Future Medical Doctors Research Articles

Sociology in Medical Undergraduate Education: A Survey in Greece

The integration of sociology into medical education is essential for cultivating a nuanced understanding of the complex interplay between social determinants and health outcomes. This national cross-sectional survey utilized a qualitative, descriptive research approach to examine the inclusion of sociology as a course in the undergraduate curricula of medical schools in Greek higher education. Data collection and analysis were conducted through a comprehensive review of the syllabi from all seven medical schools in Greece. The analysis revealed that none of the seven undergraduate medical curricula include sociology as a discrete course. Social medicine is offered as a discrete course in three out of the seven programs, whereas sociological concepts are present in the majority of the medical curricula (six out of seven). A significant gap in the integration of sociology as a discrete course within Greek medical graduate education is revealed. To better equip future medical doctors with sociological lenses towards medical practice, a more comprehensive integration of sociology into medical training is recommended.

The challenges of medical students in their internship : a qualitative study from Iran

Background and objectivesMedical students experience different types of challenges during their MD program, which become more challenging when it comes to the internship, putting too much pressure on them. This study aimed to explore the challenges of medical interns of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences (SUMS), Shiraz, Iran.MethodsIn this qualitative research, which was conducted from September 2023 March 2024, medical interns of SUMS were selected using purposeful sampling method. The data were collected through deep and semi-structured interviews, and it was continued until data saturation was achieved. The data analysis was performed through thematic content analysis.ResultsA total of 13 participants (6 men and 7 women) with a mean ± SD age of 25 ± 1.6 years were interviewed. The challenges of medical interns consisted of 423 meaning units, 79 open codes, 14 subthemes, and 6 main themes; the main themes consisted of educational challenges, challenges following university regulations, health and behavioral issues, economic/employment-related issues, sociocultural and recreational challenges, and ethical issues.ConclusionThe results of this study highlight the necessity for reforms in the medical internship phase aiming to tackle interns’ issues and establish a supportive and nurturing environment for future medical doctors.

Orthodontic Knowledge and Awareness among Medical Students of a Tertiary Medical College

Background Orthodontics, a vital branch of dentistry dedicated to correcting malalignment and malocclusion, stands as a prime example of such a specialty that frequently finds itself overlooked within the medical community. This study aims to evaluate the levels of orthodontics knowledge and awareness of medical faculty students and future medical doctors. MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted among 296 students of College of Medical Sciences and Teaching Hospital from January 2024 to May 2024. Ethical approval was taken from Institutional Review Committee of College of Medical Sciences. Then data was entered in Excel and data was analyzed by using SPSS 18. Data was analyzed by using descriptive and inferential statistical tools. p-values less than 0.05 were considered as statistically significant.ResultsThis research was conducted among 41.6% female and 58.4% were male. This research showed that 62.2% respondents had good knowledge and awareness of orthodontic (with 95% CI 56.67% to 67.73%). Also, 65.9% female and 59.5% male had good knowledge and awareness on orthodontic likewise, 66% clinical and from pre-clinical side 58.5% had good level of knowledge and awareness on orthodontic. This research showed that there is no association between gender and level of knowledge and awareness (p-value>0.05).Conclusions This research showed that more than sixty percentage respondents had good knowledge on orthodontics likewise more than ninety percentage respondents know the meaning of orthodontics.

Fostering Empathy: Nurturing Compassionate Healers through Innovative Teaching and Insightful Assessment in Medical Education

Abstract: The significance of empathy in the realm of medical education cannot be undermined, as once a student embarks on their journey to serve and heal mankind, cultivating empathetic skills becomes an indispensable part of their training. Empathy plays a significant role in healthcare delivery in the domains of patient outcomes and doctor-patient relationships. This article provides a brief review of empathy education and assessment techniques in the field of medicine. Upon realizing the merits that can be attributed to empathy, it is of paramount importance that medical students must be trained in empathy to transform them into patient-centered healthcare professionals. Only training medical students in empathy will not serve the purpose, and we must complement the training component with assessment. In conclusion, empathy is one of the key components of compassionate and patient-centered medical care. This calls for the need to train and assess medical students during their training period to improve their empathetic abilities and support the process of producing competent and compassionate future medical doctors.

