A discussion of medical ethics in the medical curriculum reviews its recent history, examines areas of consensus, and describes teaching objectives and methods, course content, and program evaluation at preclinical and clinical levels. Prerequisites for successful institutionalization of medical ethics education are defined, and its future is…

A national survey of medical schools (n=120) investigated the extent and design of organized training for students preparing for overseas rotations. Only 22 percent offered formal training in international health care, but many had other options, most interdisciplinary. Overall, the training provided was found to be inadequate. (MSE)

A survey of residents (N=323) in 6 internal medicine programs investigated the topics students wanted included in the medical ethics curriculum and by which of 17 methods they would prefer to be taught. About three-fourths had previous medical ethics instruction, and most wanted more on specific topics, especially legal and end-of-life issues.…

A survey of 882 medical school faculty serving as problem-based learning (PBL) tutors found that most felt that PBL and traditional curricula were approximately equally efficient for learning; PBL rated higher in student interest, faculty interest, personal satisfaction, student reasoning, and preparation for clinical rotations; and traditional…

A survey of 97 medical schools found 65 percent offer instruction in patient health education and 74 percent offer instruction in community health promotion. A number of departments participate, and diverse methods of instruction and evaluation are used. Respondents favored such instruction but identified time constraints as an obstacle.…

A national survey of 82 medical schools concerning curriculum and instruction on homosexuality found mean instruction time of 3 hours 26 minutes, with significant geographic variation. The most common strategy was lectures in human sexuality, followed distantly by panel presentations and interaction with gays and lesbians. Integration of the topic…

A Dutch study compared the clinical diagnostic skills of 612 medical students educated at schools with problem-based, integrated, or conventional curricula. Students responded to 30 case histories epidemiologically representative of Dutch society and all organ systems. Students trained within problem-based and integrated curricula made more…

A study compared the performances of Wake Forest University (North Carolina) medical students rotating through an internal medicine program, 88 in a problem-based curriculum and 364 in a lecture-based curriculum. Students in the problem-based curriculum received significantly higher ratings from house staff and faculty on four clinical rating…

The annual, peer-reviewed collection of reports on innovative approaches to medical education includes 72 brief reports of teaching techniques and approaches, categorized by their emphasis on students, technology use, development of professional skills/attitudes, teaching and assessment strategies, graduate medical education, and continuing…

Reflects on the collective experiences of eight medical schools participating in a large-scale medical curriculum development project, highlighting lessons learned over five years and commenting on issues of leadership, governance, communication, faculty development, curriculum integration, instructional methods, student assessment, and program…