Capstone Scholarship and Discovery Course

Project Proposal Reviewer’s Guide

Lela Giannaris PhD

Tina Hermos MD

Interim chairs, Capstone Faculty Committee

Capstone Leadership Team

Rachel Gerstein PhD

Lela Giannaris PhD

Steven Hatch MD MS

Tina Hermos MD

Carolina Ionete MD PhD

Colleen Burnham MBA

December 2016

Your review of Capstone Scholarship and

Discovery (CSD) projects helps students

develop key professional skills.

Thank you!

The CSD course is a 4-year longitudinal course

through which students use a scholarly approach

to design, implement and communicate a project in

an area of personal passion related to medicine.

http://www.umassmed.edu/oume/capstone-course/

• Perform a high level review to ensure the project proposal meets

the rubric requirements

• Identify any unaddressed concerns (e.g. right-sizing of project;

ability to articulate project goals; concerns about project overall;

need for subject use approval)

• Provide feedback to the student and advisor with suggestions for

how to address any concerns (constructive criticism)

• Provide confidential feedback to the CSD Course Leaders if

necessary (e.g. significant concerns or questions)

Proposals have already been approved by an advisor,

our goal is not to overturn this approval

Goals of the review process

STUDENT

submits Project Proposal to CSD by

12/15

CSD

randomly assigns Project Proposals to

each reviewer

REVIEWER

provides feedback on Project Review Form submits to

CSD within 2 weeks

CSD

reviews and edits feedback, then

sends it to student & their CSP advisor

Turn around time is

approximately 5 weeksReview process

Reviewers receive an email from the ‘CSD’ mailbox

containing the following:

• List of students to evaluate

• A separate attachment for each student’s project

proposal submission

• Project Proposal Evaluation Rubric as an attachment

• Link to the online Project Proposal Review Form

http://umassmed.edu/oume/capstone-course/csd-forms-and--

reports/cfc-proposal-review

Review process

Project Proposal Rubric FOM2 Capstone Project Proposal Rubric

Expected Comments | Recommendations

CLEAR GOALS

(Define Goals &

Objectives)

The student explicitly states the basic purposes for the work which

includes why the student selected this project, and defines realistic,

achievable objectives.

ADEQUATE PREPARATION (Knowledge Gap, Outline,

Resources)

The student outlines how s/he will gather knowledge and skills focused on the background of his or her specific project (eg, medical

or other literature review, patient history-taking, case review, skills

development, legacy project history) and lists 3-5 resources or experiences that will inform the project. (This may include reference

to projects similar in nature to expected project format.) Students

must identify the gap that this project addresses (eg, personal, professional, academic, etc.).

APPROPRIATE METHODS OR

PROCESSES (Methods | Processes)

The student clearly describes the project approach, which aligns with

goals. The student defines the components of the methodology and explains why these were chosen. Potential challenges are shared as

are plans to respond to them, including modification as necessary.

PROFESSIONALLY SIGNIFICANT

OR PERSONALLY MEANINGFUL

RESULTS, PRODUCT, OR

OUTPUT

(Results | Output)

The student outlines the expected results or output, which are clearly

linked to goals and objectives.

EFFECTIVE PRESENTATION OR

DISSEMINATION (Deliverables)

The student describes expected deliverables that align with goals and

methods, and includes plans for presenting final project to meet course requirement.

http://umassmed.edu/oume/capstone-course/csd-forms-and--reports/cfc-proposal-review

Review the online proposal review form

Evaluate each section of the proposal

http://umassmed.edu/oume/capstone-course/csd-forms-and--reports/cfc-proposal-review

• Goals and Objectives

• Adequate Preparation

• Methods or Processes

• Results | Output

• Effective Presentation or Dissemination

http://umassmed.edu/oume/capstone-course/csd-forms-and--reports/cfc-proposal-review

3 places for additional feedback

Review determination & submission

http://umassmed.edu/oume/capstone-course/csd-forms-and--reports/cfc-proposal-review

• Successful online review submission leads to an automated

‘Thank you’ message.

• If you do not get this message, do not close your browser

window…

– Check for and complete any missing required information

– Click ‘submit’ again

• If this is not successful, copy and paste the response to each question into an

email to the CSD mailbox with a comment reporting that the online form did not

submit.

