectives and introduction to national core curricular, cross-cutting, and systems thinking domains. RESULTS: Of 36 students, 33 responded. Most rated objectives favorably. Open-ended responses highlighted relevance to future practice and requested more content on biostatistics, epidemiology, health equity, and healthcare economics, financing, and policy. DISCUSSION: Findings suggest the course effectively introduces key concepts, with opportunities to enhance foundational content in measurement, policy, and financial aspects of healthcare. Future studies should investigate application during required clinical rotations.