Editor – Dacre and Walsh (Clin Med December 2013 pp 573–5) have made important comments on medical education and must be right to emphasise the need for transparency. We strongly support this. They point out that funds for education are being diverted to either research or patient care. This is unsatisfactory accounting and devalues medical education.
We suggest the first step in commissioning medical education is to place contracts with all providers inside and outside hospital. Secondly, regular quality assurance visits including detailed student evaluation are needed. Teaching institutions in line with General Medical Council (GMC) guidance are now acting accordingly.
Several implications arise:
What happens when clinical teaching does not meet minimum standards specified?
If employees of the medical school are also employees of the teaching hospital, is there a conflict of interest?
In addition to transparency, we believe the single biggest challenge facing medical education in the UK is the progressive loss of empathy in medical students as they go through medical training, as confirmed by a recent systematic review.1
Reference
- 1.Neumann M, Edelhäuser F, Tauschel D, et al. Empathy decline and its reasons: a systematic review of studies with medical students and residents. Acad Med 2011;86:996–1009. 10.1097/ACM.0b013e318221e615 [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]