Virtual Mentor. November 2009

This month in Virtual Mentor

Humanizing Physician Learning

The 100-year-old Flexner Report emphasized the role of basic science in the making of a doctor, producing the most significant change in medical education in the U.S. There has been no transformation of equal impact on how we train physicians to care for patients, which is the topic of this month’s Virtual Mentor. Presuming as a starting point that humanizing physician learning will result in more compassionate care for patients, this month’s authors probe ways to achieve that intermediate goal, from changes in medical student grading and resident work-hour limits to greater ethnic diversity among practicing physicians.

Breaking Tradition: Changing Medical Education to Preserve the Patient-Doctor Relationship Nneka N. Ufere

Are we educating and training doctors in a way that exemplifies how we want them to treat patients?

Can a Pass/Fail Grading System Adequately Reflect Student Progress? Bonnie M. Miller, MD, Adina Kalet, MD, MPH, Ryan C. VanWoerkom, Nicholas Zorko, and Julia Halsey The ideal grading system would measure student achievement of established learning objectives and, at the same time, encourage the development of desirable professional behaviors.

When Are Residents Treated as Doctors Under the Law? Kristin E. Schleiter, JD, LLM Since the 1950s courts have grappled with resident physicians’ liability for medical error. First, they asked, “Are medical residents true physicians?” Then, “Are they general practitioners or specialists?”

Is an MD Enough? Leana S. Wen, MD, MSc No doubt extra-medical education aids in personal satisfaction and career development, but do we really need so many doctors who are trained in business, policy, administration, history, or journalism?

Upcoming Issues

DecemberHIV Care and Ethics
JanuaryNurses and the Medical Team
FebruaryEthics in Surgical Innovation
March Global Health Ethics in Practice

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