A National Assessment of Public Health Instructions in Medical Schools of Thailand

Epidemiological transition, population ageing, and pandemics posed new challenges to the health system. Current global situation demands many new competencies within the scope of teaching public health in medical schools. The aims of this study were to identify the needs of public health competencies for medical doctors in Thailand and to assess the level of integration for technical collaboration in teaching public health. The national survey of all Thai medical schools applied the list of public health competencies framework recommended by the World Health Organization, Southeast Asia Regional Office (WHO-SEARO). Qualitatively, community representatives from 11 sample villages were interviewed in the focus groups and representatives from stakeholder organizations, particularly employers in the in-depth interviews. Data integration applied recursive mixed-method approach. While the survey identified that health economics, disaster management, leadership, and teamwork are not well addressed in curriculum, employers, and national health authority uttered the need to strengthen the health system sciences and leadership in new generation medical doctors. Almost two third of medical schools could not apply interdisciplinary integration to teach such public health subjects. Furthermore, experiential learning and role play are recommended, in addition to the usual teaching method and multiple-choice questions. Thai communities expect doctors to serve the community, lead the primary healthcare team and train the health professionals and community health volunteers. Therefore, future medical doctors require interdisciplinary competencies. The findings of this study may provide evidence to step forward to a national framework of public health core competencies and interdisciplinary collaborations.

Stigma About Mental Health in Slovenian First-Year Medical Students.

Stigma surrounding mental health persists as a significant impediment to adequate support and help-seeking behaviors in Slovenia, despite advancements in psychiatric care and education. This study investigates stigma among first-year medical students at the University of Maribor, Slovenia and how the stigma changes after completing a course in mental health literacy. Participants were first-year medical students at the University of Maribor in the academic year 2023/2024. A total of 116 students participated in the baseline study, with 66 students participating in the follow-up study. The intervention involved implementing the "Transitions" program, aimed at enhancing mental health literacy and reducing stigma. We conducted a baseline study and a follow-up study, then used Wilcoxon signed rank test for repeated measures to compare the differences in ranks before and after implementation of the program. There was a significant reduction in stigma after intervention (Wilcoxon Z = -3.06, P < .01), suggesting a positive impact of the educational program. This reduction aligns with findings from similar programs globally, suggesting the efficacy of educational interventions in mitigating mental health stigma. The study emphasizes the importance of integrating mental health education into medical curricula to foster stigma reduction and enhance mental health literacy among future medical doctors.

“Discrimination is always intersectional” – understanding structural racism and teaching intersectionality in medical education in Germany

BackgroundRacism in medicine represents a global problem. It takes place on the individual, institutional and structural level. Especially structural racism can have serious effects on the health of individual people. Furthermore, racist discrimination is not always based on race solemnly but frequently intersects with other social categories such as gender, class or religion. To describe this multidimensional form of discrimination the term intersectionality has been coined. However, the understanding of structural intersectional racism in medicine is still fragmented, especially in the German context. Yet, medical students need to be trained in understanding structural and intersectional racism to see the impact of racist structures on the patient’s health.MethodWe conducted a qualitative study to explore the knowledge, awareness and perception of racism in medicine and health care of medical students in Germany. Our research questions are how do medical student understand structural racism and its effects on health in Germany? Do students see interrelations with other forms of discrimination and in this context to what extent are they familiar with the concept of intersectionality? Which categories intersect from their point of views with race in context of medicine and health care? We conducted focus groups with medical students (n = 32) in Germany.ResultsOur results demonstrate that students have a wide spectrum of knowledge, awareness and perceptions about racism from being rather elaborate to very little knowledge about it. The students have particular problems to understand and situate structural racism in Germany. Some raised doubts about the relevance. Yet, other students are aware of the concept of intersectionality and are convinced that racism must be looked at from an intersectional perspective.ConclusionsThe diverse knowledge, awareness and perceptions of medical students about structural racism and intersectionality hints to a lack of systematic education of medical students about these issues in Germany. Yet, in context of diversifying societies an understanding about racism and its impact on health is imminent for future medical doctors to provide good care for their patients. Therefore, this knowledge gap must be systematically filled by the medical education.

