Powerful Lessons from Cuban Medical Education Programs: Fostering the Social Contract in Athletic Training Programs

Abstract

ContextThe Cuban medical education and health care systems provide powerful lessons to athletic training educators, clinicians, and researchers to guide educational reform initiatives and professional growth.ObjectiveThe purpose of this paper is to provide a brief overview of the Cuban medical education system to create parallels for comparison and growth strategies to implement within athletic training in the United States.BackgroundCubans have experienced tremendous limitations in resources for decades yet have substantive success in medical education and health care programs. As a guiding practice, Cubans focus on whole-patient care and have established far-reaching research networks to help substantiate their work.SynthesisCuban medical education programs emphasize prevention, whole-patient care, and public health in a unique approach that reflects disablement models recently promoted in athletic training in the United States. Comprehensive access and data collection provide meaningful information for quality improvement of education and health care processes. Active community engagement, education, and interventions are tailored to meet the biopsychosocial needs of individuals and communities.ResultsCuban medical education and health care systems provide valuable lessons for athletic training programs to consider in light of current educational reform initiatives. Strong collaborations and rich integration of disablement models in educational programs and clinical practice may provide meaningful outcomes for athletic training programs. Educational reform should be considered an opportunity to expand the athletic training profession by embracing the evolving role of the athletic trainer in the competitive health care arena.Recommendation(s)Through careful consideration of Cuban medical education and health care initiatives, athletic training programs can better meet the contract with society as health care professionals by integrating the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education's core competencies of patient care, medical knowledge, practice-based learning and improvement, interpersonal and communication skills, professionalism, and systems-based practice now promoted in the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education's 2020 Standards for Accreditation of Professional Athletic Training Programs.Conclusion(s)Educational and health care outcomes drive change. Quality improvement efforts transcend both education and health care. Athletic training can learn valuable lessons from the Cubans about innovation, preventative medicine, patient-centered community outreach, underserved populations, research initiatives, and globalization. Not unlike Cuba, athletic training has a unique opportunity to embrace the challenges associated with change to create a better future for athletic training students and professionals.