About Us
The OCER works collaboratively to produce excellence in community-based education and research through multidisciplinary partnerships at the local, regional and national levels.
The Office of Community-based Education and Research (OCER) at Dartmouth Medical School (DMS) officially opened its doors in July, 2000. The OCER is funded by the DMS Dean's Office and is a continuation of efforts to enhance community-based education begun by the Office of Generalist Education (funded through the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Generalist Physician Initiative).
Our office has an ambitious agenda that supports community-based teaching of Dartmouth medical students, residents and community-based faculty while developing research and special projects in ambulatory and community-based education. We, the OCER Team,
continue to expand and revise this agenda in collaboration with ambulatory course directors, the OCER Community Preceptor Education Board, the OCER Steering Committee, community-based faculty, and leaders in education at DMS and nationally.
OCER Team
Karen E. Schifferdecker, PhD, Director 603-653-3450
Catherine Florio Pipas, MD, Medical Education Director 603-650-4923
Virginia A. Reed, PHD, Research Director 603-646-3904
Diane Chamberlain, B.A., Communications & Research Coordinator 603-653-3451
OCER Support for Community-Based Education
- Coordinate and support community-based site visits, teaching site development and faculty development
- Promote coordination and quality of student community placements and experiences by tracking and monitoring student placement and educational experiences in community settings
- Support computer connectivity of community-based faculty
- Engage preceptors and enhance communication with DMS
OCER Support for Research
- Assist with educational grant development and submission
- Provide quantitative and qualitative research expertise
- Serve as evaluators on funded grants
- Monitor funding agencies for grants in educational research
- Produce and assist with manuscripts on community-based teaching and learning
- Supply office space, computer equipment, and computer support for educational research programs involved with community-based education
OCER Steering Committee
David W. Nierenberg, MD, Associate Dean for Medical Education
Michael Zubkoff, PhD, Chairman, Community & Family Medicine
John F. Modlin, MD, Chairman, Department of Pediatrics
W. Blair Brooks, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine
Leslie H.Fall, MD, Assistant Professor of Pediatrics
Murray Korc, MD, Chairman, Department of Medicine
Richard Reindollar, MD, Chairman, Department of OB/GYN
Jonathan M. Ross, MD, Department of Internal Medicine
Charles R. Mannix, JD, MPA, Associate Dean and Chief Operating Officer, Dartmouth Medical School
William Garrity, Director, Biomedical Libraries
Mary Turco, Director, Center for Continuing Education in the Health Sciences and for CME
Annual Report
Additional Information
For more information about the formation and structure of the OCER, contact us or see: Carney, PA, KE Schifferdecker, CF Pipas, LH Fall, DA Poor, DA Peltier, DW Nierenberg, WB Brooks. A Collaborative Model for Supporting Community-based Interdisciplinary Education. Academic Medicine 77: 610-620, 2002.