Contact CSD@umassmed.edu for help

Please submit your review within 14 days

Let’s review a project proposal together

Friendly reminder about confidentiality of student information...

Only the pertinent sections to review will be discussed today.

Note that the report submission you will receive has additional

details (e.g. prior experience, summer activities, presentation

format, subject use approvals, etc.)

Project_Title: Pre-Natal Care Worldwide: The Effect of Differences in Care on

Refugees and Immigrants to the United States

Proposal_Goals: Review research being done on the experience of immigrant,

refugee and asylum patients going through the prenatal care process in the

USA for the first time after experiencing at least one pregnancy in their home

country. Provide materials for future physicians to help them identify the

differences in pre-natal care that exist between these patient’s home countries

and the US system. To increase providers’ knowledge of these patient’s

medical backgrounds and decrease the potential misunderstandings and

misconceptions that may arise in treating these patients when they present to

our heavily medicalized system for prenatal care.

Proposal_Objectives: Provide a literature review of the research being done

in this area and key findings. Create a document for providers of potential

previous prenatal experiences of the different nationalities and ethnic groups

residing in Worcester (based on care standards in their home countries) to help

providers understand patient’s backgrounds. The goal of both resources will be

to help providers understand in which ways patients might be overwhelmed or

confused or even scared of the care they are receiving here.

Proposal_KnowledgeGap: I am very interested in Ob/Gyn and in working with

refugee and immigrant populations here in the United States. I would like to

better understand how the process of receiving prenatal care might be

overwhelming for a patient who is presenting to the US system for the first time

after having all previous pregnancy experience in their home country, where

many of the medical systems vary dramatically in both influence, ability, and

utilization.

Proposal_Project_Outline: I will work with my house librarian to identify and

review the professional literature on this subject. I will work with my LPP, Dr.

Tara Kumaraswami to continue seeing patients from diverse backgrounds and

understanding their experiences through interviews.

Meet with Dr. Marianne Sarkis and review her current research in the

Experiences of Ghanaian-borne women delivering children in Worcester, MA as

well as her other research in providing health care to refugee and immigrant

patients.

Proposal_ProjectResources: Peace corps experience (2 years working in a

West African maternity ward)

2 years of LPP Clinic experience in the Women’s Clinic (Ob/Gyn)

DR. Marianne Sarkis and her research

House librarian to assist with literature/web search

Proposal_Methods: Meet with Marianne Sarkis and identify which of her

research and resources may be helpful

Do a comprehensive review of literature already on the topic (via the library)

Meet with immigrant and refugee women who have been through this

experience and get their subjective take on the process and its effects. Create

a document for providers that outlines potential patient experiences being

pregnant in their home country (based on care standards in their home

countries). This will help to give providers insight into their patients’ previous

experience, what parts of the system and process might be new to them here,

and help them navigate and explain these differences. My hope is that this will

make providers more aware of the different parts of the process that might be

new and overwhelming to our immigrant and refugee patients.

Proposal_challenges: I expect that there may be very little formal research

literature done on this topic, which is why I foresee Dr. Sarkis’ research being

very helpful. If this is the case, most of my experience will have to come from

what I see and talk to patients about in LPP or outside of LPP in other clinical

settings. I will have to identify clinics and patients to work with if this is the case.

On the off chance that there is an enormous amount of literature, I will

streamline the literature review to discuss a single aspect of prenatal care (e.g.

the Group B strep test, the AFP test, or anatomic survey, etc.).

Proposal_Results: Provide research and materials for future physicians to

help them identify the differences in care that exist for pregnant women

between their home countries and the US system and the potential

psychological consequences. I hope to help increase providers’ knowledge of

these patient’s medical backgrounds and decrease the potential

misunderstandings and misconceptions that may arise in treating these

patients when they present to our heavily medicalized prenatal system.

Proposal_Deliverables: Pamphlets for Pre-natal care providers in Worcester

clinics (Particularly, UMMMC, the Women’s clinic, Family Health Center

Worcester, and the EMK Community Health Center) who treat immigrants and

refugees.

Questions?

Please contact the CSD Leadership Team

CSD@umassmed.edu

Capstone Leadership TeamRachel Gerstein PhD

Lela Giannaris PhD

Steven Hatch MD MS

Tina Hermos MD

Carolina Ionete MD PhD

Colleen Burnham MBA