Successful medical education requires the highest standard of ethics, mental and physical commitment. It is a labor of love and a sacred duty. Currently, we recognize that residents’ training leaves much to be desired, but we seem unable to identify and put in effect a definitive solution to the problem. In our opinion, there are several parameters that contribute to low quality in resident training. Adam Smith, the founder of economical science, states that specialization, as a component of work distribution, is key to the organization, productivity and success of a developed country [1]. Specialization has ceased long ago to be a novelty in our times and has become a fundamental pillar of our society. In this context, training a medical specialist well is not only a requirement but also a sacred duty to humanity. It seems to be widely acknowledged that the resident training needs quality improvement. People have gone so far as to identify the targets of adequate training and methods of outcome assessment [2]. Yet, the problem remains largely unsolved. Those of us involved in resident training are responsible for shaping the next generation of doctors in our specialty. These are the people who will safeguard the continuity of standards of care that we currently practice and will be faced with the heavy responsibility of improving them. Yet, we do not prepare them adequately. Postulates abound as to the reasons why. Often, the ensuing silence is the norm. Here’s what we think: Reason number one: We are not able to train residents. Few medical instructors are actually certified or licensed by the appointed organizations and licensing bodies. Few instructors are able to teach evidence-based medicine, relying instead mostly on experience and empirical medical practice (the ‘‘it works in my hands’’ approach). In parallel, the astonishing rate by which new diagnostic tests and treatment modalities appear often makes the task of selfupdate daunting. Reason number two: We do not have the time to train residents. Since teaching and training is rarely, if ever, compensated to the level of private practice, a number of skilled clinicians view resident training as ‘‘down time’’ from personal employment. The only motivation for a good instructor would then be a sense of duty to the profession and the personal satisfaction of nurturing and mentoring young colleagues. Unfortunately, in competitive times, the above sentiments are often viewed as Quixotic at best. Reason number three: We are not interested in training residents but we fake it successfully. Lack of recognition or financial incentive for medical educators has created a breed of ‘‘instructors’’ who substitute real teaching by a veneer of agreeable behavior to residents that is not accompanied by any effort to dispel their ignorance. In short, there is the generation of politically correct ‘‘virtual educators’’ who look like the real item but they are not. C. Siristatidis (&) Assisted Reproduction Unit, 3rd Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Athens, Attikon Hospital, 1 Rimini Street, Chaidari, 12462 Athens, Greece e-mail: harrysiri@yahoo.gr
Read full abstract
Sep 1, 2011
Yin Zhu + 1
Open Access