A Medical/Legal Teaching and Assessment Collaboration on Domestic Violence: Assessment Using Standardized Patients/Standardized Clients

Abstract

The article describes a collaboration between a law professor, emergency medicine professors from the medical school, formative assessment specialists, standardized patient training specialists, a community attorney who specializes in domestic violence, and a teaching assistant from the law school.

The group collaborated in developing scripts and scenarios for standardized patients and standardized clients who experienced the medical and legal problems related to domestic violence. They developed assessment criteria and used the standardized patients and clients as part of a Family Law class and the training for emergency room residents. This type of training and assessment is common in medical school training but unique in legal education.