Features of the first-year students’ lifestyle at the faculty of medicine: an observational study

Introduction. Our analysis of studies of the lifestyle of medical students has shown that the students keep an unhealthy lifestyle with some differences in their lifestyle components, regions, and course of university study. Therefore, it is of scientific and practical interest to identify and analyze some factors which influence the formation of a healthy lifestyle for future medical doctors. The aim of the study is to investigate the lifestyle characteristics of the first-year students at the Faculty of Medicine and identify some key predictors of an unhealthy lifestyle. Methods. An observational cross-sectional study of the first-year students of the Medical Faculty at the Kabardino-Balkarian State University named after I.I. HM. Berbekov was conducted. The selection of units of the observation was carried out by the nesting method while maintaining the proportion characteristic of the general population. The sample set reflected the properties of the general population both quantitatively and qualitatively. The study included an anonymous survey using a specially designed questionnaire containing 80 questions to study socio-demographic characteristics that make up lifestyle (physical activity, daily routine, diet schedule and diet composition, the presence of bad habits), well-being, attention to one’s own health, using online Google Forms Designer. Results. More than half of the students surveyed (51.6%) consider their lifestyle not fully consistent with the principles of a healthy lifestyle. Herewith, 75.4% of the students did not adhere to the proper diet, 72.1% of them did not follow the daily scheduled routine, 24.9% of them slept less than 6 hours at night, 20.4% of the students did not engage in any type of physical activity. The number of smoking students was 8.9%, those drinking alcohol was recorded to reach 9.7%. Using the method of multiple logistic regression analysis for predicting lifestyle changes, the key predictors of an unhealthy lifestyle were identified as follows: the presence of bad habits, the number of cigarettes smoked and an unhealthy diet. Conclusion. The completed study made it possible to reveal the characteristics of the lifestyle of the first-year students of the Faculty of Medicine, identify significant predictors of an unhealthy lifestyle, and produce a social profile of a first-year student at the Faculty of Medicine. The results obtained by us can be used to adapt the curricula of the Medical Faculty for the formation of a healthy lifestyle among the students.

SIMULATION LEARNING AND CASE TECHNOLOGIES IN FUTURE DOCTORS’ TRAINING

At the current stage of healthcare provision, more and more attention is being paid to patient safety, ethical questions, increasing demand to responsibility of healthcare professionals, their professional aptitude, as well as rapid evolution of different procedures and methods. Virtual reality tools are seen as a source of technological opportunities in the education and medicine, complementing a set of traditional learning methods. Building up and fostering professional competences over the discipline «Human Anatomy» implies appropriate using the latest technologies that contribute to the development of clinical thinking and knowledge acquisition. The aim of this study is to conduct a theoretical analysis of scientific psychological, pedagogical, methodological and medical publications, methodological work of the department on applying modern pedagogical technologies in the process of professional training of future medical doctors.&#x0D; The use of the latest methods and modern computer technologies in the teaching medical students leads to better educational outcomes, stronger professional competencies as well as promotes the development of clinical thinking that allows future doctors to generate interesting ideas, make the right and quick decisions and be active learners. The combination of classical anatomy and the cutting edge innovative computer technologies provides an excellent opportunity to dive into the extraordinary fascinating world of the human body. The use of modern pedagogical technologies, and, in particular, simulation learning technologies and case technologies in the course of doctors’ training performs several important functions: controlling, as it reveals the assimilation of knowledge, build up of skills and abilities; educational, as it ensures that students achieve a high level of knowledge in the discipline; educational, as it fosters the personal qualities of future doctors. Effectively organized student's independent learning and classroom activities enable teacher to promote the development of clinical thinking, which makes the ground for the formation of qualified and successful specialists.

Artificial Intelligence for Personalised Ophthalmology Residency Training.

Residency training in medicine lays the foundation for future medical doctors. In real-world settings, training centers face challenges in trying to create balanced residency programs, with cases encountered by residents not always being fairly distributed among them. In recent years, there has been a tremendous advancement in developing artificial intelligence (AI)-based algorithms with human expert guidance for medical imaging segmentation, classification, and prediction. In this paper, we turned our attention from training machines to letting them train us and developed an AI framework for personalised case-based ophthalmology residency training. The framework is built on two components: (1) a deep learning (DL) model and (2) an expert-system-powered case allocation algorithm. The DL model is trained on publicly available datasets by means of contrastive learning and can classify retinal diseases from color fundus photographs (CFPs). Patients visiting the retina clinic will have a CFP performed and afterward, the image will be interpreted by the DL model, which will give a presumptive diagnosis. This diagnosis is then passed to a case allocation algorithm which selects the resident who would most benefit from the specific case, based on their case history and performance. At the end of each case, the attending expert physician assesses the resident's performance based on standardised examination files, and the results are immediately updated in their portfolio. Our approach provides a structure for future precision medical education in ophthalmology.

