The status of medical informatics in Canadian medical schools

Many have suggested that information technology in its various forms will continue to have an effect on all aspects of medicine, including medical education. If so, the introduction of information technology into medicine brings with it critical educational policy questions. This paper reports on the findings of an inquiry into the impact of information technology on medical education. It reviews the extent to which Canadian and American medical colleges have adopted the 1985 recommendations of the American Association of Medical Colleges. In particular, it looks at the recommendations that "medical informatics should become an integral part of the medical curriculum" and that "the teaching of medical informatics should include opportunities for specific instruction in its fundamentals as well as adequate examples of its application throughout the medical curriculum".