Future of Medical Education Journal
Year:2020 | Volume:10 | Issue:2|Papers Count:10

Background: One of the most important factors in assessing the success of a health system reform plan is the periodic review of health care providers’ satisfaction. Hence, this study was conducted to evaluate the clinical faculty members’ satisfaction with the implementation of the health system reform plan in Iran. Methods: This research is a descriptive and cross-sectional study. The research population of this study included all clinical faculty members employed in the university, 90 of whom were randomly included in this study. A 13-item researcher-made questionnaire was used to assess their satisfaction. Descriptive statistics (mean, standard deviation, and percentage) and inferential statistics were used for data analysis in SPSS 22 software. Results: The mean score of general satisfaction was 56% (0. 56± 2. 17). The highest dissatisfaction was related to the way of payment of salaries and benefits (93. 4%), and the highest satisfaction was related to work hours and work shifts after implementation of the health system reform plan (16. 7%) compared to the past. In addition, variables of age (P = 0. 019) and type of employment (P = 0. 027) of clinical faculty members had a significant impact on their satisfaction with the implementation of the health system reform plan. However, the effect of other variables was not significant (P <0. 05). Conclusion: Based on the results of this study, the satisfaction of clinical faculty members with the implementation of the health system reform plan in Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences was at a relatively undesirable level. It is necessary to pay more attention to the dimensions in which people had the highest dissatisfaction in future planning aiming at periodically monitoring this plan and resolving potential problems.

Background: Quality of education plays a key role in the development of education. Having this perspective in mind, the researchers explored the quality of English for specific purpose (ESP) courses from ESP instructors’ point of views and investigated the role of quality of education of ESP courses in information-seeking behavior of the students. They also probed the possible relationship between ESP instructors’ reflective practice and quality of ESP courses. Methods: Seventy-nine ESP instructors were given the researcher-made quality of education in ESP and the English language teaching reflection inventories. At the end of the term, 317 nursing students received an information-seeking behavior questionnaire. To consolidate the findings of the students’ questionnaire, 15 volunteer students were interviewed. Results: Based on the findings, the quality of ESP courses as reported by ESP instructors was poor. As the responses to the questionnaire of quality of education in ESP revealed, the instructors reported that they do not have sufficient information on subject matters, as well as the content of the lessons is neither updated nor motivating. It was also reported that not all language skills are included in the course content and at the same time the teacher-centered courses are not communicative. It was also found that there was a significant correlation between TEFL instructors’ reflective practice and the quality of ESP courses. In addition, a significant correlation was seen between quality of education of ESP courses and informationseeking behavior of the students. Conclusion: Based on the findings, the instructors’ reflective practice was poor and the quality of the ESP courses was not satisfactory either. Perhaps, such conditions have led the instructors not to encourage their students to use other available ESP or English language teaching resources other than their course books. The findings have implications for ESP curriculum development and ESP teachers.

Background: The purpose of this study was to identify differences and similarities in teachers' and students’ viewpoints about the factors affecting evaluation. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 70 teachers and 148 students (34. 86 % females and 65. 13 males) of Tabriz University of Medical Sciences were selected by convenience sampling. Data were gathered using a questionnaire which included demographic characteristics of teachers and students, separately. For comparing opinions of teachers and students in four general factors, mean and standard deviation were calculated. Results: There was no significant difference between the mean score of students' and teachers' viewpoints considering factors related to teachers' individual-personality characteristics and theoretical-clinical conditions of education. But a significant difference was observed between their mean score regarding factors related to practical course and educational activities. Conclusion: According to results, teacher's educational activities were considered as the most effective factors.

Background: Assessing students’ clinical performance is one of the most difficult tasks of faculty members. Logbook is one of the most effective methods for educational assessment. The aim of the present study was to assess the efficacy of logbook from the viewpoints of Ahvaz dental students and faculty members of Oral and Maxillofacial Medicine department. Methods: The present cross-sectional study was conducted on the 70 students and six faculty members of Department of Oral and Maxillofacial medicine, School of Dental Medicine, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences. The questionnaire obtained from the previous studies and included four areas of necessity, quality, format, and implementation process and the way of completing the logbook. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistical analysis, independent t-test, and SPSS ver. 18. Results: The viewpoint of faculty members regarding the four features of logbook and the overall view of the logbook was more than those of students. However, no significant difference was found between the viewpoint of students and faculty members. 50. 7% of the students and more than 50% of the faculties considered the use of the logbook necessary to ensure consistent educational standards in clinical training. They also showed that the logbook meets all 50% of the educational standards both in format and implementation process. Conclusion: Faculty members and students showed a positive view toward using logbooks, but positive overall view of the faculty members was more than those of students. Therefore, reviewing the logbook is not necessary, but more familiarity with the logbook content seems to be important.

