Thomas De Fer, MD, FACP

Biography

Thomas M. De Fer, MD, MACP is the Carol B. & Jerome T. Loeb Professor of Medical Education in the Division of General Medicine & Geriatrics in the Department of Medicine at Washington University School of Medicine. He is an accomplished clinician educator and currently serves as the Associate Dean for Medical Student Education and directs the Office of Medical Student Education. He received AB and MD degrees from the University of Missouri-Columbia and completed an internship, residency, and chief residency at Barnes-Jewish Hospital. Since then, his career has been dedicated to the clinical education of medical students and house officers.

Dr. De Fer was the director of the Internal Medicine Clerkship and the Internal Medicine Subinternship from 1997 through 2018. He has served as the President of the Clerkship Directors in Internal Medicine (CDIM), a charter member of the Alliance for Academic Internal Medicine (AAIM). He was the task force leader of the CDIM national Internal Medicine Curriculum Guide revision, version 3.0. Between 2006 and 2019, he was the executive editor of The Washington Manual series of books. Since 2006, he has been an active participant and contributor to the National Board of Medical Examiners. Dr. De Fer was a primary leader of the complete reworking of the undergraduate medical education program at Washington University School of Medicine resulting in the successful launch of the Gateway Curriculum in 2020.