Examination performance of medical students: a view from Trinidad

ABSTRACT

We analysed the outcome of the final MBBS (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery) examination oat the St. Augustine Campus, University of the West Indies, for 686 students attempting them for the first time between 1975 and 1986. The mean failure rate was lowest in medicine between 1975 and 1981, in obstetrics and gynaecology between 1982 and 1989 and in surgery during the last 7 years. The students' poor performance in some areas indicates the need for recognizing the importance of creating and establishing an educational climate in which the quality of teaching comes under scrutiny. The marking system in medicine should be reviewed.(AU)