Background: The traditional medicine is an integral part of the Iranian culture. Since Birjand dental school presented traditional medicine course for dental students for the first time in Iran, this study aimed to evaluate dental students' viewpoints about traditional medicine course. Methods: After approving optional traditional medicine course for dental students in Birjand University of medical sciences, Birjand dentistry students' viewpoints were evaluated in two separate semesters through an open ended questionnaire which its validity and reliability were confirmed. The questionnaire was designed on a five-point Likert scale. The mean of scores for each question and the mean of student scores on all 16 questions were calculated and through comparing with median, positive or negative viewpoints were evaluated. Results: In the first and second runs of course, only two questions (teachers' mastery on the content and student satisfaction from final exam) scored above the median. In the first run of the course and totally in” student's willingness to repass course” the students acquired the least score. All of mean students’ score for sum of 16 questions were less than 3 in two runs of the course. Students were generally dissatisfied with the inappropriate timing of classes, the high amounts of content, the impracticality of the subjects, and the lack of relevance to the field of dentistry. Conclusion: All dentistry students had negative viewpoints to traditional medicine course in this form. It is recommended that it should be provided to dental students in a more practical way and as workshops.

Background: In this article "Student to Staff Index" was improved by implying student grades and staff academic ranks in every institute as a new "Standard Student to Staff Index". Also "Student from Staff Utilized Index" was introduced for controlling and ranking the private universities. Methods: This index uses the numbers of classes and students attended in each class, and also the grade of the staff and their teaching hours during each semester or academic year, and are presented as a descriptive study. Results: Data for calculation of these indexes were used from two universities of non-private and private using mostly wide range of specialist teachers as part-time or fee staff. The SSU Index of these two institutes for BSc students and assistant professors were respectively 1. 14 and 1. 33. Conclusions: The results showed that the institutions can use more staff via invited part-time and hence select those with expert knowledge and more specialization. Utilizing Student (BSc. ) to Staff (assist. Prof. ) Index showed that it can be used for comparing and ranking of educational situation or qualifying the educational services in universities.

Background: Clinical education is the most critical component of surgical technology and anesthesiology student’ s education. Therefore, this study was designed to determine the amendable challenges and barriers of clinical education from the viewpoints of operating room and anesthesia students and clinical instructors. Methods: In this descriptive cross-sectional study, 132 students (surgical technology and anesthesiology) and 17 clinical instructors of Sari Allied School were selected by consensus method. Data collection was performed using the Demographic and researchermade questionnaire about the amendable challenges and barriers of clinical education. Data were analyzed by SPSS software version 20. Results: From the viewpoints of students, the most challenge and barrier was “ lack of suitable space for clinical education” . Also, the most amendable barriers were “ lack of clinical educators” . From the clinical educators’ perspective, the most challenges and barriers to clinical education were respectively; a large number of students in the ward and low motivation of students for teaching. Conclusion: The challenges and obstacles that can be corrected in clinical education from the perspective of surgical technology and anesthesiology students were the lack of instructors in the clinic. And from the point of view of clinical educators, there were a large number of students in the clinic; however, there was less motivation for students to learn. It is necessary to improve the quality of clinical education in these two fields and improve education.

