Clerkships

Elective Clerkships

The Department of Urology offers two elective clerkships for third to fourth-year medical students:

UROL 7200, Surgical Specialty: Urology

Urology 7200 provides the basic principles of urology you are likely to see and encounter in a general medical practice. Register for either a two- or four-week block in this rotation.

Adult urology training sites

If you elect adult urology for UROL 7200, you will spend time at the following training sites:

If you elect a two-week block for adult urology, you will select to train at one site. If you elect a four-week block, you will select two sites to train at.

Course Expectations

Expand all

Course Expectations

Assigned Readings

Smith’s General Urology (16th or 17th Edition) by Tanagho and McAninch:

  • Symptoms of Disorders of the Genitourinary Tract (Ch. 3)
  • Physical Examinations of the Genitourinary Tract (Ch. 4)
  • Urologic Laboratory Examination (Ch. 5)
  • Injuries to the Genitourinary Tract (Ch. 17)
  • Neoplasms of the Prostate Gland (Ch. 22)
  • Urinary Incontinence (16th edition: Ch. 28; 17th edition, Ch. 29)
  • Male Sexual Dysfunction (16th edition, Ch. 37; 17th edition, Ch. 38)

Purchase Smith’s General Urology from the Biomedical Bookstore or access the necessary chapters online through the class Moodle site.

Additional readings are assigned for the pediatric urology rotation.

Video Lectures

View videotaped lectures on the CD provided or on the class Moodle website. You’re expected to watch all of the lectures before starting your rotation. They’ll provide you with information important for your understanding of the primary care management of urologic problems.

Grand Rounds & Conferences

While enrolled in Urology 7200, you are required to attend the Department of Urology Grand Rounds. This conference is held every Wednesday morning at 7 a.m. in Room 3-100 Mayo.

Following Grand Rounds, you are required to attend the medical student lecture from 8-10 a.m. in Mayo 4th Floor B426.

Final Exams

Urology Self-Assessment Exam for adult or pediatric urology track can be found in the BlackBag site under the Assessment tab on the left.

Evaluations

All evaluations – both student performance and hospital rotation(s) – will be completed online.

UROL 7500, Advanced Urologic Surgery

Our elective clerkship provides intense exposure to the specialty.

Your advanced four week rotation will take place at the University of Minnesota Medical Center and M Health Fairview Southdale Hospital. Participants will also spend one day at the Minneapolis VA Hospital. These sites will expose you to operative and non-operative management of all major urologic diseases, including:

  • Oncology
  • Male and female voiding dysfunction
  • Male sexual dysfunction
  • Stone disease

Through this clerkship, you function as an active, integral member of our healthcare team as you:

  • Have intern-like inpatient management responsibilities
  • Are exposed to multiple minimally invasive techniques such as robotic and laparoscopic surgery
  • Participate in weekly conferences
  • Actively participate in operating room activities, including laparoscopic surgical techniques
  • Learn and demonstrate some basic urologic surgical techniques and approaches

Course Objectives

Expand all

Course Objectives

Course Objectives

  1. Demonstrate understanding of the natural history, diagnosis and treatment of the major urologic diseases.
  2. Augment current understanding of abdominal, retroperitoneal and pelvic anatomy by participation in urologic operative procedures.
  3. Appreciate and begin to acquire the fundamental surgical skill set that urology offers. These include laparoscopic, endoscopic and open incisional techniques. This may be augmented with simulation exercises.

Common Problems & Diseases

Your advanced three-week rotation will expose you to a wide variety of urology problems and procedures. The course provides you ample exposure to inpatient and outpatient, day-to-day management of urology patients. You do this by participating with either our team of five active urology attendings at the VA, or our team of nine active urology attendings at UMMC.

Recommended Text & Readings

Smith's General Urology. Edited by Emil Tanagho and Jack W. McAninch. 16th Edition. Lange Medical Books/McGraw Hill. 2003. Chapters 1, 4, 6, 9, 18-25.

Team Composition

You will work under the supervision of a senior and a junior urology resident as well as the urology attendings at your training site.

You will have an essential, close working relationship with your residents and the opportunity to develop collegial relationships with the attending faculty. You’ll be encouraged to take on inpatient assignments and responsibilities.

Course Schedule

University of Minnesota Medical Center, Fairview

On the Friday before your rotation begins, call the chief resident on-call at the university. This information will be indicated on your individual schedule. They will set a time and place for you to meet the morning on the first day of your rotation before morning inpatient rounds.

Student Resources

Contact

Please contact our Executive Office and Administrative Specialist, Kristin Hamdan, with any questions.
[email protected]