medical education

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COVID-19 has had a significant impact on internal medicine training in the UK. Many unprecedented changes have been made to prioritise the care of affected patients. The medical workforce was re-shaped, training programmes were disrupted, Membership of the Royal College of Physicians (MRCP) examinations were cancelled and their format changed on re-commencement, teaching programmes were suspended and delivery methods amended, out of programme (OOP) opportunities deferred, non-COVID related research halted, trainee progression impacted and trainee mental health and wellbeing suffered.

Background Simulation via Instant Messaging – Birmingham Advance (SIMBA) aimed to improve clinicians’ confidence in managing various clinical scenarios during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods Five SIMBA sessions were conducted between May and August 2020. Each session included simulation of scenarios and interactive discussion. Participants’ self-reported confidence, acceptance, and relevance of the simulated cases were measured.

Background Previous research has demonstrated that medical students have insufficient knowledge of critical appraisal, a fundamental aspect of evidence-based medicine. We aimed to enhance medical students’ critical appraisal skills using an innovative mixed-methods programme.

Background The Academic Foundation Programme (AFP) is the first step of the UK’s national integrated clinical academic pathway; however, the application process can be unclear. We evaluated webinars as a teaching medium to enhance knowledge and confidence of prospective applicants.

Background This study explores the importance of various factors upon the overall satisfaction of Core Medical Trainees (CMTs) in the Yorkshire and Humber Deanery to aid targeting of improvement efforts.

Medical education has evolved considerably from didactic and lecture-based to self-directed, especially with the rise of online platforms. While large organisations may commission or create entire customised courses for online learning, the individual teacher has a more modest and immediately accessible tool with which to disseminate information to students and other learners: blogging.

Background Academic medicine is crucial for healthcare advancement. However, recruitment of junior doctors into academia remains an area of concern globally. In the UK, a national integrated clinical academic pathway was developed to address these issues, with the Academic Foundation Programme as the ‘first opportunity for research’. We aimed to evaluate whether a focused course on academic medicine could enhance knowledge, confidence and preparedness of candidates wishing to apply for an academic programme.

The arts and humanities were allowed into the British medical curriculum in 1993 when the General Medical Council re-structured it in a paper entitled ‘Tomorrow’s Doctors’. Since then many medical schools have developed humanities modules and the broad term ‘medical humanities’ refers to these. They can contribute to medical education in at least three ways: as a supplement to what is already in the curriculum, especially for ethics and communication; as an outside critique of medical practice; and to personal and professional development.