An Overview of Early Clinical Exposure for Undergraduate Medical Education in Japan / 医学教育

ABSTRACT

Introduction: Early clinical exposure (ECE) is an educational methodology where medical students are exposed to the clinical settings in the undergraduate curriculum. This study aimed to examine the implementation status of ECE at medical schools in Japan. Methods: Based on published syllabi, we investigated the existence, location, and subjects (medical/non-medical staffs) of the training programs in medical schools. Results: Of 78 universities, 74 (95%) offered a total of 173 ECE practical training courses, and 51 (69%) combined on-campus and off-campus ECE training. Regarding the location and subjects, 81% of the on-campus ECE training was for medical personnel, 47% of the off-campus was for non-medical personnel, and 61% of the on- and off-campus was for both medical and non-medical personnel. Conclusions: More medical universities combined ECEs on-campus and off-campus and did not offer exposure only to medical staffs. The national trend can serve as a reference to discuss the circumstance of ECE and to plan ECE courses in the near future.