‘Medical study needs to be revamped’

Medical education in India needs an urgent revamp to equip doctors with life-long learning skills so they can keep up with the exponential expansion in knowledge in healthcare.

Medical education in India needs an urgent revamp to equip doctors with life-long learning skills so they can keep up with the exponential expansion in knowledge in healthcare.

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Traditional medical college curriculum offers a vast body of knowledge on basic science that is not integrated to the clinical context. “New learnings are rapidly being translated into treatment... Instead of using the current lecture format, the curriculum should limit teaching to basic sciences and equip students with tools for self-learning to help them harness new knowledge,” said Dr Vinay Kumar, professor and chairman of the Department of Pathology, and executive vice-dean of the Division of Biologic Sciences, University of Chicago.

“Instead of overburdening the student with content information, medical students should be given a roadmap of learning objectives and its clinical application,” said Dr Kumar, who was in Delhi to make a presentation on evolving curriculum in medical schools across the world.

“The Medical Council of India is actively working to include integrated competencies in the basic science and clinical modules in medical education,” said an MCI official.