In order to keep up with technology and provide students with the knowledge and abilities they need to deliver high-quality medical care, medical education is changing quickly. Medical schools’ early medical training was of poor quality because of a shortage of premises. This advancement has increased the bar for medical education throughout time. Once again, these changes have enhanced the education provided to medical students. Therefore, to grasp how early medical education has changed, it is essential to understand how apprenticeships and educational models have changed.
The changing scope of medical education
To begin with, in the 1800s, the first medical schools were established. There were only four medical schools: Dartmouth, Harvard, Penn, and Kings College. The four were all founded before 1800. Regretfully, after 1800, 73 more schools were established between 1810 and 1876. The training was uncontrolled when these new establishments first opened. In order to control medical education, the American Medical Association reorganized in 1876. Guidelines for physicians and medical students were developed by the American Medical Association (AMA) (Smith & Newman-Sanders, 2022). Before becoming doctors, a new law mandated that all students complete four years of education, get a degree, and complete medical training.
Notably, in ensuring that medical schools have joined the training initiative, schools are now regimented and no longer teaching people who did not qualify. After being accepted, it was the only method used to teach medicine. Chemistry, medical law, medications, human anatomy, pharmacy, the theory and practice of medicine and surgery, and the pregnancies and diseases of women and children were all covered in an eight-month medical course in the middle of the 1800s. Therefore, classes were run for about seven to eight hours, and learners were required to enhance the success of these classes by reading the books provided (Medical Education: past, present, and future). Where a student could pay for all medical fees, they had a guarantee to graduate, which meant that the quality was poor.
Furthermore, as time passed, traditional medical education and beliefs such as memorization of facts started being rejected since the new objectives of medical education provided people with knowledge to evaluate and interpret information independently. Medical educators emphasized that a degree was required for admission, the curriculum was changed to four years, each comprising nine months, and reduced classes happened in terms of learners to smaller groups. Again, frequent examinations were introduced, and learning changed to laboratory practicals and clinical clerkships. Further, around the 1880s and 1890s, all across the country, pioneer schools set up calls for medical education reforms.
Nevertheless, after graduation, there was some hospital education, where all doctors had internships. The US medical graduates from the 1920s were all interned, where they handled light lab and clinical work. Early in the 20th century, work programs were educational. Again, training, discussions, and lectures on inpatient management are all part of the job program. There were three types of jobs: first, the “rotating” internship alternated practices and was the most well-liked. Second, some medical schools and the hospitals they are associated with offer “straight” internships in medicine and surgery. In addition, medical schools in the early 1900s experienced challenges due to the need for surgery, pediatrics, and research. Years of hospital duty constituted “residency” under the training scheme (Smith & Newman-Sanders, 2022). The more experienced trainees covered the introduction of residents to the US in class in 1889 at Johns Hopkins Hospital. Hopkins visited several camps during World War I. By 1930, internships were the sole way for doctors to specialize.
Apprenticeship model versus academic model
In the past, medical education included a three-year apprenticeship. Medical students received their education from a working physician who often let them do non-medical tasks and clinical labor in exchange for payment. Since there was no formal way to test newly graduated physicians, they offered to train other doctors similarly. No rules existed, and they opened until the middle of the 18th century (Sultz & Young, 2014). After their apprenticeship, doctors were awarded certificates, and the academic method was created to support doctors in problem-solving, critical thinking, and information investigation and verification, which was the best thing about a lab-based learning environment.
Improving Medical Education by Understanding History
Moreover, since therapy and medicine are developing, it helps to look back at past achievements and setbacks. Knowing the past will help us pick good doctors in the future since history is a source of information. History also shows us the importance of investigation and its reasons. Our past also taught us about the potential problems in medicine. In addition, the pioneers and institutions of medical education are honored by history. Besides, you need to understand the history and workings of the healthcare system to alter or enhance it.
In conclusion, education in medicine has evolved since the 1800s, when medical knowledge has increased throughout history. It has also aided in the development of improved health programs for everyone. Medical research will constantly improve because of past successes and failures. This industry will improve because medical systems need to adapt to ever-changing technology.
References
Comprehensive history of 3-year and accelerated US medical school programs: a century in review https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6211283/
Medical Education: past, present and future https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3540368/
Smith, S., & Newman-Sanders, C. (2022). Disrupting the Delivery Mechanisms of Traditional Healthcare. In Hybrid Healthcare (pp. 59–69). Cham: Springer International Publishing.
Sultz, H. A., & Young, K. M. (2014). Health care USA: Understanding its organization and delivery (8th ed.). Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning
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