MAIN ASPECTS IN FOSTERING PROFESSIONAL COMPETENCE OF FUTURE MEDICAL DOCTORS DURING THE COURSE OF OTORHINOLARYNGOLOGY

Today, the ambitious goals to achieve excellence in professional training of future healthcare professionals in accordance with European high standards are among the priorities of higher medical education in Ukraine. The issues on fostering professional competence of students of higher medical educational institutions are in the focus of attention of many disciplines, and otorhinolaryngology, a compulsory educational component, is one of them. Over the course of the academic discipline "Otorhinolaryngology", future medical doctors acquire general and professional competencies required for their successful practice. The aim of the article was to highlight the main aspects of the formation of professional competencies of future medical doctors during the course of Otorhinolaryngology. To implement the competency approach at the Department of Otorhinolaryngology with Ophthalmology of Poltava State Medical University, an educational and methodological complex has been prepared, and the newest technologies for the presentation of material and mastering skills are being constantly introduced. The department regularly updates material and technical base. These preconditions stimulate cognitive and professional motivation of students, encourage them to intensify educational activities, and contribute to improving the effectiveness of learning, and develop independence and responsibility that ultimately ensures the formation of professional competence of the future doctor. Thus, the course of the discipline "Otorhinolaryngology" is designed and delivered to train highly qualified and competitive healthcare specialists to provide their own professional activity with high quality and productivity.

Child abuse and neglect: Are future medical doctors prepared?

Diagnosis of child abuse and neglect is a challenging matter: in case of misdiagnosis, the child cannot benefit from an early treatment; erroneous interpretation may generate legal issues. Some studies reported physicians’ lack of knowledge in child abuse and neglect. However, it is not clear if the reasons of this lack relay on an insufficient preparation of students during medical school and/or a deficiency in continuing medical education during/after fellowships. For these reasons, the authors of the present manuscript administered a questionnaire to last year medical students to: evaluate the degree of knowledge on this thematic in a medical student sample; understand if the abovementioned lack may be due to insufficient preparation of students during medical school. Study population included 179 students. The 77.7% demonstrated a low knowledge of this thematic, but they showed a high insight of their lack. The authors pointed out that medical school education can represent a weak point in future medical doctor knowledge on child abuse and neglect. It also allowed to identify as study sample’s medical students had high awareness of their lacks in this field. In addition, comparison of medical schools from different geographical areas suggested common issues independent of which accreditation system is implemented. Thus – independent of which corrective strategy will be planned – the study highlighted necessity for each medical school to define: its current ability to properly train students in child abuse and neglect; students’ awareness of their level of expertise. This can help schools to identify the most suitable correctives.

Cardio-Respiratory Fitness and Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors Among South African Medical Students.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors have been associated with CVD mortality, and physicians use CVD risk factor profiles (smoking, dyslipidemia, hypertension, etc.) to address patient health. Furthermore, cardio-respiratory fitness (CRF) has been shown to be an independent risk factor for CVD and all-cause mortality. Cardio-respiratory fitness is also the risk factor that contributes the highest percentage to all-cause deaths when compared to other traditional risk factors. In addition, studies have reported that adding CRF to established CVD risk factors improves the precision of prediction for CVD morbidity and mortality. Medical students tend to adopt sedentary and unhealthy lifestyles during the course of their education that negatively affect CVD risk factors and CRF. The majority of research on CVD risk, health status and lifestyle factors of medical students has used self-reported data and questionnaires for CVD risk factors and not included CRF in the health status measurements. In addition, studies have found that future medical doctors' own health and lifestyle practices influence their counselling activities. Allowing future medical doctors to assess their personal CVD risk factors and CRF may thus be important in their use of physical activity counselling with patients' lifestyle management for health benefits and improvement. A descriptive, cross-sectional cohort study design was used with the aim to determine CVD risk factors using CRF measures and physical activity levels in a cohort of South African medical students. The most significant finding was that they were not meeting the PA levels recommended to maintain health and lower CVD risk.

