article · BMC Medical Education
Medical education authorities in Egypt introduced a major national reform to address the gap between medical training and community healthcare expectations. Initiated in 2017, the policy mandated all medical schools to transition their undergraduate curricula from outcome-based to competency-based systems aligned with updated national standards. Alongside this curricular shift, the overall timeline of medical programmes was restructured from six years of study and one year of internship to a five-year study period followed by two years of internship. The reform process included an initial baseline evaluation, a nationwide awareness drive, and extensive professional development programmes for faculty members. Implementation was tracked across institutions using surveys, field visits, and structured consultations with students, educators, and programme leaders, navigating both anticipated operational obstacles and disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Updating medical education models is critical to preparing future doctors for the evolving needs of healthcare systems. By shifting towards competency-based frameworks and extending practical internship training, this nationwide initiative provides a structured template for systemic educational reform and faculty development that other developing countries can study when modernising their medical workforces.
The abstract does not indicate an application pathway or potential for commercialisation, as it describes a state-mandated educational policy reform.
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Medical educators are in a continuous quest to close the gap between the needs of medical practice and the rising expectations of the communities in their countries. During the past two decades, competency-based medical education has been evolving as an appealing strategy to close this gap. In 2017, the Egyptian medical education authorities mandated all medical schools to change their curricula to comply with revised national academic reference standards, which changed from outcome-based to competency-based. In parallel, they also changed the timeline of all medical programs for six years of studentship and one-year internship to five years and two years, respectively. This substantial reform involved the assessment of the existing situation, an awareness campaign for the proposed changes and an extensive national faculty development program. Monitoring the implementation of this substantial reform was performed through surveys, field visits and meetings with students, teaching staff and program directors. In addition to the expected challenges, the COVID-19-associated restrictions presented a significant further challenge during the implementation of this reform. This article presents the rationale for and steps of this reform, the challenges faced and how they were addressed.
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DOI: 10.1186/s12909-023-04098-3
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