Instruction in research-related topics in U.S. and Canadian medical schools

The authors conducted a study to collect information on the teaching of research-related topics at medical schools. A questionnaire was developed and mailed to appropriate administrators of all accredited United States, Canadian, and Puerto Rican medical schools that asked for information on courses offered in epidemiology, statistics, evaluation of medical literature, and research design. Ninety-seven percent of the medical schools responded to the questionnaire. All but one of the 139 respondents reported offering formal instruction in at least one of the four topics; epidemiology and statistics were offered by 98 percent and 96 percent, respectively, of the responding schools. Training in evaluating medical literature was required by slightly less than half of the responding schools, and research methodology was required by one-third. Future studies should evaluate the effectiveness of such courses.