Reliability and Construct Validity on Undergraduate Geriatric Questionnaire

The number of elderly people in Malaysia is increasing in trend due to better healthcare services provided by the government and increased awareness of the community towards disease prevention. Therefore, the knowledge of future medical doctors towards geriatric care should be upgraded at par to fulfill the needs of the older population. As a result, their level of knowledge should be assessed, particularly in terms of the fundamental concept of geriatrics. A new, invented, reliable and valid questionnaire is needed. This study aimed to develop and validate a newly developed questionnaire to assess the knowledge of medical students in geriatrics. The 23 items consist of true-false questions and one-based answer responses based on five domains of Giant I’s geriatric, namely immobility, instability, incontinence, cognition, and iatrogenic. The sample size is calculated using a five-to-one item ratio. The questionnaires were distributed to 143 medical students. Reliability was determined using Cronbach’s alpha for internal consistency, while construct validity was assessed using factor analysis. An acceptable internal consistency was observed (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.62). Factor analysis showed two meaningful finalized components, which represent the geriatric general knowledge and the Giant I’s. According to the findings of this study, this questionnaire is a reliable and valid tool for assessing medical students' knowledge of geriatric.&#x0D; Keywords: Geriatric, Reliability, Construct Validity, Undergraduate Geriatric, Questionnaire

Практическая подготовка: формирование профессиональных компетенций выпускников-педиатров

The modern strategy for the development of medical and pharmaceutical education in the Russian Federation has a practice-oriented approach. In the implementation of this approach when studying at a medical university, it is important not only to form the competencies of future medical doctors among students, but also to form the interest of employers of medical organizations in the training of future specialists. The aim of the study was to analyze the opinions of graduate students of the pediatric faculty and employers of medical and preventive institutions regarding the importance of practical training in the education of highly qualified specialists and solving staffing issues. The research was carried out by a questionnaire method. The findings underscore the importance of practical training, both in the opinion of future doctors and employers. Practical training enables the student to implement theoretical knowledge in practice, creates the clinical thinking of a pediatrician, promotes a smoother transition from student to practicing specialist with the ability to apply theoretical knowledge in his practice. The analysis of employers' opinions revealed difficulties among students in resolving conflict situations and performing emergency aid algorithms. The importance of the target basis of training, which creates mutually beneficial conditions for a young specialist and a medical organization, is noted. The step-by-step acquaintance realized during the target learning framework contributes to solve the problem of staff shortages in the Healthcare of the region.

CONTROL AND CORRECTION OF DISTANCE TRAINING ENGLISH COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE BY FUTURE MEDICAL DOCTORS OF PHILOSOPHY

The article defines main directions of control and correction of the English communicative professional and academic competence, developed by future medical Doctors of Philosophy during their distance studies. The author emphasizes on the importance of shaping the communicative English language competence by future scientists and doctors. The literature review has shown that the theme is poorly studied by other teachers due to its novelty. The author defines that the control and correction part represents as a final component of the method of shaping the English communicative medical and academic competence by future medical Doctors of Philosophy, alongside with the structure-content and technological-processual components. The article analyzes basic difficulties of holding control measures to assess the English communicative specialized competence via distance methods. The author states that the basic constituents of control and correction of the English language communicative professional and academic competences is the initial control, current written control of tasks submitted online and the current control on distance classes online, as well as the summary control. The article describes peculiarities of introduction of each of the structural components, defining the tasks structure and showing examples of the main task types. The author, basing on her own experience, depicts the peculiarities of the initial control of communicative competence level (control of writing, reading, listening as a test control and control of speaking during the interview), and the current control. According to the author’s personal experience, the main types of the tasks for the control of English professional and academic communicative competence have been defined, represented with the tasks of cognitive sphere, practical sphere and the individual component control tasks. The article describes basic types of tasks for checking of the knowledge, skills and abilities: the receptive, reproductive and productive ones, which may be the non-communicative, relatively-communicative and communicative. The author shows that continuous combination of various types of control tasks, and the interactive character of distance training of future medical Doctors of Philosophy provide high effectiveness of teaching the English communicative professional and academic competence.

