PROBLEM-BASED MEDICAL-EDUCATION - DEVELOPMENT OF A THEORETICAL FOUNDATION AND A SCIENCE-BASED PROFESSIONAL ATTITUDE

Problem-based learning, combined with early patient contact, integrati on between different subject areas, elements of multiprofessional educ ation, and special emphasis on the development of communications skill s has become the basis for the medical curriculum at the Faculty of He alth Sciences in Linkoping. Critics have questioned the depth of the s cientific and theoretical aspects of the curriculum. Through a series of specific measures in the organization of the curriculum and examina tions, and due to the pedagogical principles involved per se, our clai m is that students graduating at Linkoping do possess the required the oretical knowledge and a scientific attitude to the practice of medici ne, at least equivalent to that obtained in a more conventional medica l curriculum. One such specific measure is that all students perform o ne field study and two scientific studies during the course of the cur riculum. An investigation of student opinions regarding the value of p erforming scientific projects of their own have shown that these proje cts have had a positive impact on the students' general scientific att itude and their willingness to engage in future scientific work. The s pecific skills acquired, as confirmed by oral examinations, were large ly determined by the scientific nature of the chosen field of study. O ur graduates have not yet progressed far enough in their careers for c omparisons to be made on the basis of the Swedish Licensing Board Inte rnship Examinations, but continuing evaluations of students, graduates and licensed doctors emerging from the curriculum will provide future evi-dence as to whether our present evaluation is correct.