COMMUNIQUé - College of Medicine - University of Saskatchewan

The Future
of Medical Education in Canada
The U of S College of Medicine ushered in a new era of
undergraduate medical education on January 28th, 2010 during
the national launch of the report: The Future of Medical Education
in Canada (FMEC): A Collective Vision for MD Education. The
Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada (AFMC) report is
the first comprehensive study of medical doctor (MD) education in
North America since the Flexner Report was issued 100 years ago.
The 30 month FMEC project spear-headed by AFMC examined
how the education programs leading to the medical doctor
degree in Canada can best respond to society’s evolving needs
and is rooted in the AFMC’s articulated social accountability
mission for medical schools. The social accountability piece
is especially relevant for our College of Medicine, as we are
emerging as a national leader on this front. In fact, Dr. Ryan Meili,
Chair of the College’s Social Accountability Committee, will give
a presentation on the C.A.R.E. model employed by our College
during a plenary session at the annual AFMC Conference next
May. The session is intended to provide other faculties with
an overview of how our College of Medicine has incorporated
social accountability programming into various aspects of our
curriculum and the successes we have achieved in doing so.
Changing medical education to optimize healthcare delivery and
improve health status for all Canadians is the stated goal of the FMEC
project. As such, the report contains ten recommendations and five
enabling recommendation for medical schools. Each of the 17 Canadian
Faculties of Medicine will embrace the recommendations in this report
in its own unique way. Our College’s Dean, Dr. Albritton, envisions
the recommendations enhancing work that is currently underway,
specifically focusing on addressing individual and community needs,
diversifying learning
contexts, valuing
generalism, and
advancing inter- and
intra- professional
practice.
“For us, these
recommendations
strengthen the
vision we have
for serving
the people of
Saskatchewan.
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Recommendations and Leadership
1. Address Individual and
Community Needs
– Dr. Tom Smith-Windsor
Social responsibility and accountability
are core values underpinning the roles
of Canadian physicians and Faculties
of Medicine. This commitment
means that both individually and
collectively, physicians and faculties
must work to respond to the diverse
needs of individuals and communities
throughout Canada, as well as meeting
international responsibilities to the
global community.
2. Enhance Admissions Processes
– Dr. Barry Ziola
Given the broad range of attitudes,
values, and skills required of
physicians, Faculties of Medicine
must enhance admissions processes
to include assessment of key values
and personal characteristics of future
physicians such as communication,
interpersonal and collaborative skills,
a range of professional interests, as
well as cognitive ability. Additionally, in
order to achieve the desired diversity
in our physician workforce, Faculties
of Medicine must recruit, select,
and support a representative mix of
medical students.
3. Build on the Scientific Basis of
Medicine – Dr. Nick Ovsenek
Given that medicine is rooted in
fundamental scientific principles, both
human and biological sciences must
be learned in relevant and immediate
clinical contexts throughout the MD
Education experience. In addition, as
scientific inquiry provides the basis
for advancing healthcare, research
interests and skills must be developed
to foster a new generation of health
researchers.
4. Promote Prevention & Public
Health – Dr. Nazeem Muhajarine
Promoting a healthy Canadian
population requires a multifaceted
approach engaging the full continuum
of health and healthcare. Faculties of
Medicine have a critical role to play in
enabling this requirement and must
therefore enhance the integration
of prevention and public health
competencies to a greater extent in
the MD Education curriculum.
5. Address the Hidden Curriculum
– Dr. Penny Davis
The hidden curriculum is a “set of
influences that function at the level of
organizational structure and culture,”
affecting the nature of learning,
professional interactions, and clinical
practice. Faculties of Medicine must
therefore ensure that the hidden
curriculum is regularly identified
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6 C O M M U N I Q U É College of Medicine • University of Saskatchewan