ABSTRACT
Una especialidad médica puede definirse como un conjunto de conocimientos correspondientes a un área específica. Estos conocimientos son adquiridos por medio de estudios de posgrado luego de obtener el título de médico. El propósito de este trabajo es hacer una revisión de las diferentes opciones disponibles en nuestro país para llegar a ser médico especialista en cardiología y, así, tratar de determinar si estos diferentes caminos podrían conducir a formaciones similares y equiparables entre los profesionales. La formación debe entenderse como un proceso de largo alcance a través del cual se modelan el pensamiento y el comportamiento socioprofesional. Este proceso debe ser permanente y debería ser regulado en forma centralizada de modo que permita asegurar la equidad y la homogeneidad en la formación del especialista. Existen diferentes maneras para llegar a ser médico especialista en cardiología, muchas son combinables y todas emplean diversas herramientas de selección, formación, supervisión, evaluación y control. En conclusión, esta heterogeneidad en la forma de instruir y peritar al especialista podría devenir en diferentes niveles de profesionales formados.
A medical specialty may be defined as the body of knowledge corresponding to a specific medical field. This knowledge is provided by postgraduate training programs after completing the medical doctor degree. The goal of the present study is to review the different options available in our country to become a specialist in cardiology and, thus, determine if these diverse pathways produce equally trained cardiologists. Training should be understood as a long-term process that shapes professional thinking and social behavior. This process must be permanent and should have core regulations to ensure equal and homogenous training in the specialty. There are many ways of becoming a specialist in cardiology; most of these pathways may be combined and all of them use different tools for selecting, training, supervising, evaluating and controlling trainees. Thus, these differences in training and evaluating specialists might produce professionals with different levels of competencies.
ABSTRACT
Background In our country, training in cardiology is achieved by participating in residency programs, attending a hospital cardiology unit or taking university courses. On the basis of comments from teachers giving classes in the SAC Biennial Course about certain kind of deficit in basic areas of the specialty among cardiology residents attending the course, we decided to investigate their knowledge in cardiovascular anatomy, physiology, physical diagnosis, pharmacology and clinical cardiology after 1 or 2 years of training in Internal Medicine or Cardiology residency programs, respectively. Objective To evaluate the knowledge in basic areas in cardiology among residents attending the UBA Biennial Cardiology Course given by the Argentine Society of Cardiology. Material and Methods We conducted an observational, cross-sectional study. A questionnaire was designed with 50 multiple choice questions, divided in three subjects: Subject A, 17 questions about cardiovascular anatomy, physiology, pathophysiology and pharmacology; Subject B, 15 questions about clinical cardiology, physical diagnosis and electrocardiography; and Subject C, 17 questions regarding medical practice and cardiological clinical syndromes. The questionnaire was answered by residents either initiating the course (Group 1) or who were attending the second year (Group 2). Results In the general exam, Group 1 (n=63) had a median of 29/50 right answers (58%) and Group 2 (n=57) 30/50 (60%). There were no significant differences between both groups (p=0.21). The performance in Subject A was significantly lower compared to Subjects B and C in both groups. Conclusion The level of knowledge in basic areas of cardiology among residents is considered insufficient, with greatest deficits in cardiovascular anatomy, physiology, pathophysiology and pharmacology. It is necessary to revise the program of the Biennial Course and to analyze the opportunities of learning and reflection offered by the residency program.