ABSTRACT
Background: Since January 2005, a new model for hospital coordinated assistance was implanted in Chile, denominated Self Managed Hospitals in net, to improve resource use effectiveness and effciency. This new design changed health care and teaching models. Aim: To analyze, understand and to refect on how teachers and students of the Urology Unit of the Eastern Campus of the Faculty of Medicine in the University of Chile, perceive learning in this new hospital scenario. Material and Methods: A qualitative methodology was used, including semi-structured interviews to chief teachers and focal groups of teachers and students. Also, a written structured questionnaire was answered by a group of 5th year students and interns. Results: University teachers perceive that undergraduate learning is affected in the new hospital scenario. Students think that they have less opportunities to directly interact with patients, and therefore have fewer possibilities to take medical histories, perform physical examinations, and fewer occasions to discuss cases with their tutors. Conclusions: The new health system that runs hospitals under a network could jeopardize undergraduate teaching. This is the case for the Urology Service at Hospital and the corresponding Department of Specialties, where the dominant perception of teachers and a number of students is that their clinical learning is endangered by these innovations. To obtain the learning objectives of the undergraduate program in this subject, reorientation of their ambulatory practice and derivation skills must be rationally elaborated to improve students accomplishment.