Methodical e-portfolio as a means of training academic communicative competence of future medical doctors of philosophy

Methodical e-portfolio as a means of training academic communicative competence of future medical doctors of philosophy

Knowledge of Physiotherapy Practice among Medical Interns in a Tertiary Care Hospital: A Descriptive Cross-sectional Study.

Medical doctors have profound influence on other health professions including physiotherapist as they are at the top of the pyramid of healthcare profession. There is a lack of knowledge of physiotherapy among medical doctors. They may not be knowing of all physiotherapy services and practice. The objective of this study was to find adequate knowledge of physiotherapy practice among medical interns in a tertiary care hospital. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on medical interns of a tertiary hospital of Kathmandu between 21st March - 20th May 2021, after taking ethical approval from the Institutional Review Committee. A convenient sampling method was used and sample size was calculated to be 94. A structured questionnaire was used to collect the demographic details and knowledge of Physiotherapy. Data was analyzed using statistical package for the social sciences version 20. Point estimate at 95% Confidence Interval was calculated along with frequency and percentage for binary data. The knowledge of physiotherapy practice was seen adequate among 16 (17%) (95%Confidence Interval = 9.41-24.59) medical interns. Physiotherapy is effective in reducing pain was acknowledged by 89 (97.4 %), 61 (64.9 %) had knowledge about conditions treated by physiotherapy, 55 (58.5 %) had knowledge that physiotherapy treatment follows definite treatment protocol and 26 (27.7 %) had knowledge that exercise prescription is done in physiotherapy. The prevalence of adequate knowledge is less in our study which is similar to other studies done in similar settings. Therefore, there is a need of educating the future medical doctors about physiotherapy, thereby reaching a better patient care.

Inicio / Archivos / Vol. 37 Núm. 2 (2021): Revista Médica del Uruguay / Artículos originales Primera experiencia en Uruguay en enseñanza curricular de resucitación cardíaca avanzada en el Ciclo Internado Rotatorio en el período 2017-2018, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de la República. Comunicación y evaluación

In 2017 the School of Medicine of the University of the Republic included advanced cardiopulmonary resuscitation as a mandatory curricular activity during the rotating internship. The decision is justified by morbility and mortality rates of heart disease, in particular cardiopulmonary arrests and sudden death. Resuscitation courses enable the acquisition of technical and non- technical skills to respond to a prevalent condition and to compensate the absence of this specific training in the training of medical doctors.The study aimed to communicate and evaluate the first experience during the 2017-2018 rotating internship.A transversal study was conducted to analyse the number of participants and the percentage of successful candidates. Likewise, a survey was designed to assess self-perception of skills prior to the course and skills acquired during the course, as well as a course satisfaction.Results revealed the high acceptance rate of this first instance of the course and its positive assessment. Similarly, interns evidenced improvement in their self-perception of identified skills. As to a weaknesses found, the questionnaire used had not been validated and not all Interns completed the assessment, both aspects that will be improved in future assessments.To conclude, we managed to inform about the experience, advanced cardiopulmonary resuscitation courses are an advantage in itself, and it has been a significant advance in the professional training of future medical doctors.

Medical and dental photography – back to the future

Medical photography is a specialized аrea of scientific photography. Its main tasks are documenting a clinical case, medical and surgical procedures, monitoring, diagnostic and treatment processes. Today, digital medical photography is an approved method of documentation, interactive learning, an objective way of clinical research. Medical and dental photography have legal and evidentiary value in a in many countries. Often, compromise lighting and a sterile environment restrict the medical photographer, resulting in lower-quality photographs. Tthis problem has been solved today in medicine and also in dentistry, where appropriate protocols for sterile photodocumentation and informed consent forms have been created. In today’s environment, accompanied by Covid-19 and the need for isolation, the use of medical and dental photography is a relevant, reasonable and supportive alternative method for diagnosis, consultation and treatment. Documentation and analysis are only a small part of what photography offers in medicine. Together with video recording and x-ray imaging, they plays an essential role in the training and postgraduate training of future and current medical doctors and dentists.