Applying a quality assurance system model to curriculum transformation: transferable lessons learned

As curricula are transformed throughout the world in response to the need for modern medical education, much attention is given to curriculum content and associated teaching, learning and assessment methodologies. However, an important component of any curriculum is its organisational management, how it is all held together, the way the process is conducted and what mechanisms are applied to ensure quality. In 2008, the Faculty of Medicine at Damascus University embarked on a journey of curriculum transformation. The transformation process was specifically and initially based on a quality assurance model. This entailed a concept for realising curriculum transformation; a framework for organisational management, which ensures that the necessary enabling conditions are met and issues of conflicts in roles and responsibilities are resolved; a plan for securing resources and creating the necessary governance structures needed to carry the transformation process forward; and a systematic analysis of risks facing the effective realisation of the transformation process and the corresponding mitigation measures to alleviate their impacts. Although a full evaluation of such an activity produces reliable results only after a period of time, this article demonstrates the principles and structures applied to the initial process based on some of the early lessons learned. We perceive that the lessons learned from this activity are capable of being translated to other Universities, in other similar developing countries; our hope is that others can learn from our experiences.