Medical education in cyberspace: Critical considerations in the health system

Introduction: Over the past few decades, two revolutionary approaches have emerged as a new form of medical education: Electronic Medical Education and Web-based Medical Education. A number of well-known medical institutions, such as Harvard and Johns Hopkins used a wide range of cyberspace capabilities to increase their competitiveness. Researchers have expressed that cyberspace will change health system's main objective of training physicians and medical education. We conducted this study to identify the health system critical considerations on core issues, involving the development of medical education on cyberspace

Methods: In order to conduct this study, we observed the steps of a critical literature review, combined with the 'Four-phase method' adopted by Carnwell and Daly. We focused on particular literature on health and cyber system functions; it was associated with systemic approach

Results: We developed a six-level taxonomy, Cyber level, Governance level, Ministerial level, Organizational level, Program level and Performance level, as a key solution that can be applied for the success of medical education on cyberspace. The results were summarized and appraised in more details

Conclusion: Medical education on cyberspace is a complex interdisciplinary system. It is important that all aspects of the health systems be involved as integral to the development of cyber based medical education; without this convergence, we will be confused by the decisions made by others within the system. Health system should also communicate with those external sectors that are critical to achieving better learning on cyberspace. Integrated planning, governance and management of medical education in cyberspace are pivotal elements for the promotion

System based practice: a concept analysis

Introduction: Systems-Based Practice [SBP] is one of the six competencies introduced by the ACGME for physicians to provide high quality of care and also the most challenging of them in performance, training, and evaluation of medical students. This concept analysis clarifies the concept of SBP by identifying its components to make it possible to differentiate it from other similar concepts. For proper training of SBP and to ensure these competencies in physicians, it is necessary to have an operational definition, and SBP's components must be precisely defined in order to provide valid and reliable assessment tools

Methods: Walker and Avant's approach to concept analysis was performed in eight stages: choosing a concept, determining the purpose of analysis, identifying all uses of the concept, defining attributes, identifying a model case, identifying borderline, related, and contrary cases, identifying antecedents and consequences, and defining empirical referents

Results: Based on the analysis undertaken, the attributes of SBP includes knowledge of the system, balanced decision between patients' need and system goals, effective role playing in interprofessional health care team, system level of health advocacy, and acting for system improvement. System thinking and a functional system are antecedents and system goals are consequences. A case model, as well as border, and contrary cases of SBP, has been introduced

Conclusion: The identification of SBP attributes in this study contributes to the body of knowledge in SBP and reduces the ambiguity of this concept to make it possible for applying it in training of different medical specialties. Also, it would be possible to develop and use more precise tools to evaluate SBP competency by using empirical referents of the analysis

Interprofessional education in the integrated medical education and health care system: a content analysis

Introduction: The current literature supports the inclusion of inter-professional education in healthcare education. Changes in the structure and nature of the integrated medical education and healthcare system provide some opportunities for interprofessional education among various professions. This study is an attempt to determine the perceptions of students and faculty members about interprofessional education in the context of the medical education and healthcare system

Methods: This qualitative content analysis study was conducted using purposeful sampling in 2012. Thirteen semi-structured interviews were conducted with 6 faculty members and 7 students at Tehran and Iran Universities of Medical Sciences. Data collection and analysis were concurrent

Results: Data analysis revealed four categories and nine subcategories. The categories emerging from individual interviews were "educational structure", "mediating factors", "conceptual understanding", and "professional identity". These categories are explained using quotes derived from the data

Conclusion: Matching the existing educational context and structure with IPE through removing barriers and planning to prepare the required resources and facilities can solve numerous problems associated with implementation and design of interprofessional training programs in Iran. In this way, promoting the development of a cooperative rather than a competitive learning and working atmosphere should be taken into account. The present findings will assist the managers and policy makers to consider IPE as a useful strategy in the integrated medical education and healthcare system

Exploring the practical themes for medical education social accountability in Iran

The purpose of this paper is to explore themes for enhancing socially accountability in medical education. Medical education in Iran experience new challenges due to the enormous influence of changes in technology, development of new methods of teaching and learning, student requirements, patient management, financial credit constraints, and social and economic developments. For responding to these, use of strategic thinking in order to make appropriate decisions is the only solution. Strategic plans need to formulate practical guides which can help accountable to people's reasonable expectations. For this qualitative study, along with the 14[th] national conference on Medical Education in Iran, the opinions of experts were obtained during seven expert panels' group discussions, each lasting four hours and including 10 participants. Data were collected by audiotapes, which were then transcribed. Data analyzed using a thematic content analysis approach. Peer and member checking during analysis and data triangulation from other recent studies were used to increase the findings' trustworthiness. Among more than hundred meaning units groups identified the following eight main themes as affecting the social accountable medical education in Iran: organization of responsive education councils; development of community based courses; development in field training; organization of educational processes; homogeneity in educational rules and regulations; budget management, educational outcomes; educational programs in departments and groups. This study have found the main themes that might affecting social accountable medical education in Iran, where Iranian policymakers should consider those when plan to make changes in medical education and could potentially adopt the proven useful policies and strategies of other countries