Medical education in Hindi and indigenous languages in India: Issues and challenges.

In October 2022, the launch of first year MBBS books in Hindi language in the state of Madhya Pradesh in India kick started the debate on the introduction of Hindi/local language in medical education, which is currently being imparted in English. Opinions have been divided among the supporters of Hindi and local languages as well as opponents of this move. However, several issues need to be addressed before wider implementation of the policy of imparting medical education in Hindi/local languages. Right from infrastructure, human resource, economic impact, academic impact, international effects to legal issues have to be kept in mind and stakeholders must discuss these before implementation. A subsequent reversal of this policy, either through executive orders or judicial intervention, could lead to irreparable loss to students enrolled and trained in Hindi/local language.

[The programs of additional legal education as necessary element of system of training of students of medical university].

The actual trends in training of health care professionals set before medical university task of actualization and diversification of training programs targeted to formation both professional and universal competencies to contribute to variable combination of different skills and habits in implementation of medical activities. The increasing needs of labor market in specialists capable to meet actual realities and associated with transformational transition from narrow specialization to different specific skills, inevitably results into increasing of importance for additional education programs as an element of continuing The following key features of various proposals for additional professional education programs were singled out. The major task of forming proposal of additional programs is seen by university through prism of possible increasing of income. And main contingent of students is formed by specialists improve their qualifications. The specificity of medical university is specialists training to implement medical practice. In this regard, additional law training programs are targeted to exclusively at persons mastering basic educational program for the first time. The competencies implemented are focused at extending and specifying training considering legal maintenance or new trends. Besides, applying value-based approach to formation of educational trajectory of student, university translates primary importance of autonomy of will of student choosing additional educational programs. Thus, learning program of additional education is carried out using basic training in law and considering necessary and sufficient factual component that meets the needs of modern labor market, permitting strengthen and expand available competencies for future professional activity of medical worker. The article analyzed results of studies of pedagogues and psychologists, specialists of philosophical direction, professional lecturers, and sociological studies. The methods applied were analysis and synthesis, formalization, generalization, document analysis. The main methods of data analysis were substantive (hermeneutical) analysis and discourse analysis.

The Use of Tele-Education in Medicine, During and Beyond the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Commentary.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), a disease caused by a novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), emerged initially as an isolated illness in December 2019 and later progressed to a global pandemic. Hard-hit areas were lockdown, massively disrupting medical education activities. Tele-education, previously used as a means of long-distance education emerged as a solution in the field of medical education. Tele-rotations for medical students, journal clubs and lectures via Microsoft teams, medical conferences via zoom, residency, and fellowship interviews online, all emerged during this pandemic. Some medical students and trainees found it enjoyable, cost-effective, time saving, feasible, unbiased, and preferred mode of education. Challenges related to supervision, availability, affordability, diminished communication, disturbance of streaming, or distractions due to environment. Tele-education has had a boom in the era of COVID-19. Research is needed further on effective mentoring and supervision of trainees via tele educational teaching models.

A critical qualitative study to understand current black women medical student perspectives on anti-racist reform in US medical education.

PURPOSE: The US medical education system has a long-standing history of omitting evidence and perpetuating false pseudo-scientific beliefs on the complex and nuanced relationships between race, racism, and health disparities. There is an urgent need to identify and address the historical influence of systemic racism on the current curriculum, organization, and culture of US medical education. The goal of this study was to understand Black women medical student perspectives on race and racism in current medical school training and their recommendations to inform anti-racist action in US medical education. METHOD: The authors conducted a critical qualitative study to understand the perspectives of Black women medical students on issues surrounding race and racism in relation to US medical education. To their knowledge, this is the first study to use qualitative research methods to understand current thinking on the need for anti-racist pedagogy in medical school education among Black women medical students in the US. RESULTS: The interviews revealed critical limitations in the teaching of race, racism, and racial disparities, including a lack of historical depth, continuity, and evaluation of this content; lack of actionable guidance to address racial disparities in clinical practice; and dissonance between emerging anti-racist content and national licensing examinations. The qualitative data yielded several anti-racist strategies and practices that can be implemented in US medical schools to redress historical curriculum limitations and better prepare future generations of physicians to care for marginalized populations. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides actionable feedback on needed reforms to redress US medical school curriculum limitations as it relates to race, racism, and racial disparities.

Status quo of interprofessional education for midwifery and medical students in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland.

Objectives: The care of women and their families around childbirth requires effective interprofessional collaboration of the midwifery and medical profession. Given the academisation of midwifery, early interaction between students of midwifery and medicine is both necessary and feasible. As there is a lack of comprehensive data on interprofessional education (IPE) for midwifery and medical students at higher education institutions in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland (DACH region), the aim was to identify existing IPE activities, and their curricular determination. Methods: The exploratory study was conducted in the DACH region over three months (Dec. 2022-Feb. 2023). Higher education institutions offering midwifery science and/or medicine were invited to participate in a web-based survey. The questionnaire focused on the structure and curricular implementation of IPE courses, on cooperation, financial support and more. Results: A total of 58 out of 96 invited institutions (60%) participated in the survey, of which 34 (59%) offered IPE. Eighteen institutions (19%) offered 32 IPE courses for midwifery and medical students through cooperation within faculty (n=8) and between faculties (n=10). Notably, most of these IPE courses (60%) were integrated into the required curriculum of both study programmes. Most IPE courses were offered without financial support (71%). Conclusion: The current status quo highlighted the existence of numerous IPE offers for midwifery and medical students in the DACH region that warrant further curricular integration of proven and well-established best practice examples to further enhance these initiatives.

