[Practical procedures in Oslo '96]

In connection with the planning of a new problem-based curriculum, it was decided to develop a detailed plan for the learning of practical clinical procedures. The process involved faculty members from all clinical disciplines and students. For each procedure, level of proficiency, learning methods, time of learning, and control routines were defined. Specific lists like those presented here may help to assure high and even quality of procedural skills acquired during medical pre-graduate training. Furthermore, they may be necessary to achieve optimal co-ordination between pre-graduate and postgraduate training. We recommend that other medical schools initiate processes similar to the one described in this article. However, emphasis of procedural-skills learning should not lead to less attention being paid to the learning of the many complex, non-technical skills of medical practice that cannot be adequately described in operational terms.