The teacher and the taught: Medical education in India at the crossroads.

ABSTRACT

In a good medical teacher we would like to see a good doctor, a good teacher, a good orator and, overall, a good human being. Many teachers of yesteryears may not have had all these qualities but they had the ability to instil in the student’s mind a sense of respect and a desire to learn. We now have more of the science and less of the art of teaching. We have failed to live by example. Modern-day consumerism and a single-minded approach to money, coaching classes, destruction of proper medical training by effectively removing internship and housemanship have made students apathetic with no desire to learn. We suggest that there are several ways by which the situation can be remedied including a system of mentoring, incentives and feedback.