Impact of contextual factors on the evaluation outcomes of national virtual simulation experimental teaching projects in biology and medicine.

The number of applications for National Virtual Simulation Experimental Teaching Projects (NVSETPs) in China has seen a significant increase. Consequently, the influence of contextual factors and their potential personal connections on the evaluation results, whether for national or non-national NVSETPs, has become a prominent concern. In this study, we employed a modified back-chaining method using logistic regression to examine whether contextual factors in NVSETP applications could explain the evaluation outcomes. Our analysis was based on data available on the open platform of China's Ministry of Education (MOE). We identified several significant influencing factors, including the score on a five-point rating system, the number of clicks on the application page, school quality, school region, and the gender, title, and position of the applicants. Our results shed light on the impact of contextual factors on the evaluation results of NVSETPs in the fields of biology and medicine, using a modified back-chaining method. We conclude that enhancing the transparency of the assessment process and implementing standardized, detailed scoring guidelines for NVSETPs would mitigate the negative influence of contextual factors.

Fundamental dermatology education of medical doctors at a regional hospital in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Introduction: dermatology is a prevalent field of global health and dermatological conditions are amongst the most frequent complaints affecting communities, yet dermatology has become an overlooked aspect of the medical school curricula and many medical schools have failed to provide doctors with training to manage these conditions confidently and adequately. This study aimed to determine the baseline dermatological knowledge of medical doctors and determine the influence of fundamental dermatology education on hospital medical staff at a regional hospital in Johannesburg, South Africa. Methods: the knowledge and confidence of 33 medical doctors were tested using a pre-test and post-test quasi-experimental design. Participants completed an online questionnaire followed by an image-based test consisting of 20 questions to determine their level of confidence in diagnosing and managing common dermatological conditions. The participants then attended a sixty-minute educational session based on common dermatological conditions. Following this, their level of confidence and knowledge on the subject was re-assessed using the same online test. Pre and post-intervention confidence and test scores were compared. Results: the pre-intervention test mean score was 67.11%. The post-intervention mean score was 92.50%. The difference between means (post-intervention - pre-intervention) ± SEM was 25.39 ± 4.81. The intervention significantly improved overall test scores (p-value < 0.0001). Many participants felt that their undergraduate training was insufficient in preparing them for the management of common dermatological conditions. Conclusion: the baseline knowledge and confidence of medical doctors in managing common dermatological conditions was poor and such educational interventions have significant value in improving the ability of medical doctors in managing common dermatological conditions. More time should be dedicated to dermatology training at an undergraduate level.

Shifting paradigms: A collective and structural strategy for addressing healthcare inequity.

Healthcare inequity is a persistent systemic problem, yet many solutions have historically focused on "debiasing" individuals. Individualistic strategies fit within a competency-based medical education and assessment paradigm, whereby professional values of social accountability, patient safety, and healthcare equity are linked to an individual clinician's competence. Unfortunately, efforts to realise the conceptual linkages between medical education curricula and goals to improve healthcare equity fail to address the institutional values, policies, and practices that enable structural racism. In this article, we explore alternative approaches that target collective and structural causes of health inequity. We first describe the structural basis of healthcare inequity by identifying the ways in which institutional culture, power and privilege erode patient-centred care and contribute to epistemic injustice. We then outline some reasons that stereotypes, which are a culturally supported foundation for discrimination, bias and racism in healthcare, cannot be modified effectively through individualistic strategies or education curricula. Finally, we propose a model that centres shared values for leadership by individuals and institutions with consistency in goal setting, knowledge translation, and talent development. Figure 1 summarises the key recommendations. We have provided cases to supplement this work and facilitate discussion about the model's application to practice.

Trainees as Agents of Change: A Theory-Informed Model for Trainee-Driven Curricular Advocacy in Medical Education.

ABSTRACT: Trainees (medical students, residents, and fellows) are beginning to make strides in pushing for changes to their education. While there are many examples of successful trainee-led curriculum reform efforts, the path to success remains unclear. To better understand the process of trainee-driven curricular advocacy, the author analyzes this process through the lens of ecological systems theory (EST) not only to provide readers with context for the barriers and facilitators to trainee-driven curricular advocacy but also to further medical education's understanding of the sociopolitical forces influencing the process of trainee-driven curricular advocacy and reform through the lens of the trainee. EST explains how individuals are influenced by a complex web of social and environmental forces. The theory outlines 5 ecological systems of influence: the microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, macrosystem, and chronosystem. Using EST to explore the process of trainee-driven curricular advocacy therefore clarifies the many layers of influence that trainees must navigate while advocating for curriculum change. The author then draws on this theory and their own experience as a medical student advocating for local and national curriculum reform to develop a model to facilitate trainee-driven curricular advocacy in medical education. The proposed model outlines concrete steps trainees can take while going through the process of curricular advocacy both within their own institutions and on a national level. Through developing this model, the author hopes not only to empower trainees to become agents of change in medical education but also to encourage faculty members and administrators within health professional training programs to support trainees in these efforts.