مجله ایرانی آموزش در علوم پزشکی
سال:1379 | دوره:1 | شماره:2 (پیاپی 2) |تعداد مقالات:8

Introduction. In order to improve planning, educational methodology, and evaluation in medical education, well-proportioned, exact and prospective programs are needed.Without doubt, the main changes in medical education programs have resulted from researches performed in this area during the last decades.Revision of medical education in Iran began by the Cultural Revolution Council by order of Imam Khomeini in 1981. The medical group of the Council revised the aims and plans of medical education and suggested a unified Ministry of Health and Medical Education.Methods. Searching in the National Medical Papers Collection performed across two periods, (1979 till 1993 and 1994 till 1998) showed that 9981 papers have been published during 20 years; more than half of them belong to the last five years and 83% to the last 10 years. Articles related to research in medical education were extracted and their sources and studied subjects were categorized.Results. Fifty-six papers were published during the studied 20 years period; 64 percent of these articles were presented within the last 5 years. The frequency of papers was higher in the fields of “Aim and planning” and “Student”.Discussion. Research development in medical education needs special planning in which the importance of research and its role in self-improvement, independency and country development are defined. It should use existing abilities in order to grow creative powers in a suitable way. The resources of such reforming activity are available in Education Development Centers of the Universities of Medical Sciences in Iran.

It has been proposed that we think of continuing medical education (CME) as a two-stranded helix, in which one strand represents the internal characteristics of the learner-physician, the other strand the culture and environment in which he or she practices and lives. In many countries, the product of these two strands has been increasingly termed ‘continuing professional development’, (CPD). This model holds implications for CME providers and programs of maintenance of competence: what we know about lifelong, self-directed learning (SDL) and the role of culture, environment and setting on learning.This paper proposes an expanded role for CME or CPD providers, constructed on an understanding of self-directed learning, the environment or setting in which physicians work, and, on the evidence about effective CME methods. Finally, these concepts will provide a springboard to describe an idealized or conceptualized vision of the role of the CME provider - the third strand in a triple helix - building on self-directed learning, expanding the definition of maintenance of competence and attempting to effect optimal health care.

Background. The necessity of identifying talented students to develop appropriate programs to educate them is well recognized. Special programs for talented students were started in Isfahan University of Medical Sciences in year 2000. This study analyses academic achievement of talented students before attending these programs, and compares them to those who are not considered as talented.Methods. Through a retrospective cohort study students admitted in the university in either 1997 or 1998 were categorized as ”talented” and "non-talented" based on the criteria employed by National Organization for Educational Measurement. The two groups were matched according to their courses of study, number of passed units, and the semesters passing the corresponding units. From each student’s file, the total average, average of each semester, and the courses of study were extracted.Results. There were 73 talented (36 female and 37 male) and 401 non-talented students. Of talented students, 50 were studying medicine and 23 were studying dentistry. With increment of passed semesters, term averages were decreased. The slope of average decrements among talented students was not significantly different from that of "non-talented" ones.Conclusion. Although term average is not the only criterion for assessment of academic achievement, it seems that current University programs were not effective to improve academic achievement of talented students ,or at least , maintain their status.

World action in medical education, notably the global programs of the World Federation for Medical Education, the Edinburgh Declaration of 1988 and the 1993 World Summit, has led to major curricular change in medical schools. For educational reform to result in improved health services of nations, an essential requirement is integration between the medical education system and the health care delivery systems of countries.Particular countries have been viewed as models of such integration: Cuba, Thailand and latterly Iran. The Iranian system of integration between the health care services and the health education sector, regarded as a model for other countries, is of the greatest interest internationally. The progress of the Iran initiative is watched with keen attention by medical educators and health care managers worldwide. This interest requires that Iranian medical education projects and experiments be reported in the world literature, and for facilitation of visits through the fostering of international cooperation. Iran is expected to contribute significantly by example to the global movement now taking place.