Novel Modules to Teach Evolutionary Medicine: an Australian and a Swiss Experience

Frank J Rühli ,Martin Haeusler,Maciej Henneberg,Arthur Saniotis

doi:10.1007/s40670-016-0245-8

Frank J Rühli , Martin Haeusler + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1007/s40670-016-0245-8

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Abstract

Evolutionary medicine is a growing field focusing on the evolutionary basis of human diseases and their changes through time. The introduction of concepts of long- and short-term evolution into the medical curricula is essential to acknowledge the variability of human biology. Three courses of the EM taught at the University of Zurich and the University of Adelaide are presented by giving their general descriptions, full curricula, and the results of anonymized student evaluations. The presented courses meet a growing need and were positively received by the students. Most importantly, they seem to stimulate critical thinking about issues relating to health and evolution. The incorporation of these topics into curricula will allow future practitioners of health-related professions to apply principles of human evolution and its forces in their work.

Highlights

Introduction and RationaleHumans are the product of a long evolutionary process but are continuously evolving [1, 2]
A plethora of EM-related topics to be taught in medical schools could be named (Table 1)
These combine, e.g., themes of clinical medicine, basic research such as genetics, human biology, physical and social anthropology, and archeology. The benefit of such evolutionary-based academic education has been laid out recently by a consensus paper, which highlighted the rationale for such teaching, the learning objectives for both—premedical and medical competencies—as well as the general integrative power of EM teaching [30]

Summary

Introduction

Humans are the product of a long evolutionary process but are continuously evolving [1, 2]. A plethora of EM-related topics to be taught in medical schools could be named (Table 1). These combine, e.g., themes of clinical medicine, basic research such as genetics, human biology, physical and social anthropology, and archeology. The benefit of such evolutionary-based academic education has been laid out recently by a consensus paper, which highlighted the rationale for such teaching, the learning objectives for both—premedical and medical competencies—as well as the general integrative power of EM teaching [30].

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Conclusion