Training better doctors: New approaches to medical education in the U.S.

Healthcare is more expensive in the U.S. compared with any other country in the world. Despite these high costs, health outcomes and the quality of care are less than optimal, ranking the U.S. behind that of many countries. The way doctors are educated contributes to this problem and new approaches are being sought to prepare doctors to improve the quality and lower the cost of healthcare. The University of Michigan Medical School was selected to be one of eleven schools in the U.S. to develop a completely new curriculum to prepare future doctors. While being ‘smart’ remains important, selection criteria for students also focuses on communication and leadership skills. What was previously a rigid curriculum that all students completed in a similar fashion, is being replaced with a competency-based curriculum that allows greater flexibility.

With the rapid turnover in medical knowledge, it is now more important that students learn how to ask the right questions and where to seek out the answers rather than on the excessive memorization of facts. Students are developed to better connect with their patients, making them feel listened to and cared for. It is important that students are prepared to have crucial conversations with patients, where difficult diagnoses are discussed and a growing variety of care options are navigated. Because healthcare is increasingly being delivered by teams of healthcare professionals working in harmony, students need special training in these skill sets. In addition, the curriculum prepares students to be the change agents that are necessary to transform a healthcare system in the U.S. that is in need of repair. Finally, a growing array of assessment tools that measure the effectiveness of students in these new attributes are being added to the traditional knowledge based test scores.