Background: Nurses are the largest group of medical caregivers in the world. Having highly capable nurses in a healthcare system is directly associated with more favorable outcomes for patients. The rapid development of new medical procedures and equipment necessitates constantly developing new skills and competencies. Thus one of the effective means towards their efficient training is to identify and assess their educational needs. The purpose of this investigation is to study educational needs of nurses by ISO 10015 method. Methods: A descriptive survey research was designed surveying all of the nursing staff of Razi Hospital of Torbat Heydarieh. At the first stage of the study, necessary competencies and skills were identified using two methods of Delphi and job analysis, and then educational needs assessment was done according to ISO 10015 steps. The tools used were researcher designed questionnaires and their reliability and validity were tested by achieving a Cronbach's alpha of 83. 9%, and by content validity method, respectively. Data analysis was done using version 16 of SPSS software. Results: Three hundred and sixty-one skills were identified and were categorized into three categories of general (48 skills), specialized (303 skills), and management (10 skills). Nurses had acceptable competencies in 312 of the identified skills, while there were educational and structural gaps found in 8 general, 36 specialized and 5 management skills, as well as the solutions to overcome the gaps were proposed by a group of experts. At the end, 7 general, 33 specialized and 5 management skills were identified and recorded as knowledge gaps. Conclusion: In this study we found out that the specialized skills are the most important educational needs (ABG interpretation, ventilator settings, and cardiac arrhythmias for nurses; and staff and patients’ needs assessment for head nurses) followed by general nursing skills (hemovigilance), and management skills (quality management). The identified knowledge gaps were considered in planning for the future trainings of the study population.

As a historical era, postmodernism signifies transition from inflexible and logical positivism and it is considered as an entry into a new view to science (1). Postmodernism offers a number of nursing practice revises including humanism, conditions, borderless, multi-voice, view, multicultural world, changes in meaning of knowledge, and life-long learning (2). Demographic changes, technological advances, ethnic and cultural diversity, poverty, and other issues have thus encountered nursing profession more than before with demanding challenges in the field of health care services (3). I personally believe that nurses’ philosophical thinking can have significant effects on development of patient care programs. Under the influence of postmodern assumptions, nursing care can also put emphasis on plurality, respect for cultural and individual differences, relativism of truth or reality, constructive discourse, different views to special knowledge, positioning, as well as listening to different voices. Besides, postmodernists reject traditional truth and any kind of centralism and work against consideration of a central truth in life. A postmodern nurse believes that humans possess an assortment of worldviews and they are additionally endowed with different perspectives of their own experiences. Postmodernists disapprove positivism and define it as a context stripper i. e. a significant negligence of interactions between humans and their surrounding environment. Accordingly, it can be assumed that, in this point of view, nurses are not able to ignore their surrounding environment for the reason that clinical circumstances are often unsystematic and chaotic and they are in the form of extracted, multiple, and almost uncontrollable interactions (4). In the era of postmodernism, knowledge, science and even images of nursing, health, human, and environment represent themselves as numerous realities. Therefore, the reality of postmodernism for nursing is an extensive one without any limits including extraction of horizon of meaning, importance of authority, personality traits, ethics, carerelated communication, environment, sustainability, aesthetics, and interpretation. Therefore, postmodernism has achieved significant findings in nursing profession such as strengthening arguments, accepting alternative medicine, creating diversity in treatment methods, highlighting spirituality, ethics, and globalization of nursing, eradicating marginalization, as well as taking account of ethnic and cultural minorities. Postmodernism also draws attention to sociocultural and economic consequences as well as other factors involved in knowledge (5, 6). Ultimately, it can be concluded that concentration on philosophical foundations of nursing is of utmost importance in this field. With respect to demographic diversity in today’ s communities, postmodern nursing care is also evolving. In this kind of nursing care, differences are considered as positive, respectful, and acceptable ones and there is no superiority. Moreover, nurses cast doubt on authority of science, pay attention to others, give value to differences, go up against dominant culture, as well as they support minorities, public culture, regionalization, and localization.

Coronavirus pandemic has caused extensive changes in various fields. Education is one challenging and necessary dimension to be paid attention by policymakers and considered as a necessity. Due to changes in the methods and styles of providing medical education from face-to-face to virtual training, and due to its novelty in our country and several challenges ahead, it is necessary to take measures an effective support for better performance of students so that they can monitor their movement to achieve excellent training goals. This will be gained by supporting students’ performances and creating appropriate scaffolds for them. This article covers the needs for scaffolding, the manner and challenges and the related reasons. Also the necessity to be involved in teacher's activities is emphasized so that the quality of education at the present time may be improved.