Document Detail


Medical education: progress and retreat.
MedLine Citation:
PMID:  21073012     Owner:  NLM     Status:  MEDLINE    
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
In summary, there have been significant educational improvements, particularly during the first two years of medical school. Students today are more accomplished, more diverse, and there is now a focus on the highly relevant basic science of medical practice, including medical ethics and public health. The curriculum has been centralized and coordination between various departments has vastly improved as a result. The number of lectures has been reduced, replaced by more effective small-group, problem-solving seminars. Support services for students have made medical school a much more enjoyable experience. On the other hand, the dramatic shift in the nature of hospitalized patients has adversely affected traditional bedside teaching that was such an important part of clinical education in the past. Extensive diagnostic evaluations now take place in an ambulatory setting. Hospitals and medical schools have not yet found a satisfactory way to integrate trainees into these venues. Finally, there has been a marked decrease in the number of graduates seeking careers in primary care, a phenomenon influenced by huge educational debts, the attraction of being able to master a defined discipline, and the desire to combine a medical life with a reasonable life-style. On balance, although the overall education of our future doctors has definitely been improved in the past fifty years, the erosion in fundamental clinical skills has been a disappointment.
Authors:
Robert H Gifford
Publication Detail:
Type:  Historical Article; Journal Article; Portraits    
Journal Detail:
Title:  Connecticut medicine     Volume:  74     ISSN:  0010-6178     ISO Abbreviation:  Conn Med     Publication Date:  2010 Oct 
Date Detail:
Created Date:  2010-11-15     Completed Date:  2010-12-07     Revised Date:  2011-02-18    
Medline Journal Info:
Nlm Unique ID:  0372745     Medline TA:  Conn Med     Country:  United States    
Other Details:
Languages:  eng     Pagination:  533-7     Citation Subset:  IM    
Affiliation:
Yale School of Medicine, USA.
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MeSH Terms
Descriptor/Qualifier:
Career Choice
Clinical Competence
Clinical Medicine / history*
Connecticut
Curriculum
Education, Medical / history*,  methods,  trends
Faculty, Medical
Female
History, 20th Century
History, 21st Century
Humans
Male
Mentors
Schools, Medical / history*
Students, Medical / history*
Comments/Corrections
Comment In:
Conn Med. 2011 Jan;75(1):60   [PMID:  21329298 ]

From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine


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