Flexner has fallen: Transitions in medical education system across time, a gradual return to pre-Flexnerian state...

The modern medical education system has gradually evolved starting from 1910 incorporating the suggestions by Abraham Flexner, his public disclosure of the poor conditions at many medical schools provided a means to galvanize all the constituencies needed for reform to occur. He could say what other reformers could not, due to their links to the medical education community. But now we are again going back to a pre-Flexnerian state due to multiple reasons such as gradually diminishing importance of basic science subjects for the students, the decline in the number and quality of investigator initiated research among clinical researchers, lesser emphasis to bedside training by means of detailed clinical examination and making appropriate observation of signs to reach to a diagnosis rather than over reliance on the laboratory tests and radiological modalities for the diagnosis, poor exposure to basic clinical skills starting from college throughout residency and the trend of disrespect and absenteeism from both theoretical and clinical/practical classes. The attitude of students is just to complete their required attendance so that they are not barred from appearing in examinations. This de-Flexnerization trend and regression to pre-Flexnerian era standards, ideologies, structures, processes, and attitudes, are bound to beget pre-Flexnerian outcomes, for you get what you designed for.