The University of British Columbia’s Faculty of Medicine has won
approval for the most sweeping changes to its undergraduate curriculum
since the medical school opened its doors in 1950.
When members of the Class of 2001 enter UBC this August their courses
will have a new emphasis on ethics, social issues, critical thinking
and computer and communications skills.
Courses will use a problem-based learning approach that integrates
basic sciences and clinical studies to resemble real life situations
more closely.
The new curriculum, which will also be taught to first- and second-year
dentistry students, is a response to changes within the medical
profession and in society as a whole, says Dr. Andrew Chalmers,
associate dean of undergraduate curriculum.
“The old curriculum served us well, but dramatic changes in scientific
knowledge, rising expectations in an era of decreasing resources
and advances in our understanding of how adults learn have impelled
us to make changes,” he says.
As well as a firm grounding in the basic sciences, students can
expect some of these innovations:
- breast cancer survivors will teach students how to break bad
news to patients - multiple sclerosis sufferers will invite students into their
homes to learn what it is like to live with a chronic illness - aboriginal health issues will receive special attention, and
alternative and complementary medicine will be examined in their
cultural context - a new course called Doctor, Patient and Society will deal with
issues of population health, health care systems, ethics and the
doctor-patient relationship
The new curriculum is the culmination of a process that began in
1992 with external reviews and surveys of students, graduates and
faculty members, Chalmers says.
A key aspect is its case-based course work, which is an approach
to learning already adopted at most North American medical schools.
Until now, UBC has taken a traditional approach that focused for
the first two years on basic sciences such as anatomy and biochemistry
taught independently by different academic departments.
“The amount of basic science taught was significant and not focused
on clinical issues. Students sometimes forgot how to apply it in
the clinic. Our new approach is a student-centred curriculum rather
than a faculty-centred one,” Chalmers says.
Working in small groups, students will learn the fundamentals as
they apply to particular cases. They will be encouraged to define
what they need to know and go to experts, the library and the Internet
to find and appraise the information.
“If students learn the basic science in the context of a clinical
setting, they will be much more likely to understand and retain
that knowledge,” Chalmers says, adding that there will still be
labs and lectures where they are appropriate.
The new curriculum drew praise from the newly appointed Dean of
Medicine John Cairns, who is the former chair of Medicine at McMaster
University.
“I have observed the strengths of the small group, student-oriented
problem- and systems-based approach at McMaster for the past 20
years. The new UBC curriculum takes many steps beyond this. It will
capitalize on UBC’s recognized strengths and will become the most
modern and forward-looking medical undergraduate curriculum in Canada,”
he says.
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