Strategies for developing innovative programs in international medical education. World health perspective

While physicians have always been considered the leaders of the health team, widespread discussions have been held for at least two decades on the reorientation of medical education to ensure that physicians will not only possess adequate scientific and clinical knowledge but also have other equally important qualities to foster worldwide health. For example, physicians should be socially responsible, have a broad viewpoint of the relationship of people to their environment, be trained in the proper mix of preventive and curative disciplines, and have practical skills as social scientists, leaders, and agents of change. While many innovative answers have been found concerning these and other complex educational issues, in developing countries, little change has occurred in the overall direction of medical education: doctors remain the last converts to the cause of primary health care, and time is running out for medical education reforms. In addition, in developing countries, the importance of the medical team leader is lessening as the importance of other members of the team, who are willing to work in the villages away from the great medical schools and hospital complexes, is growing. However, there are innovative programs that show how this unacceptable state of affairs can be changed. The author makes a plea for the planning and programs to make the necessary reforms.